Out of Left Field (Gordon Family Saga #3)

by Ellen Klages (Author)

Reading Level: 4th − 5th Grade

A story about the fight for equal rights in America's favorite arena: the baseball field!

Every boy in the neighborhood knows Katy Gordon is their best pitcher, even though she's a girl. But when she tries out for Little League, it's a whole different story. Girls are not eligible, period. It is a boy's game and always has been. It's not fair, and Katy's going to fight back. Inspired by what she's learning about civil rights in school, she sets out to prove that she's not the only girl who plays baseball. With the help of friendly librarians and some tenacious research skills, Katy discovers the forgotten history of female ball players. Why does no one know about them? Where are they now? And how can one ten-year-old change people's minds about what girls can do?

Set in 1957--the world of Sputnik and Leave It to Beaver, saddle shoes and "Heartbreak Hotel"--Out of Left Field is both a detailed picture of a fascinating historic period and a timelessly inspiring story about standing up for equality at any age.

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Kirkus Reviews

Starred Review
A grand slam in every way.

Booklist

Starred Review
In her newest novel, set against the backdrop of the space race, acclaimed historical fiction author Klages returns in fine form.

School Library Journal

Gr 4-7--"Keep asking questions. Never settle for being ordinary." Katy Gordon is anything but ordinary. She's got a special Sunday pitch that will strike out just about anybody, but her local Little League won't let her on the team just because she's a girl. Katy sets out to change their minds; after all, it's 1957 and the world is changing. To back up her legal argument (including a phone call with an ACLU lawyer), she uncovers the history of the All-American Girls Baseball League during WWII, the Bloomer Girls teams of the 1890s, and the young women who played in the Negro Leagues throughout the 1940s and 50s. Spurred on by her intelligent and independent single mother, Katy incorporates all of these forgotten women into a school project. Whenever Katy makes a new discovery, her excitement is contagious. The 1957 setting, a particularly tumultuous year for the U.S., is incorporated seamlessly into the narrative. The narrative, though rich in details, never gets bogged down. This title also includes substantial back matter, such as a list of female ballplayers, an author's note, a glossary of baseball terms, and further recommended reading. Klages gives Katy a strong voice and helps spotlight the history of marginalized women in sports history. VERDICT Featuring powerful female characters, this is historical fiction that doesn't drag for a second. A fine purchase.--Kerri Williams, Sachem Public Library, Holbrook, NY

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Publishers Weekly

Starred Review

Ten-year-old Kathleen Curie Gordon's knuckling curveball is so good it wins her a Little League tryout--wearing her cap, Katy can pass as a boy. She makes the team but is outed by another player's parent; it's 1957 and league rules expressly prohibit girls. Klages interweaves Katy's story with the current events she's studying in fifth grade: the space race, desegregation, and the move of the Giants from New York to San Francisco, where they displace Katy's favorite team, the minor league Seals. When Katy decides to write her history paper on women in baseball (in part to refute the league official's claim that baseball "has always been the sole province of male athletes"), she uncovers a trove of information about female stars. Katy's mom, a chemistry professor who has faced her own discrimination battles, is particularly well drawn, as she empowers her daughter to fight injustice. By the time she affirms, "Other people's rules about what girls can and cannot do have never applied in this house," whether Katy gets to play or not is somewhat less important than what she has learned about resistance. Ages 8-12. (May)

Copyright 2018 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

"There are writers with unique voices and important things to say about people of all kinds and shapes and minds. Ellen Klages is one of those writers. Ignore her at your peril."—Neil Gaiman, author of Newbery Award winner The Graveyard Book

"Out of Left Field shows us, with heart and precision, what it really takes to make the world change. Katy Gordon is my hero. She's your hero, too."—William Alexander, National Book Award winner

"Heartwarming, fresh, and full of surprises. Readers of all ages will cheer for funny, feisty Katy Gordon as she chases her big-league dreams. Ellen Klages hits this one out of the park!"—Jennifer L. Holm, three-time Newbery Honor recipient

"They say that history is written by the winners. I say hidden histories, like the one ten-year-old Katy Gordon uncovers in this book, are writ large by winning authors like Ellen Klages. A book that's part sports, part rabble-rousing activism, and all around amazing."—Betsy Bird, School Library Journal blogger and editor of Funny Girl

A Junior Library Guild selection

Selected praise for Ellen Klages's previous middle grade novels:

"An intense but accessible page-turner. . . . History and story are drawn together with confidence."—The Horn Book, starred review

"Klages has a gift for opening moral dilemmas to middle-graders. First-rate historical fiction."—Publishers Weekly, starred review
Ellen Klages
ELLEN KLAGES is the author of two acclaimed historical novels: The Green Glass Sea, which won the Scott O'Dell Award and the New Mexico Book Award; and White Sands, Red Menace, which won the California and New Mexico Book awards. Her story Basement Magic won a Nebula Award, and Wakulla Springs, co-authored with Andy Duncan, was nominated for the Nebula, Hugo, and Locus awards, and won the World Fantasy Award for Best Novella. She is a graduate of Second City's Improv program, and has a degree in Philosophy from the University of Michigan, leading to many odd jobs that began with the letter P (proofreader, photographer, painter, pinball arcade manager). She lives in San Francisco, in a small house full of strange and wondrous things.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780425288597
Lexile Measure
640
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Viking Books for Young Readers
Publication date
May 20, 2018
Series
Gordon Family Saga
BISAC categories
JUV016150 - Juvenile Fiction | Historical | United States - 20th Century
JUV014000 - Juvenile Fiction | Girls & Women
JUV032010 - Juvenile Fiction | Sports & Recreation | Baseball
Library of Congress categories
Fiction
History
20th century
Baseball
JUVENILE FICTION / Historical / United States
San Francisco (Calif.)
Sex role
Single-parent families
JUVENILE FICTION / Girls & Women
Women's rights
JUVENILE FICTION / Sports & Recreation / Base
Little League baseball
All-American Girls Professional Baseball Leag

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