*Starred Review* Holding baseball jerseys from both the U.S. and Japan, this picture book’s young biracial narrator opens this two-country excursion by stating, I love baseball . . . in America . . . and in Japan. Readers will see why as the boy attends games in each country, accompanied by a doting grandfather. In the snappy text and parallel panels and pages, the boy delights in pointing out the differences in everything from the ballpark food (peanuts vs. soba noodles) to cheers and customs, though the pictures show some similarities as well. The day concludes with a bubble bath in the U.S., a steam ofuro in Japan, and then bed, surrounded by souvenirs of the day. The art has a fresh, attractive, naif quality that fits the story perfectly. Using mostly blue for the American team and red for the Japanese, the bright artwork does an excellent job of delineating each place while capturing the enthusiasm they share. Final pages include a chart of baseball words and other terms in English and Japanese and an author’s note with additional information. Easy to follow and fascinating even for nonfans, this bicultural baseball outing provides a fresh, joyful take on the grand old game. Preschool-Grade 2, --Linda Perkins
Review
Take Me Out to the Yakyu
By Aaron Meshon
(Atheneum; ISBN 9781442441774; February 2013; Spring Catalog)
Debut illustrator Meshon’s comparison of American and Japanese baseball is a skillful double play, entertaining (and educating) young baseball fans while affirming the growing number of children who live between two countries and two cultures. Flat, naïf acrylics and simple words report the boy narrator’s parallel experiences: “In America, Pop Pop gets me a giant foam hand. In Japan, Ji Ji gets me a giant plastic horn. In America, Pop Pop also gets us hot dogs and peanuts.... In Japan, Ji Ji also gets us soba noodles and edamame.” The artwork provides more information (two paper tickets lie on the American food tray, while Ji Ji’s cellphone displays electronic tickets). Meshon’s spreads make it clear that though material circumstances may differ, human emotions are just the same. “Are we there yet?” shouts a speech balloon spouting out of the boy’s station wagon in the American stadium’s parking lot. “Yes, we are!” comes the answer from the bus-train arriving at its Japanese counterpart. Making a book that’s equal parts affection and edification isn’t easy; Meshon’s record is one for one. Ages 2–6.
--Publishers Weekly, November 26, 2012, *STAR (Publishers Weekly Starred Review)
* “Debut illustrator Meshon’s comparison of American and Japanese baseball is a skillful double play, entertaining (and educating) young baseball fans while affirming the growing number of children who live between two countries and two cultures…. Meshon’s spreads make it clear that though material circumstances may differ, human emotions are just the same…. Making a book that’s equal parts affection and edification isn’t easy; Meshon’s record is one for one.” (Publishers Weekly, November 26, 2012, *STARRED REVIEW)
Take Me Out to the Yakyu.
By Aaron Meshon. Illus. by Aaron Meshon.
Feb. 2013. 40p. Atheneum, $15.99 (9781442441774). PreS–Gr. 2.
Holding baseball jerseys from both the U.S. and Japan, the young biracial narrator opens his two-country excursion by stating, “I love baseball . . . in America . . .and in Japan.” Readers will see why as the boy attends games in each country, accompanied by a doting grandfather. In the snappy text and parallel panels and pages, the boy delights in pointing out the differences in everything from the ballpark food (peanuts, soba noodles) to cheers and customs, though the pictures show some similarities as well. The day concludes with a bubble bath in the U.S., a steam ofuro in Japan, and then bed, surrounded by souvenirs of the day. The art has a fresh, attractive, naïf quality that fits the story perfectly. Using mostly blue for the American team and red for the Japanese, these bright pages do an excellent job of delineating each place while capturing the enthusiam they share. Final pages include a chart of baseball words and other fun words in English and Japanese and an author’s note with additional information. Easy to follow and fascinating even for nonfans, this bicultural baseball outing provides a fresh, joyful take on the grand old game. (Booklist)
* “The art has a fresh, attractive, naïf quality that fits the story perfectly. Using mostly blue for the American team and red for the Japanese, these bright pages do an excellent job of delineating each place while capturing the enthusiam they share. Final pages include a chart of baseball words and other fun words in English and Japanese and an author’s note with additional information. Easy to follow and fascinating even for nonfans, this bicultural baseball outing provides a fresh, joyful take on the grand old game.” (Booklist, February 1, 2013, *STARRED REVIEW)
“The chunky font, candy-colored cartoon pictures, and Japanese pop-art style will have plenty of appeal for newly independent readers, and an author’s note adds more comparative detail about game rules and stadiums. Baseball-obsessed primary-schoolers will relish this offbeat addition to the meager beginning-reader sports collection.” (The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books)
Take Me Out to the Yakyu
written and illus. by Aaron Meshon
A Japanese-American boy with family in two countries describes the customs that surround baseball in America and Japan. In America, he’s a fan of the fictional Pigeons and dons his blue team shirt, grabs his pop pop’s hand, and rides off to the stadium in a station wagon; in Japan, he’s decked out in Cicada red and rides with Ji Ji to the game “in a short red bus that turns into a train.” A giant blue foam hand and a giant red plastic horn help him cheer his teams, while hot dogs and peanuts or noodles and edamame fill his belly. The American pitcher throws a 95 mph fastball, while his Japanese counterpart clocks in at
153 kilometers per hour. The seventh-inning stretch features “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” or a team anthem and balloon release. Both outings end with snacks and a hot bath provided back home by his grandmother (“What a wonderful day!”). There’s no pronunciation guide or additional information, but much of the Japanese vocabulary becomes clear in context, and a glossary of baseball and “other fun” words is also included. The chunky font, candy-colored cartoon pictures, and Japanese pop-art style will have plenty of appeal for newly independent readers, and an author’s note adds more comparative detail about game rules and stadiums. Baseball-obsessed primary-schoolers will relish this offbeat addition to the meager beginning-reader sports collection. (Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books)
Take Me Out to the Yakyu
by Aaron Meshon; illus. by the author
Preschool, Primary Atheneum 40 pp.
