We are the Ship

A non-fiction book about the history of Negro League Baseball written by Kadir Nelson. A book that will help teachers teach the history of racism in the United States. The book is about the long history of African Americans playing baseball since the early 1900s in the North and South. Rube Foster was a manager that helped bring together the first Negro baseball leagues. He did this by having the owners of the black baseball teams agree to a set of rules that would prevent poor conduct. This led to stable leagues that eventually led to competition with the white owned African American leagues. Things were difficult for the players while traveling to each game because they faced discrimination and segregation. Many times, they could not even get a glass of water, food, or a place to stay. Time would pass and the Great Depression caused the Negro League to disintegrate. After Rube Foster passed Gus Greenlee put the Negro National League back together. World War II came, and many players ended up being drafted into the military. On their return from war the crowds came to watch in even bigger numbers and with this so did the idea of integrating baseball. It led to Jackie Robinson being the first African American to play in the majors. The illustrations and colors are recollective of this era.

Nelson, K. (2008). We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball. Jump at the Sun/Hyperion Books for Children.