BookDragon Books for the Diverse Reader

Shirley Temple Wong, with her new American name, arrives in her new American home. But making friends proves difficult. She discovers baseball and Jackie Robinson, the baseball legend who, in spite of difficult beginnings, became a national hero. And Shirley learns that she, too, can make a difference in her new world.

According to the Chinese zodiac calendar, 1947 was the Year of the Boar. The work is loosely based on Lord’s own first year in the U.S., which, like Shirley, she spent in Brooklyn, New York.

Review: “Asian American Titles,” What Do I Read Next? Multicultural Literature, Gale Research, 1997

Readers: Middle Grade

Published: 1984