Rating: 
Summary: 21 Very Different Girls
Review: Bat 6 is the name of an annual 6th grade girls' softball game between two neighboring Oregon towns. It was started in 1899 by the women of the two towns in an effort to get the menfolk of each town talking to each other. As this book opens, it is the beginning of the 1949 season, and girls on both teams are preparing for the big 50th annual game. New on the Bear Creek Ridge team is Aki, a Japanese-American girl whose family has just returned from the concentration camp where they lived during WWII. New to the Barlow team is Shazam, who lost her father when Pearl Harbor was bombed in 1941. The very first line of the book, "Now that it's over, we are telling," sets up the expectation of something catastrophic happening and that tension is well maintained throughout the book as the girls on each team share bits and pieces of what happened at the Big Game. Bat 6 was a worthwhile read exploring themes of racial tension, rivalry, and the effect of war on the mind of a child. However, it was difficult going. In spite of chapter headings it was hard to keep track of who was narrating and what team they were on. In fact it took me four chapters just to realize that these girls were on different teams, so I had to backtrack in my reading and pay more attention to chapter headings. A table is provided at the beginning of the book which lists each girl on each team, but to have to flip back and refer to it every time the narrator's voice changes interrupts the reading experience and makes a book like this work rather than fun. This may be a good read-aloud, but it would be an unusual 9-12 year old who would be able to keep track of the story.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, but confusing
Review: Bat 6 is the name of an annual 6th grade girls' softball game between two neighboring Oregon towns. It was started in 1899 by the women of the two towns in an effort to get the menfolk of each town talking to each other. As this book opens, it is the beginning of the 1949 season, and girls on both teams are preparing for the big 50th annual game. New on the Bear Creek Ridge team is Aki, a Japanese-American girl whose family has just returned from the concentration camp where they lived during WWII. New to the Barlow team is Shazam, who lost her father when Pearl Harbor was bombed in 1941. The very first line of the book, "Now that it's over, we are telling," sets up the expectation of something catastrophic happening and that tension is well maintained throughout the book as the girls on each team share bits and pieces of what happened at the Big Game. Bat 6 was a worthwhile read exploring themes of racial tension, rivalry, and the effect of war on the mind of a child. However, it was difficult going. In spite of chapter headings it was hard to keep track of who was narrating and what team they were on. In fact it took me four chapters just to realize that these girls were on different teams, so I had to backtrack in my reading and pay more attention to chapter headings. A table is provided at the beginning of the book which lists each girl on each team, but to have to flip back and refer to it every time the narrator's voice changes interrupts the reading experience and makes a book like this work rather than fun. This may be a good read-aloud, but it would be an unusual 9-12 year old who would be able to keep track of the story.
Rating:
Summary: Bat 6
Review: Bat 6 is told from the point of view of two softball teams from two neighboring towns that play a championship game every year. In 1949 each team had a new player. Aki, who just returned from the internment camps, joined one team, and Shazam, whose father was killed at Pearl Harbor, joined the other. Shazam blamed Aki for killing her father because she was Japanese. At the championship softball game, the hatred came out and a horrific event happened. This book is a very creative story that I liked very much but the pace was a little too slow for my taste. The author also skipped around too much as she went from one girl's view to another's. I would recommend this book to children of ages 10-13 because of the language and the complex story.
Rating: 
Summary: Its a great book about softball
Review: Bat 6 takes place in two small towns in Oregon. There is a softball game between two schools Barlow Road Grade School and Bear Creek Ridge Grade School.They both have found a new phenomenal player.One is Shirley(Shazam)and the other is Aki Mikami.Shirley lost her father in the of Pearl Harbor and shows her hate for the Japanese.Aki had been sent to a camp where the Americans sent Japanese.They had both come back in time for the Bat 6(the softball game every sixth grade girl is looking forward to).Something really important happens in the game...but you have to read to find out.