2/13 978-1-4424-4177-4 $15.99
e-book ed. 978-1-4424-4178-1 $12.99
Yakyu is Japanese for baseball, and the lucky boy in this picture book gets to go to ballgames in both the United States and in Japan. Left-hand pages show him at the stadium with his American pop pop; on the right-hand pages his Japanese ji ji (ojiichan means grandfather) takes him to a game at the dome. Each spread showcases one difference between the two locales: in America the boy gets a giant foam hand, while in Japan he gets a giant plastic horn; a hot dog and peanuts in one place, soba noodles and edamame in the other; “In America, in the seventh inning, we sing ‘Take Me Out to the Ball Game,’ and then we stretch! / In Japan…we sing our team’s anthem, and then we let balloons go!” In the rich-hued acrylic illustrations, team colors (cool blues for America and warm reds for Japan) dominate the pages, helping young readers keep track of each picture’s location. The mostly mirror images on the well-balanced pages set up a quiet rhythm, thrillingly interrupted when both hitters get a home run (“Crack! / Kakiiin!”) and their baseballs cross paths and go flying through the facing page. Young fans intrigued by the game’s cultural differences will easily see that rooting for the home team—whether it’s “Win! Win! Win!” or “Do your best!”—is fun no matter where you are. A glossary at the back lists additional Japanese words, and an author’s note explains more about baseball in Japan. (The Horn Book)
TAKE ME OUT TO THE YAKYU [STARRED REVIEW!]
Author: Aaron Meshon
Illustrator: Aaron Meshon
Review Issue Date: March 1, 2013
Online Publish Date: February 13, 2013
Publisher:Atheneum
Pages: 40
Price (Hardcover ): $15.99
Publication Date: February 19, 2013
ISBN (Hardcover ): 978-1-4424-4177-4
Category: Picture Books
A young boy enjoys the best of two baseball worlds.
This fortunate youngster can savor the fine points of baseball in America and yakyu in Japan. While in America, Pop-Pop drives him to the stadium in the station wagon and buys him a foam hand and hot dogs. In Japan, Ji Ji takes him to the dome in a bus-train and buys a plastic horn and soba noodles. At the games they variously cheer “get a hit” or “do your best.” Seventh-inning stretch calls for “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” or the team anthem and a release of balloons. In America, his team wins, but in Japan, it ends in a tie, allowable within their rules. Appropriate souvenirs are purchased, and after a wonderful day, Gramma or Ba Ba has a warm bath ready. The comparisons are made mostly on facing pages with matching sentences and illustrations rendered in strong, bright acrylic paint. American scenes have mostly blue backgrounds or highlights, while the Japanese counterparts are red. It’s all a perfectly constructed, vivid picture of the two nations’ particular takes on what has become both of their national pastimes, as well as a multigenerational love of the game. Colorful charts of Japanese and English baseball terms and other words add to the fun.
Yakyu or baseball, it’s all sheer joy. (Picture book. 3-8) (Kirkus Reviews)
* “A young boy enjoys the best of two baseball worlds. This fortunate youngster can savor the fine points of baseball in America and yakyu in Japan…. It’s all a perfectly constructed, vivid picture of the two nations’ particular takes on what has become both of their national pastimes, as well as a multigenerational love of the game. Colorful charts of Japanese and English baseball terms and other words add to the fun. Yakyu or baseball, it’s all sheer joy.” (Kirkus Reviews, March 1, 2013, *STARRED REVIEW)
“The mostly mirror images on the well-balanced pages set up a quiet rhythm, thrillingly interrupted when both hitters get a home run (“Crack! / Kakiiin!”) and their baseballs cross paths and go flying through the facing page. Young fans intrigued by the game’s cultural differences will easily see that rooting for the home team—whether it’s “Win! Win! Win!” or “Do your best!”—is fun no matter where you are.” (The Horn Book, March/April 2013)
*MESHON, Aaron. Take Me Out to the Yakyu. illus. by author. 40p. glossary. S & S/Atheneum. Feb. 2013. Tr $15.99. ISBN 978-1-4424-4177-4; ebook $12.99. ISBN 978-1-4424-4178-1. LC 2011050907.
