42

Agreeing on a kid-friendly movie to watch in our house can be next to impossible. Mickey’s Magical Christmas…“Too babyish,” my son says. A Christmas Prince…”Seen it,” says my daughter. Talking Tom and Friends…”Um… no,” I say. Thankfully, 42, was there to save the evening.  Of course, about halfway through, I realized it was PG-13. Here’s why. Can’t win ‘em all.

Even better than watching the film was when my son, later at bedtime, searched through his bookshelf and came up with two books he had about Jackie Robinson, wanting to read them again.

I am Jackie Robinson by Brad Meltzer (author) and Christopher Eliopoulos (illustrator) begins Jackie’s story as a young boy. It tells of his mother’s generosity with the neighbors, even the ones who didn’t get along. It follows his love of sports and recounts his first professional game:  “Krakk!! Some called it a home run. Others called it history.”

Teammates by Peter Golenbock (author) and Paul Bacon (illustrator) tells the story of Jackie and his teammate Pee Wee Reese. During one particularly hateful game, Reese takes a stand and stands up for Jackie as his teammate. “Maybe tomorrow we'll all wear 42, so nobody can tell us apart,” Reese says. 

Even though I don’t follow professional baseball, I’m going to pay attention next April for Jackie Robinson Day.