12 Reasons to Love the St. Louis Cardinals

April 1, 2016

Gr 5-8-The excitement of baseball unfolds through the historical highlights of individual teams in this engaging series. There is enough of an inclusion of stats and figures to give baseball fanatics a vivid view of the lifespan of each team. "Think About It" sections at the end of most chapters inspire speculative thinking. The books might seem a little disjointed, as they don't follow definite time lines, instead hopping from modern to historical persons (though there is a "Key Dates" time line at the end of each book). Young readers who are really huge fans won't mind this, even if adults find it a little wonky. A large amount of informational asides can break up the narrative of the stories told in each section. In general, the information is more in-depth than many other books about the featured teams one might pull off the shelf. VERDICT Definitely buy the ones for big-name teams and teams with local appeal.

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