ANDRE J. GARANT
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Ryan Silva: Star Pitcher is a middle-grade fiction sports novel written for boys and girls between the ages of nine and thirteen. Ryan Silva stars as the main character as a ten-year-old boy who loves to play little league baseball. Ryan is chosen to be the starting pitcher for his team, but becomes upset when a girl named Maisy Atkins gives him a run for his money when she is chosen to be the second pitcher for the team. Ryan and his buddies, Derek and Jeremy, make jokes about Maisy, stating she should be home making brownies with her mother instead of playing baseball on a boys’ team. But what happens when Maisy proves to be a better pitcher than Ryan is, and can also hit solid line drives? Will Ryan learn to accept Maisy as a member of his team and work together with her, or will he deny the fact that a girl can play baseball just as well as a boy can? Ryan Silva: Star Pitcher is a captivating sports novel sure to please any boy or girl, and especially those who love the ever popular sport of little league baseball.
Andre J. Garant lives outside of Hartford, Connecticut. When he’s not busy working as an accountant, Andre enjoys writing middle-grade fiction novels for boys and girls between the ages of nine and thirteen. Ryan Silva: Star Pitcher is Garant’s tenth published novel, and is one of numerous middle-grade fiction novels that he has written since 1996. He is a 1991 graduate of St. Michael’s College in Colchester, Vermont and is also a 1997 graduate of The Institute of Children’s Literature in West Redding, Connecticut. Garant enjoys visiting schools where he speaks to upper elementary and middle-grade students about the books that he has written and what can be learned from them.
I focused my eyes on the ball in the pitcher’s hand and concentrated to my fullest ability. I didn’t know whether to bunt it or try for a pop fly, but either way, I felt sure of myself that I would get a hit.
“Go for it, Babe Ruth Junior,” a voice yelled out from the stands above me. I immediately recognized it as grandpa’s. It filled me with a tremendous feeling of confidence and power.
The pitcher released the ball, whereupon it appeared to sail through the air in slow motion. I kept my eyes focused on the swirling threads as they glided towards my body. I shut out the voices from all around me as I began to swing the bat and lift my leg. It was the best hit I ever made, almost as if Derek had magically stepped into my skin and performed all the moves for me. The bat vibrated as I made a perfect connection, producing a tremendously loud pinging sound that could have been heard a mile away. It felt as if I were in a dream. My jaw dropped down and my eyes followed the ball as it sailed high above North Park, climbing and climbing as it gradually got smaller and smaller. Suddenly, the voices of my teammates filled my ears.
“Go, Ryan, go,” Jeremy shouted from behind me.
“What are you waiting for, Ryan?” Josh hollered while jumping up and down behind the dugout.
“You just got a homerun, Silva,” Kevin Black shouted as loud as he could.
I snapped out of my daze when I saw Derek rounding third base, his legs pumping hard for home plate. It looked as if he was going to slam into me, so I pushed off with every ounce of energy my legs had. I sailed past first, pumped for second, and sprinted for third.
“Keep going, Ryan. They’ll never get it on time,” Jeremy shouted.
“Come right home, Ryan,” Derek yelled, jumping up and down beside the dugout entrance.
“You’ve got it, Babe Ruth Junior,” grandpa’s voice yelled.
The sound of his voice was all I needed to hear as I pushed my legs as hard as I could. I didn’t even bother to look out at the field to see where the ball was. I trusted everyone who shouted for me to come home. When I reached the halfway point between third and home plate, I decided to slide in for a grand entrance. I pushed my weight down onto the ground and tucked my left leg under my right shin as I slid all the way into home plate. A cloud of dust swirled up around me as the crowd went wild. In all of my life, I had never heard such a loud explosion of cheering and applause.
Derek ran out and grabbed my arm, pulling me up from the ground. “That was awesome, Ryan. You just got your very first home run.”
Before I could say anything, the rest of my teammates ran out and crowded around me, showering my back with high fives. Derek and Jeremy both grabbed me around the ribs and gave me a crushing bear hug.
“Let’s lift him up, you guys,” Josh suggested.
“Yeah, let’s give him a ride he’ll never forget,” Tyler yelled.
My teammates grabbed onto my legs and back before hoisting me up so that my face pointed towards the warm sunshine. I let them carry me around for a few minutes as I bathed in glory. I had never felt so good in all my life. It was even better than when I had pitched some of my other games. Hitting a home run was a true achievement for me, and it gave me every reason to believe that I really could play for the big leagues. After all, if what Derek had said was true, I was now well rounded in the game of baseball.
