Publishers Weekly
★ 07/08/2024
In this stirring biography of Puerto Rican baseball player Roberto Clemente (1934–1972), Alonso celebrates the athlete’s contributions to baseball and human rights. The smartly paced narrative kicks off with Clemente’s childhood in Puerto Rico (“Roberto lives to swing/ and slide./ To catch./ To throw./ To run”), then follows his arc to the major league, joining the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1955. Many fans appreciate the player’s “bold style, but not everyone is quick to embrace a Black man from Puerto Rico.” Acrylic, colored pencil, and crayon illustrations by Gutierrez impart vibrancy to lively art that emphasizes the figure’s athletic ability and connection with the public—one spread shows Clemente feted inside a colorful heart that represents Puerto Rico but sitting alone in the blues and grays of a Pittsburgh that won’t acknowledge him. Refusing to accept this treatment, Clemente insists, “I represent the common people of America. So I am going to be treated like a human being.” An author’s note, timeline, and more conclude. Ages 7–10. (Aug.)
From the Publisher
★ "The triumphant picture book biography skillfully weaves an underdog sports story with political context, prioritizing Roberto’s love of the game while also exploring how white supremacy played into his professional and personal life. Gutierrez’s celebratory art is a riot of movement and color, with fluid lines and painterly swoops zinging through the saturated pages; patterned but balanced backgrounds create a contained energy that matches Roberto’s exuberant but disciplined approach to the game. His tragic death on one of his many humanitarian trips is detailed in the backmatter, but overall, Alonso, a career sports journalist, gives readers a joyful, affectionate portrayal of a sports hero told with the reverence of a true fan." —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, starred review
★ "In this stirring biography of Puerto Rican baseball player Roberto Clemente (1934–1972), Alonso celebrates the athlete’s contributions to baseball and human rights. The smartly paced narrative kicks off with Clemente’s childhood in Puerto Rico...then follows his arc to the major league, joining the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1955...Acrylic, colored pencil, and crayon illustrations by Gutierrez impart vibrancy to lively art that emphasizes the figure’s athletic ability and connection with the public." —Publishers Weekly, starred review
"Admiring biographies of the great baseball player and humanitarian for younger readers abound, but here sports journalist Alonso takes a different angle...Though she covers on-field highlights up to his three-thousandth hit, it’s Clemente’s insistent identity as a Latin American in the face of jeering references to his accent in the press and efforts to rename him “Bob”—not to mention poor treatment on the road due to Jim Crow laws—that to her (and many Latine ball players since) make him an inspirational figure. 'Bold style' is a good way to characterize Gutierrez’s illustrations, too, as the sports star swats powerfully, runs bases, and makes catches in sinuous blurs of action or off-the-field poses within intricately interwoven frames and strong, swirling backdrops." —Booklist
"Sports journalist Alonso weaves Spanish words into the story and ratchets up the narrative’s energy with play-by-play descriptions of Clemente’s athleticism. Caldecott honoree Gutierrez’s vibrant mixed-media illustrations evoke urban murals or Afro-Caribbean fabrics, pulsing with swirls, designs, and actions saturated in color and fueled by emotion... an inspirational, fast-paced biography of a man who broke barriers for athletes of color."—Kirkus Reviews
