Fenway Fever, By John H. Ritter

Uh-oh. Has the dreaded Curse of the Bambino returned? Is that why the Sox have gone on an extended losing streak? How can it be reversed this time? That’s the challenge facing young “Stats” Pagano as another promising Red Sox season begins to slip away. What can he do to try and put an end to this madness? How can a kid fight whatever forces are at work? What can any of us do?

I was fortunate enough to have a copy of this book provided to e in order to review. I admit that because of that, part of me hoped the book would be terrible. Then, I could trash it, and brag about how honest I was with my review. When I saw the write-up on the back, I thought that “wish” might have come true. Another book about the Curse of the Bambino? Weren’t we done with that yet? Is that the only thing you can write about in a Red Sox book? Even now? As I read the book, though, I was delighted to find that it wasn’t the case. This was a fantastic read. It’s another book geared towards kids. As such, there were a few times when I read something and thought, “That must be for the youngsters reading this.” Those distractions are the only things I can fault this book for. Fenway Fever ended up treating the Curse of the Bambino like Shoeless Joe treated the Black Sox. A magical story that used the curse as a backdrop, without dwelling on it. Sure, the curse was the main storyline. But this was really a book about family, and faith, and fandom. I greatly enjoyed this book. I can easily see a kid enjoying it even more.

Rating: 3 bases (if I were a kid, I bet I’d add that fourth base)