"With its winning combination of satisfying story and cinematic illustrations, Mudball should make a splash with underdogs and baseball fans alike." —The Horn Book
Andy Oyler is the shortest player on the Minneapolis Millers baseball team, not to mention in the whole league. And no matter how hard he tries, he can’t seem to get a hit. But one fateful spring day in 1903, a sudden change in the weather leads to a change in Andy Oyler’s luck, and Andy discovers that the shortest player can become the game’s biggest hero. Matt Tavares brings a legend to life — and offers a bibliography and author’s note about this all-American true story.
"Tavares's subtly hued, stylized watercolors effectively evoke the era as well as the tale's highly charged action and emotion. With his expert use of close-up and full-diamond views, he creates a visual pacing that adds to the suspense. A concluding note offers the caveat that documentation on the 'shortest home run in baseball history' is, well muddy, and that this may well be a baseball tall tale. Whether fact or fiction, it is a refreshing and rousing story, with illustrations that will sweep up young spectators." —Publishers Weekly
Matt Tavares is the illustrator of 'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, and the author-illustrator of ZACHARY'S BALL and OLIVER'S GAME. He says of MUDBALL, "We have all found ourselves in situations where we feel helpless, small, and ready to quit—but as Little Andy Oyler's story demonstrates, good fortune may rain down on us when we least expect it."
"With its winning combination of satisfying story and cinematic illustrations, Mudball should make a splash with underdogs and baseball fans alike." —The Horn Book
Andy Oyler is the shortest player on the Minneapolis Millers baseball team, not to mention in the whole league. And no matter how hard he tries, he can’t seem to get a hit. But one fateful spring day in 1903, a sudden change in the weather leads to a change in Andy Oyler’s luck, and Andy discovers that the shortest player can become the game’s biggest hero. Matt Tavares brings a legend to life — and offers a bibliography and author’s note about this all-American true story.
Praise
"Tavares's subtly hued, stylized watercolors effectively evoke the era as well as the tale's highly charged action and emotion. With his expert use of close-up and full-diamond views, he creates a visual pacing that adds to the suspense. A concluding note offers the caveat that documentation on the 'shortest home run in baseball history' is, well muddy, and that this may well be a baseball tall tale. Whether fact or fiction, it is a refreshing and rousing story, with illustrations that will sweep up young spectators." —Publishers Weekly
Author
Matt Tavares is the illustrator of 'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, and the author-illustrator of ZACHARY'S BALL and OLIVER'S GAME. He says of MUDBALL, "We have all found ourselves in situations where we feel helpless, small, and ready to quit—but as Little Andy Oyler's story demonstrates, good fortune may rain down on us when we least expect it."
