Reviews for A Strong Right Arm: The Story of Mamie Peanut Johnson

The average rating for A Strong Right Arm: The Story of Mamie Peanut Johnson based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2018-02-25 00:00:00 Fernando Fischmann The author is a true baseball fan, and lives in Maryland where one day she happened to meet Mamie Johnson in a shop that sells merchandise representing the glorious history of the Negro Leagues. Mamie was one of three African American women who played professionally in the Negro Leagues. She was a pitcher with the Indianapolis Clowns, and amazing despite being only 5 feet 2. The book is written in the voice of Mamie who tells her story from childhood through the time her short career from 1953-1955 when the Negro Leagues were on the way to folding. There are nice details of a few games where Mamie displays her strategy to win. She is an engaging woman who lived from a young age only to play baseball and succeeded against the odds of dual discrimination against women and African Americans. This is a short book of just over 100 pages. While some writers will take a biography and inflate it with baseball lore and history, Green chose to write a book for young readers and stick to Mamie's story. I would have liked to know about Mamie, but this was an enjoyable and enlightening read. Mamie Johnson passed away in December, 2017.

Review # 2 was written on 2012-10-26 00:00:00 Adahlia Cowan A Strong Right Arm is the true story of Mamie "Peanut" Johnson who was one of only three women to ever play professional baseball. Mamie's baseball career started out as a dream, which then inspired her to overcome any obstacles that came between her and playing in the majors. Her first chance to play with the boys came in elementary school when she played in the Police Athletic League (PAL). When she played baseball people couldn't believe she was a girl and were impressed by her even when they thought she was a boy. After high school, Mamie pitched for the Indianapolis Clowns, which was a team in the Negro League. She got the nickname "Peanut" when she played in the Negro World Series because she was only 5'2" and 92 pounds. I would recommend this book for anyone who is interested in reading an inspiring story about courage, determination and overcoming obstacles. This is also a great book for anyone who likes baseball stories or who is interested in the history of baseball. People who like reading about American history would also like this book because it is based in the 1940's and 1950's and shows what it was like living in a time of segregation. A Strong Right Arm: The Story of Mamie "Peanut" Johnson (Carter G Woodson Honor Book