Rating: 
Summary: A good discussion book
Review: A yearly softball game between rival schools goes all wrong. The prejudices of a young girl too young to understand her own feelings jeopardizes the life of another young girl on the opposing softball team. But, could it all have been avoided? Probably, if only the other girls on the team had been able to see what was right in front of them.
I believe that this book was very well written. Having the story be told from the viewpoint of each girl on both teams is an excellent idea. The characters seemed very real as they expressed themselves openly throughout the book.
Due to the content of the book, I believe that this would be a good discussion book for young readers. The topic of racism is very touchy, but I believe that this book addresses it in a way that young people can understand and see what harm such feelings can bring.
Rating: 
Summary: Complex and Exciting
Review: An extraordinarily complex story of two girls baseball teams with a terrific plot that any girl should have the pleasure to read. The characters are easy to get to know and extremely realistic, each one with a different personality. Virginia E. Wolff makes characters that can be slightly arrogant yet at the same time your best friend. Chapters had great cliff-hangers and will keep you reading up to the end.
Rating:
Summary: Wolff deserves more recognition!
Review: As a sixth grade teacher, I read quite a few children's novels a month. Wolff's are among the best I've read, though she's never won a major award. Bat 6 is an extraordinary story, told through the perspectives of the players on two rival girls' softball teams- a novel approach. Their reactions to a shocking act of hatred by one of their own are portrayed in a poignant and realistic manner. There is great depth here, and richness. My kids loved it!
Rating:
Summary: So Much Better than its Cover
Review: Baseball is a metaphor.
Bat 6 is not just about war.
Valuable views on bigotry & morality.
Rating: 
Summary: Jon's Review
Review: Bat 6 is a novel that seems to succeed on sheer willpower alone. While many may perceive its primary fault - - a saccharine emphasis on Christianity, the nuclear family, and rural "good ol' days" - - as a strength, more enlightened readers will be, in spite of the book's redeeming qualities, distracted by the way in which minorities, both ethnic and philosophical, are treated as an accepted, forgiven "other" rather than an equally valid alternative to the mainstream. Furthermore, Wolff's depiction of 1950's race relations is idealized, to say the least, and her episodic format might be too disjointed and confusing for some young readers. That said, Bat 6 is an ambitious novel with a worthwhile agenda, and young readers who are willing to plow through its faults should, with some assistance placing the material in a proper context, find it a rewarding experience.
Rating:
Summary: Definitely a discussion book
Review: Bat 6 is a wonderful book. No doubt about that. It's also a challenging book in a number of ways, and it may not be appropriate for every 9-12 year old. (I notice, for example, that the adults who reviewed it loved it, but many of those in the 'appropriate' age group did not.) Frankly, this book may be more suitable and interesting for YAs, not because of the subject matter or the reading level, but because of the book's structure, themes, and style. However, Bat 6 would be an ideal book for reading groups, parent-child reads, and other book discussion groups, and could certainly be used in that context with pre-teens. Bat 6 will also be great for any reader, pre-teen or YA, who enjoys a more serious or challenging book. It will probably also turn off a kid who doesn't like reading, or who reads only action-based, straightforward books. The story is told from many different viewpoints, and it is not a straight narrative; also, the majority of the story takes place outside of the game, in simple, everyday actions. This won't appeal to everyone. The writing style varies from narrator to narrator, with varying levels of grammar and writing skill. Again, this can be difficult for some. Finally, this is not a plot with a standard arc; in most books about a single game, the story builds to the big showdown, and the tension and climax come from the winning or losing of the Big Game. Someone expecting a normal sports book is going to be disappointed with Bat 6. However, the book's depth makes it perfect for reading groups. It provides material to start discussions about morals and values, violence and society, and child-rearing, just as examples. Some interesting topics for discussion would include: * Many people in the book had indications of Shazam's problems and kept them secret; did they make good or bad decisions, and why? Have you ever been in a similar situation? What did you do? * Aki's attitude of shikata ga nai (there is nothing to be done about it) is very different from most of the other characters' reactions. Little Peggy thinks Aki should be mad, whether or not she can change anything. Do you agree with Little Peggy? Why or why not? * How did Shazam (and others like her) learn to hate the Japanese? Was her mother solely responsible? Was Lorelei's father correct when he said that such things are inevitable in a warlike society? Did the Japanese internment camps have anything to do with the problem? Those are just three examples; there are literally dozens more. This isn't going to be a pleasure read for everyone - though some will definitely love it! - but it is an important and moving book, and I encourage parents, teachers, and group leaders to use it. I also encourage everyone to read the author's bio *before* reading the book; Ms. Wolff's comments about what inspired her to write Bat 6 are critical to understanding the book.
Rating:
Summary: 21 Very Different Girls
Review: Bat 6 is an annual softball game played by two teams from small towns in Oregon. The Bat 6 game has been going on since 1899, and all of the girls are determined to win this year's Bat 6 game. The two teams names are Barlow Creek and Bear Creek Ridge. Bear Creek Ridge has won more games than Barlow, and that makes the girls on Barlow even more determined to win this year.
The author chose a very complex way of writing this book. In some parts of the book, you can barely understand what she is trying to say. The narrator changes a lot and that's what makes it even more confusing. I like what she chose to do because you get to hear thoughts from different characters about what is going on in the book. Various characters help tell this amazing, complex story. This book gives a lot of detail and makes you think a lot. It is good for kids eight and older because it might be hard for little children to understand, but I would definitely recommend reading this book.
All the girls on each team are different, just like me and you. There is one girl in particular. This girl's name is Shazam. Her father was killed in World War Two, during the Pearl Harbor attack. She hates all Japanese people now. She thinks all of them are evil and they are out to get her. Shazam joins the Barlow team and definitely stands out from the other players.
Bear Creek Ridge gets a new player too. Her name is Aki and she's Japanese. She can throw left and right and can hit very well. She becomes one of the best players on the team, but the other girls don't mind. They are all kind to one another and they are open to all people.
The Bat 6 game comes so soon. This is the day all of the girls have been waiting for all of their lives. The game is going well; the teams are both doing very well. Everyone is nervous. Towards the end of the game, something happens that will change the girls' lives forever and will go down in Bat 6 history. Something that no one is expecting. A terrible event, maybe the worst the girls had ever seen, something that damaged a person for a long time, maybe even for life.
Rating:
Summary: Bat 6
Review: Bat 6 is an intriguing novel. It is a book you want to cozy up with while Mrs. Wolff explains what it was like to be a girl right after World War Two. You will see how a soft ball game can unite or tear apart two towns. It also shows the cruelty to Japanese-Americans during and after the war. You can watch as a new girl's burning hatred for Japanese can cause her to lose control.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding and Realistic
Review: Bat 6 is an outstanding novel set post WWII.It is very informative and has an excellent description from both sides: a young Japanese girl put in a camp because of her ancestry, and a young American girl who's father was killed on the Arizona, the ship bombed by Japan.Virginia Euwer Wolff does a wonderful job explaining what both girls go through and how they deal with their pain.But these aren't the only girls featured in this exquiset novel.There is Lola and her twin, Lila, Audrey, and Ila Mae, who have all been waiting for that day: May 28,1949, when it would be their turn to play in the 50th annual Bat 6 girls softball game.
Rating:
Summary: okay
Review: Bat 6 is okay. It's about this girl that hates Japanese and injures a Japanese girl. She broke her jaw. I thought it was okay, but it took a long time to get the exciting part and it had abrupt ending.
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