We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball (Coretta Scott King Author Award Winner)

In this New York Times bestselling classic, Caldecott Medal-winning artist Kadir Nelson tells the incredible story of baseball's unsung heroes -- perfect for celebrating the centennial anniversary of the Negro Leagues!

Winner of the Coretta Scott King Author Award and Robert F. Siebert Award as well as a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor

Featuring nearly fifty iconic oil paintings and a dramatic double-page fold-out, an award-winning narrative, a gorgeous design and rich backmatter, We Are the Ship is a sumptuous, oversize volume for all ages that no baseball fan should be without. Using an inviting first-person voice, Kadir Nelson shares the engaging story of Negro League baseball from its beginnings in the 1920s through its evolution, until after Jackie Robinson crossed over to the majors in 1947.

The story of Negro League baseball is the story of gifted athletes and determined owners, of racial discrimination and international sportsmanship, of fortunes won and lost; of triumphs and defeats on and off the field. It is a perfect mirror for the social and political history of black America in the first half of the twentieth century. But most of all, the story of the Negro Leagues is about hundreds of unsung heroes who overcame segregation, hatred, terrible conditions, and low pay to do one thing they loved more than anything else in the world: play ball.


Author: Kadir Nelson
Binding Type: Hardcover
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 01/08/2008
Pages: 96
Weight: 1.88lbs
Size: 11.10h x 11.30w x 0.60d
ISBN: 9780786808328


Award: Orbis Pictus Award - Honor Book
Award: Bluebonnet Awards - Nominee
Award: Coretta Scott King Award - Winner
Award: Coretta Scott King Award - Honor Book
Award: Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award - Winner
Award: Beehive Awards - Nominee
Award: Capitol Choices: Noteworthy Books for Children and Teens - Recommended
Award: Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Award - Nominee
Award: Cybils - Finalist