K-Gr 2–A young boy compares and contrasts the game of baseball as it is played and enjoyed by fans in the United States and in Japan. He has the good fortune of experiencing the action in both countries. “My American pop pop takes me to watch baseball at the stadium./My Japanese ji ji takes me to watch yakyu at the dome.” Everything from transportation to and from the ballpark to snacks, souvenirs, and the appropriate cheers is included, as well as differences in the actual play. A glossary of both baseball and “Other Fun Words” is appended, as is an informative author’s note outlining other differences. The bright and cheerful acrylic illustrations feature shades of blue for the U. S. and reds for Japan, making it easy to distinguish between the two. The pages are nicely designed with clean lines and no clutter. A lively and enjoyable read for baseball fans, and a great choice for those compare-and-contrast lessons.–Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ (SLJ)
"The bright and cheerful acrylic illustrations feature shades of blue for the U. S. and reds for Japan, making it easy to distinguish between the two. The pages are nicely designed with clean lines and no clutter. A lively and enjoyable read for baseball fans, and a great choice for those compare-and-contrast lessons." (School Library Journal, February 2013, *STARRED REVIEW)
Take Me Out to the Yakyu
by Aaron Meshon, illus. by Aaron Meshon
Aaron Meshon, making his picture book debut, sets up his smart, well-illustrated contrast between America's and Japan's embrace of baseball from the first page.
"I love baseball...," says a freckle-faced boy, "in America... and in Japan." In his right hand, he holds a blue baseball jersey with an American flag, and in his left hand, he holds a red jersey with a Japanese flag. As he introduces each new element from Japanese culture, the boy also exhibits the corresponding familiar American counterpart (and Meshon keeps the color coding). "My American pop pop takes me to watch baseball at the stadium," the narrator says, wearing the blue jersey and matching cap against a light blue background on the left-hand page. "My Japanese ji ji takes me to watch yakyu at the dome," the boy says, sporting the red jersey and matching cap, against a light red background. A glossary fashioned as a scoreboard at the back helps children who can't figure out the word from its context.
Other fun facts come to light: while the boy's family drives a blue station wagon to the ballpark in the U.S., he rides a short red bus that "turns into a train" to the baseball game in Japan. The boy describes what fans eat in the ball park, tells us the names for pitches (fastball in Japanese is "sokkyu") and explains scoring differences (in Japan, if one team has not gone ahead by the 12th inning, the game ends in a tie). Rookie Meshon scores a homuran (home run)! --Jennifer M. Brown, children's editor, Shelf Awareness
Discover: A picture book home run that introduces youngest children to Japanese culture through the game of baseball. (Shelf Awareness Reader's Edition)
Take Me Out to the Yakyu
Written and illustrated by Aaron Meshon
(Atheneum; ISBN 9781442441774; February 2013; Spring Catalog)
Baseball may be considered the great American pastime, but the Japanese have embraced the sport with a fervor all their own. This exceptional book marries the two traditions with charming naïf illustration and clear text. On opposing pages, a boy explains the differences between outings with his American pop pop to the stadium and with his Japanese ji ji at the dome. The book’s deceptive simplicity includes sophisticated cultural touches: America’s paper tickets offer a charming contrast to the Japanese scannable QR code version. Meshon’s first picture book is a definite home run. (Kakiiin!) (New York Times Book Review)
“Baseball may be considered the great American pastime, but the Japanese have embraced the sport with a fervor all their own. This exceptional book marries the two traditions with charming naïf illustration and clear text…. The book’s deceptive simplicity includes sophisticated cultural touches: America’s paper tickets offer a charming contrast to the Japanese scannable QR code version. Meshon’s first picture book is a definite home run. (Kakiiin!)” (The New York Times Book Review, March 10, 2013)
Meshon, Aaron
Take Me Out to the Yakyu
2013. 40pp. $15.99 hc. Atheneum (Simon & Schuster). 978-1-4424-4177-4. Grades K-3
America’s favorite pastime is beloved in Japan too. Meshon has created a timeless story of grandfathers taking grandsons to the ballpark. Each page shows baseball images and vocabulary with some Japanese words. Meshon follows two very different yet similar experiences of traveling to the stadium, buying souvenirs and snacks, and reciting different cheers. A page includes brief baseball jargon with Japanese characters and pronunciations. An author’s note includes a short history of baseball in the U.S. and Japan as well as differences in stadiums. This title can be used in a lesson about compare and contrast or sportsmanship. It is a sweet story with elements that will appeal to young boys who do not check out much fiction. Even non-sports adults would enjoy curling up with a child and this book. Laura Dooley-Taylor, Library Media Specialist, Cumberland Elementary School, Des Plaines, Illinois [Editor’s Note: Available in e-book format.]
Recommended (Library Media Connection)
*AN EZRA JACK KEATS NEW ILLUSTRATOR HONOR BOOK* (The Ezra Jack Keats Awards)
About the Author
Aaron Meshon is an illustrator and designer for magazines and products around the world, and the author-illustrator of several picture books, including Take Me Out to the Yakyu, Tools Rule!, and Delivery. Aaron lives with his wife, French bulldog, and son in Brooklyn, New York. Visit Aaron online at AaronMeshon.com.
