Balls: Books For Kids
Aren’t balls fun? Whether it is just to bounce around or to play a friendly game or a competitive sport, balls bring happiness to us all. We hope you enjoy this collection of stories about balls and ball games.
In rhyming text a child, home from a game, bids goodnight to all the sights and sounds of a school football game.
When Duck hits the ball into a tree during a friendly game of baseball, he and his animal friends try to work together to get it back.
The BallShark™ Select Baseball Series is a baseball adventure for young players, their families and fans of all ages! Why? Because anyone who has participated in the youth baseball experience knows how it can utterly consume a family.
Katie Casey, a fictional character, helps start the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, which gave women the opportunity to play professional baseball while America was involved in World War II.
This was a cute story about a farm dog that likes to be a part of each farm activity. He works and then he plays. It was fun to see the different farm and also the different types of ball they’d play as well. Very cute story and fun illustrations.
Charlie the Ranch Dog trades in nap time for game time in this sporty adventure by Ree Drummond—#1 New York Times bestselling author, Food Network star, and The Pioneer Woman herself. With expressive illustrations by Diane deGroat, a new delicious recipe from Ree Drummond, and the hilarious antics of Charlie, this picture book is a slam dunk! Life on the ranch means lots of time outside, either helping out with the cattle or tossing around a ball with the family. From football to soccer to basketball, Charlie’s ready to jump into the game and take his team to victory. But Charlie’s favorite part of sports comes after the winning goal when everyone breaks for a postgame meal. He may be more of a benchwarmer when it comes to athletics, but Charlie will always be the MVP of dinnertime!
Winners Never Quit! - The Goodfather - This is an inspiring short story from soccer star Mia Hamm. I think it’s always inspiring to learn about how accomplished people learned to overcome opposition. This story, which seems to be autobiographical in nature and based on Mia’s own experience, teaches important lessons about being a team member and choosing to enjoy the game no matter the outcome. Any young readers who love balls will love seeing so much activity centered around a soccer ball.
ABCs of Balls - “ABCs of Balls,” an alphabet book for preschool children, makes learning ABCs fun for sports fans. From baseball to football, the alphabet book scores with both boys and girls with a lively color scheme, as well as photos of animals and sports equipment. “One of my son’s first words was ‘ball,’ and I wrote the book to make learning his ABCs fun for him,” said author Nina Snyder. U.S. edition. Do you think the World Cup is a soccer game? Then this is the edition for you! If not, look for “ABCs of Balls: U.K. Edition” with a blue cover.
Books That Drive Kids CRAZY!: This Is a Ball - For the giggling masses who love Hervé Tullet’s Press Here, BJ Novak’s The Book With No Pictures, and Bill Cotter’s Don’t Push the Button comes an interactive new series! The Books That Drive Kids CRAZY! series offers parents, teachers, and storytellers a hilarious script for fun reading time together. Book 2, This Is a Ball, is a boldly absurd spin-off of concept books, and an audaciously contrarian invitation for readers to practice deadpan delivery: after all, the picture on the cover clearly shows a cube, not a ball. The page that declares a princess is flying a kite at the beach shows an alien holding a balloon in a city…and on and on. What is WRONG with this silly book? Kids will demand to know—and all readers will be howling with laughter all along the way. With strikingly simple text and art, Books That Drive Kids CRAZY! are ideal picks for emergent readers.
F Is for Fenway Park - A young baseball enthusiast’s centennial tribute to the oldest active ballpark and home of the Boston Red Sox features alphabetically arranged coverage of the field’s history, features and momentous events.
“From A to Z basketball’s history, famous players, and the game’s basics such as dribble, pass, and zone are explained using simple rhymes for each letter topic and expository text filled with details”—Provided by publisher.
Winner of the 2012 Randolph Caldecott Medal
This New York Times Bestseller and New York Times Best Illustrated Book relates a story about love and loss as only Chris Rashcka can tell it. Any child who has ever had a beloved toy break will relate to Daisy’s anguish when her favorite ball is destroyed by a bigger dog. In the tradition of his nearly wordless picture book Yo! Yes?, Caldecott Medalist Chris Raschka explores in pictures the joy and sadness that having a special toy can bring. Raschka’s signature swirling, impressionistic illustrations and his affectionate story will particularly appeal to young dog lovers and teachers and parents who have children dealing with the loss of something special.
