Title: Brothers at Bat: The True Story of an Amazing All-Brother   Baseball Team
Author: Audrey Vernick
Illustrator: Steven Salerno
Publisher: Clarion Books
Publication Date: 2012
Genre/Format: Picture Book/Nonfiction
Classification: Biography


Summary: The Acerra family had sixteen children; twelve were boys. In fact, for twenty-two years their local high school baseball team had at least one of the Acerra boys on the team. For fifteen years, the Acerra brothers were a semi-pro baseball team and coached by their father. This is the story of Anthony, Joe, Paul, Alfred, Charlie, Jimmy, Bobby, Billy, Freddie, Eddie, Bubbie and Louie Acerra of Long Branch, New Jersey.

My thoughts and connections: My two brothers played on the same baseball team and their coach was our father. During baseball season, baseball was the topic of conversation at our house; even at the dinner table.  Looking through the local library, I came across this book as was intrigued by the title--I had never heard of a whole baseball team made entirely made up of brothers! A delight to read and the illustrations take nostalgic look back into a different time.

This book includes both author and illustrator notes about the Acerra brothers. The author reveals how she became interested in the Acerra brothers and their story.
Read together: Grades K-3
Read alone:  Grades 3-12
Other book connections:  Poem Runs: Baseball Poems, by Dan Florian; Baseball Saved Us, by Ken Mochizuki; H is for Home Run: A Baseball Alphabet, by Brad Herzog.

Snippet of Text:
In one New Jersey town near the ocean, back in the 1920s and 30s, you could hear the same door slam over and over. Three brothers raced out. Out went three more. And more. And still more. It sounds like a fairy tale: twelve baseball-playing brothers. But Anthony, Joe, Paul, Alfred, Charlie, Jimmy, Bobby, Billy, Freddie, Eddie, Bubbie and Louie Acerra were real. (Unnumbered pages)

In 1938, the brothers ranged in age from seven to thirty-two. The oldest nine formed their own semi-pro team and competed against other New Jersey teams. Their father coached them and never missed a game. Their uniforms all said the same thing: Acerras. (Unnumbered pages)

Connections to writing:  Expository-- (1) Most students have a favorite baseball team. Write to explain why your team is your favorite. (2) Create an ABC book of baseball terms.

Connections to writing : Narrative-- (1) You are a member of a professional sports team. Write a letter home about your life on the road.
Connections to other content areas: Physical education--professional sports, Social Studies,

Translated to other languages: No
Other formats: None

I borrowed this book from the local library.