A Whole New Ballgame. By Phil Bildner. Farrah Straus Giroux/Macmillan Children's, 2015. 256 pages. $15.99.
Recently, I blogged about books set during Hurricane Katrina. One of these books was Marvelous Cornelius (Chronicle, 2015) by Phil Bildner. Today, I am featuring another book by Phil Bildner, but this one is a middle grade chapter book. (Yes, Phil has been busy!) It's called A Whole New Ballgame (MacKids, 2015). Set in a 5th grade classroom, this work of contemporary realistic fiction centers around the friendship between two main characters, Rip and Red, who have a very strong bond. Their teacher (and their basketball coach) Mr. Acevedo is also an integral character in the story.
Read more about the book here.
I received an advanced copy of this book last spring and had the opportunity to interview Phil Bildner, himself a former middle school teacher in New York City Public Schools for 11 years. My questions are in black print and his replies are in blue.
You've published many successful books -- Shoeless Joe being a favorite of my students. How does A WHOLE NEW BALLGAME fit into your bibliography?
Back in 2004, the students of Texas chose my book as their favorite book. My first book, Shoeless Joe & Black Betsy won the Texas Bluebonnet Award. It’s one of the reasons why I love Texas so much (and why I have a bluebonnet tattooed on my forearm).
Winning the Bluebonnet Award was like leading off a game with a grand slam homerun. It created so many opportunities for me. It opened the door to all of my Texas school visits. A decade later, I still visit more schools in Texas than anywhere else. Some districts and schools I’ve visited six and seven times. The award also enabled me to write more baseball. I wrote two other baseball picture books, The Shot Heard ‘Round the World and The Unforgettable Season, and Loren Long and I wrote the middle grade series, Sluggers.
While I love baseball, I wrote about other things, too. My last picture book was The Soccer Fence: A Story of Friendship, Hope and Apartheid in South Africa, and my current one is Marvelous Cornelius: Hurricane Katrina and the spirit of New Orleans.
A Whole New Ballgame is my next other thing. It’s about basketball -- which was always my favorite sport -- and teaching. I now get to write a four-book middle grade series about two of my favorite things, basketball and teaching. I get to fill these books with diverse characters, relevant matters, and meaningful times.
Boo-yah!
What impact has your teaching career had on your work as an author? How does it help during author visits? You were wonderful with our students!
First, thanks for the compliment!
Second, full disclosure, I visited Cynthia’s school last November, and let me tell you, she knows how to host an author visit. I had custom-made Phil Bildner water bottles! At the visit, she showed me Raul Colon’ s Draw! That’s where I first saw one my favorite picture books from 2014.
Book memories.
Okay, back to the question.
I’m often asked do I miss being a teacher? Do I miss the classroom? Absolutely, I do. One of the things I miss most is developing that bond with a student and seeing that student learn and blossom from September to June. I also miss sharing books with students – placing a book in a student’s hand, discussing a character, making text-to-real-world connections.
My school visits definitely help fill that void, but only to a point.
I consider myself a teacher first and an author second. In many ways, I see my writing career as a means to an end. I love being an author, and everyday, I acknowledge how fortunate I am that I get to write for a living. But truth be told, the writing is merely the vehicle that allows me to still be a teacher, a teacher on my terms. I visit schools, connect with kids, and talk about books, reading, and life.
Of course, my classroom experiences help my school visits. I have a small window of opportunity to make a lasting and impactful expression. My classroom time has shown me how to maximize this time. In addition, as a former teacher, you go into the visits with realistic expectations as to how the day will unfold. You have a greater willingness to roll with the punches. You have a much greater appreciation and understanding of the herculean effort that goes into coordinating an author visit.
Basketball plays an important part in A WHOLE NEW BALLGAME. What connections do you make between sports and education?
I’m so glad you asked this question!
One of the “twists” earlier on in A Whole New Ballgame is that new teacher Mr. Acevedo is also new basketball coach, Coach Acevedo. There are so many parallels that can be drawn between a well-managed classroom and a well-coached team. There are also many overlapping life lessons, life lessons kids don’t even realize they’re learning.
Both settings are ideal for community building. You learn what it means to be part of a community. You interact with others – sometimes with individuals you don’t necessarily know or like -- you forge relationships, and you work toward common goals.
The cornerstones of community building are the foundations of teamwork. The most effective teams are made up of individuals who trust one another, listen to one another, and care about one another. Find me a classroom where those elements exist, and I’ll show you a classroom that not only functions, but thrives.
The best teams and the most effective classrooms then take that caring to the next level. The caring turns to empathy. The individual members are able to walk in each other’s footsteps. This enables us to persevere in the face of disappointment and to show resilience and resolve when things don’t work out the way we want.
What makes a great teacher?
The ability to listen.
Earlier this year, I read Lynda Mullaly Hunt’s terrific new middle grade novel, Fish in a Tree. When Lynda was a guest on Matthew Winner’s podcast, “Let’s Get Busy,” she talked about how every child has a currency and how every kid wants to be seen.
I wholeheartedly agree. Kids want to be heard. They want someone to listen to them. They want someone to value and respect what they have to say.
I am grateful to Phil for letting me interview him on my blog and I look forward to many more books from him! And as a Texas librarian, I appreciate his love for our state!
I am also grateful for his kind words about his author visit to my school library last year. One of the many great parts of the day was sharing books with Phil! You can read about that visit here.
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