Plant-eating dinosaurs face meat-eating dinosaurs in a basketball game at Mastadon Square Garden.
Now anyone can be one of the “boys or girls of summer” and get a home plate view of America’s favorite pastime in H is for Home Run: A Baseball Alphabet. This new offering in our line of children’s alphabet books brings the game of baseball to entertaining and informative life. Sports writer Brad Herzog pairs easy-to-read rhymes with detailed expository so that readers are pitched baseball’s facts, faces, history, and places from A-Z.
New York Times bestselling author and former NFL defensive end Tim Green delivers another baseball tale that will keep kids on the edge of their seats. Perfect for fans of Mike Lupica or Dan Gutman’s Baseball Card Adventure series. Tommy’s the new kid in town, like he’s been so many times before. Now he goes by the name Brock, and he’s having a hard time fitting in, especially when his new friend is the bully from the wrong side of the tracks. Thanks to a prank gone wrong, the baseball coach notices Brock and offers him a place on his failing baseball team. But can Brock prove himself on and off the field before he becomes a new kid…again?
Buddies, Bullies, and Baseball - When Bullies Act Out, It’s Time for Buddies and Baseball. Jack and his fifth grade buddies welcome a new student, Hans, into their group. Hans speaks only a little English, but is enthusiastic and a quick learner. All of them are baseball fans and thrilled that their Colorado Rockies team will be in the World Series. Jack’s happiness is dampened by two bullies in his class, Steve and Cliff. They catch up with Jack each morning taking brownies out of his lunch sack, letting air air out of his bike tires, and even stealing his baseball glove. Is there a way to stop these bullies? Can Jack get his glove back and celebrate at the World Series?
Balls! - Learn about the balls used in basketball, soccer, football, tennis, handball, golf, volleyball, and ping pong: how they’re made, why they look the way they do, some amazing facts about their history…and a bit about the games that use them, too.
Round Like a Ball! - Everyone tries to guess what is round and warm and cold and strong and fragile, until they finally realize it is Earth.
The Boy who Saved Baseball - The fate of a small California town rests on the outcome of one baseball game, and Tom Gallagher hopes to lead his team to victory with the secrets of the now-disgraced player, Dante Del Gato.
Pedro, an avid basketball player, decides to run for class president, challenging a teammate who is also one of the most popular boys in school.
Down the front steps, and out of the house, I wondered how far my blue ball would bounce. Take a trip of fun and adventure with this little blue ball as it goes down the front steps, out the gate and into the big wide world. With vivid illustrations and a fun, sing-song rhythm, your children are sure to love this journey. Recommended for children aged 2 - 5
Describes the life of a red rubber ball and its encounters with a variety of insects and animals.
Touchdown! Learn all about football with this shaped board book that looks and feels like a football! Perfect for anyone who wants to get their child started early, Let’s Play Football teaches little ones the basic terms of the game. Shaped like a football, the book also features a textured, padded cover that feels like the real thing! Photographic interiors feature simple text that focuses on the joy of the game for kids and parents alike. Because having fun is the most important part!
This chunky board book has especially thick flaps that babies can grasp and lift. See and say the names of all things baseball. Simple sentences reinforce future language structure. Illustrations include patterns and details to hold baby’s attention.
Ball - A dog with a ball is one of the most relentlessly hopeful creatures on Earth. After his best little-girl pal leaves for school, this dog hits up yoga mom, baby, and even the angry cat for a quick throw. No luck. Forced to go solo, the dog begins a hilarious one-sided game of fetch until naptime’s wild, ball-centric dream sequence. The pictures speak a thousand words in this comic book-style ode to canine monomania. Ball? Ball.
Duck and Goose - Mr. Staccato - I enjoy most of the other Duck & Goose books, but this one is just about a couple of chicks fighting over what they believe to be an egg and they’re quite rude.
Did you enjoy our children's book recommendations? Did we miss one of your favorites? Let us know in the comments below!