Rating:
Summary: Batter Up
Review: Bat 6, by Virginia Euwer Wolf, is a fun but heart-breaking tale of life a few years after WWII from children's perspectives. Bat 6 is a softball game played by the 6th grade girls of two neighboring small-town American elementary schools, Barlow Road Grade School and Bear Creek Ridge Grade School. There is a new girl on each team, Shazam on the Barlow Road team, and Aki on the Bear Creek Ridge team. Both have been greatly affected by the war. Sadly, the scars of the war will not heal so easily when the girls meet for the first time at Bat 6. It is going to be one great game!
To read this book is to have a look into what life was like after WWII, which is an interesting time period for a child today. In these two towns, being rich is owning a refrigerator. Now it is owning an estate, or a huge business. Life was very different back then. Something surprising to me was the amount of rights women had back then. That was more than 60 years ago, but the women did have many rights. The women in the book were on the town council, actively participated in church activities and the whole Bat 6 game was a bunch of girls playing softball. That is one similarity to daily life back then. They also had hate crimes. The hate crimes in this time period were committed against Japanese-Americans, because of the war between the USA and Japan. The Japanese were put into camps for their safety against hate crimes. One of the main characters, Aki, is Japanese-American and had been put into a camp. Another reason to read this book is to see the world through the eyes of little girls. One goes on a journey with them while each individual girl puts the pieces together about the war. The girls may be small, but they have a huge concept to comprehend. The two new girls, Aki and Shazam, have the most to learn. Sadly Shazam's father had been killed at Pearl Harbor and she holds it against the Japanese, in other words, she holds it against Aki. The girls each tell the many tales of 6th grade from their own perspective. It is a good way to see different points of view. This book provides a whole new look into the world.
One less appealing aspect of the book is its format. There are entries from each girl and when deep into the book, the switch between entrees is not very noticeable. It is confusing when two different points of view are read, and one thinks they are from the same person, but they are not. Another confusing aspect of the format is that the chapters switch from the girls on one team to the girls on the other team. Despite the format flaw, the plot is inspiring and Bat 6 is well written. It is highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Not Just for Girls
Review: I read this book for a Children's Literature class at Kent State University. At first I didn't think that I could gain anything from reading children's stories but I was wrong. Now, I was interested in reading this story even before I got started. Being a baseball fan and former softball player I couldn't wait to read a book about females playing my favorite sport. Another aspect that peeked my curiosity was the time period. I have always found myself intrigued by the post WWII era. Although I was hooked from the beginning I was pleasantly surprised at the underlying complexity of the plot. I was somewhat unprepared for what was beneath surface but was very excited to see some depth to the story. The message being conveyed about tolerance was clear so that children could see it but it wasn't beat you over the head so adults wouldn't feel like it was too sugary sweet.
Rating:
Summary: Okay
Review: I really liked this book because of the message the author wastrying to tell, but it was really confusing trying to follow all the21 girls and they're thoughts. I would reccomend this book to people that really like to read so they won't get too confused and give up.
Rating:
Summary: Bat 6 Review
Review: I think Bat 6 is a really good book. it is about two sixth grade softball teams who play a game aginats eath other every year. i thinnk it is a really good book by vorginia Wolff. Read it today!
Rating: 
Summary: Bat 6 was a confusing read
Review: I was hoping for a great read when I picked up "Bat 6" in December. I found it hard to follow, because of the jumpy narration (the book is narrated by 21 different girls). However, this book taught a very important lesson about racism and how it affects everyone.
Rating:
Summary: Racism Between Young Girls
Review: If you're into sports, and want to learn some history, this is a must buy book! In 1949, Bear Creek Ridge, Vs. Barlow School girls, play in a softball game that had been played every year since 1900. On one team there is Aki, who is Japanese American, and on the other team there is Shazam, who hates Japanese people becasue of something that happend to a close family member in the war. The big softball game that is full of anger, excitment, and racism will be remembered in their lives forever. I enjoyed this book very much and recommend it to anyone who is a sports lover, and who would like to learn some history about World War 2.
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