About this item
An engaging picture book that really hits home - just in time for baseball season!Zachary is amazed by the sights and sounds at Fenway Park when he goes to his first major-league baseball game. But when his father catches a foul ball at the game and gives it to Zachary, something really amazing happens - suddenly, he finds himself on the pitcher's mound, wearing a Red Sox uniform! As long as Zachary has the ball, all of his baseball fantasies seem to come true. But can he hold onto its magic? With simple text and striking black-and-white pencil drawings, Matt Tavares brings to life the fantasy of every baseball fan and evokes the spirit of a beloved national pastime.
About the Author
Matt Tavares was born in Boston, and grew up surrounded by books and reading. From the time he was very young, his mother read to him every night, and his family made countless trips to the public library. Years later, as a studio art major at Bates College, he rediscovered his love for picture books, and decided to try to make his own. For his senior thesis project, Matt wrote and illustrated a story called Sebastian's Ball, which eventually became Zachary's Ball, Matt's first published picture book. Zachary's Ball went on to win a Massachusetts Book Award Honor, and was named one of Yankee Magazine's 40 Classic New England Children's Books. Since then, Matt has published eighteen more books and has won several awards, including three Parents' Choice Gold Awards, an Orbis Pictus Honor, and two ALA Notable books. His artwork has been exhibited at the Museum of American Illustration, the Brandywine River Museum, and the Mazza Museum of Picture Book Art. When Matt's not working in his studio on his latest book project, he travels the country speaking (and drawing) at schools, libraries, conferences, and bookstores. He has presented at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Eric Carle Museum, the White House Easter Egg Roll, and he's even done a few book signings at Fenway Park. Matt lives in Maine with his wife, Sarah, and their two daughters.
