Ever since Henry “Hank” Aaron was a boy, he wanted to play baseball. But growing up during the 1940s in segregated Mobile, Alabama, Henry couldn’t play on a real diamond until one designated “Colored Only” finally opened. Even though he held his bat the wrong way, Henry played every chance he had, inspired by Jackie Robinson, the first Black man to play in the major leagues. Despite racism, Henry persisted, his determination—and eventually a change in the way he held the bat—landing him in the minor leagues. Hank finally achieves his dream of playing in the big leagues when the Milwaukee Braves put him in a starting position at right field, batting leadoff, and his career took off. Matt Tavares offers a captivating account of Henry Aaron’s baseball career through straightforward text and large, multiple-perspective illustrations. Tavares gives insight into the injustices Black athletes endured and the progress they fought for during the 1950s and 1960s, and includes an author’s note that further describes Hank Aaron’s involvement in the civil rights movement. (Ages 6–10)

Matt Tavares hits one out of the park with this powerful tale of a kid from the segregated south who would become baseball’s home-run king.

Before he was Hammerin’ Hank, Henry Aaron was a young boy grow ing up in Mobile, Alabama, with what seemed like a foolhardy dream: to be a big-league baseball player. He didn’t have a bat. He didn’t have a ball. And there wasn’t a single black ball player in the major leagues. B ut none of this could stop Henry Aaron. In a captivating biography of Henr y Aaron’s young life – from his sandlot days through his time in the Negro Leagues to the day he played his first spring training game for the Braves – Matt Tavares offers an inspiring homage to one of baseball’s all-time greats.