This book was hard to read because it spoke the truth about relationships. It hurt where it hit. It was a homerun for me.

I wasn't thrilled. I liked it until it was about how 12 year old boys should have the right to look at Playboy.

a fun read about a little league team. mark's mom becomes the manager and his older brother is the coach. and mark's bar mitzvah is approaching. Not only does he grow up in the eyes of his religious community, but he also grows up on the baseball field. great ending.

I LOVE EL Konigsburg, but this was not a winner at all. Very disappointed. It was mostly fine, except that the tension in the story largely revolved around 12 year old boys hiding porn magazines and looking at them, and it is wholly accepted as 'normal.' I was very disappointed in how it was promoted and even more so that it was dealt with this way in a book for children. I picked this up for free at the library giveaway table and I am very glad I read it so that it is not where my reading 6-year-old first learns about porn magazines. Ugh. I put this straight into the trash (which I never ever do with books).

Eh. Probably my least favorite of all of her books that I've read. A lot of that is that the mom is straight out of the 1960's. Which in her defense is when the book was written.

This is a coming-of-age story told from a 12 yr. old boy's perspective. It's rather dated, but it's an interesting glimpse into the culture of New York City Jewry in the 1970's. The mother is quite a character.
The boy's mom becomes the manager of his baseball team. Can she turn it into a success? Memorable characters, tender, realistic, but a little predictable for adults.

Thought we’d give this a try since I have such fond memories of Konigsburg’s most famous book and Mason was finishing up his little league season. We enjoyed the baseball and Judaism themes. When the first reference to Playboy magazine came up I decided to skip it. Little did I know how often it would recur throughout the book. Had I known, I would have handled it differently but as it was, I ended up skipping whole sections of the book which, as you might imagine, disrupted the flow a bit.

This might be a great book for a kid of the right age to read on their own, to feel understood and relate to. I think it lost something because I was reading it to them.

How can I adequately relate just how much this book meant to me? The wisdom of E.L. Konigsburg, spoken at such unexpected turns throughout the book, is some of the most purely insightful reading that I have EVER seen, ANYWHERE. The things said in this book were at times so shockingly perceptive, as if E.L. Konigsburg had a direct connection to my heart, that I would reread a line (or entire paragraph) again and again and again, not wanting to move on to the rest of the book. I simply cannot understand why this was not a Newbery Honor book. This book knows my heart.

not one I'll let my son read

This book is a book where Mark or Moshe as his mother calls him plays through a little league sason of baseball with the problems a regular kid has. Having to win back a friend, trying to get better, and he has to do his bar mitzah. Then it gets more serious as his mother is the manager of his team and so is his brother as a coach. Now Mark has more complex problems like having to deal with a rasict kid calling him a "Jew"

I can connect to the world how people are all racist whether they want to admit it or not. Kids seperate themselves in groups and dislike a certain race or religon. So when a kid called Mark a "Jew", Mark was very upset because he deeply believes in the religon and is a part of his life. How is mother talks about god and it's used as a refrance in Mark's life.

I gave this book a five out of five becuase it shows how kids have problems that are like everyone else. Having to win friends is a thing that kids all over the world has problems to do with and self dignity about not embrassing themselves. There was also a problem with the "Jew" Problem which was very serious and having to do with wanting to tell on him which the kids think is "childish" or to leave it alone acting tough.

Written in 1969. Mark Setzer has to have his mother and brother as manager and coach or his B'nai B'rith little league team. The boys pay a nickel for a peek at Playboy. Cute.

a good story about a boy whose mother becomes the manager of his baseball team. he is Jewish and that plays into some of his troubles but is also enlightening to the non jew. there is a bit about pornography so I'd that bothers you, keep your kids away. I like that everyone makes the right decision in the end.