Painting the Game

In this middle grade novel by Newbery Award-winning author Patricia MacLachlan in her "signature lyric language delivered in spare but satisfying prose" (Booklist), a young girl tries to untangle her love of baseball from her complicated relationship with her professional pitcher father.

Lucy's father is a minor league baseball player, a professional pitcher hoping to get called up to the majors, and Lucy inherited his passion for the game. But she's never played pitcher. She worries her skills would be compared to her dad's and she'd never measure up. And his pitching may mean big things for his career and their family, but it's also what keeps him away from home so much of the year. Sometimes, Lucy isn't sure what would be worse: being bad at pitching or being great.

Still, this summer, Lucy wants to learn to throw the perfect knuckleball. She wakes up at the crack of dawn to practice in secret, without her friends Tex and Robin--or even the goats who watch them play. Even as she trains relentlessly, Lucy wonders if she'll ever feel brave enough to share her progress with her mom or dad. Can she prove to them, and herself, that she has what it takes?

Author: Patricia MacLachlan
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Published: 04/16/2024
Pages: 144
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.55lbs
Size: 8.30h x 5.70w x 0.80d
ISBN: 9781534499942

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 3.2
Point Value: 2
Interest Level: Middle Grade
Quiz #/Name: 523666 / Painting the Game


Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 01/22/2024
Booklist 02/15/2024 pg. 67
Kirkus Reviews 05/01/2024

About the Author
Patricia MacLachlan (1938-2022) was the author of many well-loved novels and picture books, including Sarah, Plain and Tall, winner of the Newbery Medal; its sequels, Skylark and Caleb's Story; Edward's Eyes; The True Gift; Waiting for the Magic; White Fur Flying; Fly Away; and Snow Horses. She lived in western Massachusetts.