The Batboy and the Unbreakable Record

"The young protagonist of this wonderful historical novella lives out a dream, absorbs nuanced lessons about honesty and empathy, bullying and forgiveness, and is an up-close witness to real and unmatched drama on the ballfield - all in a couple of weeks. Robert Skead conveys compelling and credible detail in characters, dialogue and events while concisely capturing an accomplishment that baseball fans of all ages rightfully marvel over nine decades later."
William Weinbaum, ESPN journalist
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"Robert Skead touches upon important, extremely relatable themes of teasing and bullying. Skead gives thoughtful examples of ways to handle tough situations in productive and supportive ways. It is a wonderful story of personal growth in adolescence and an action-filled and engaging way to discuss those themes with baseball lovers, children and students in the middle grades."
Annie Mapes, LSW, Anti-Bullying Specialist
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"Some of baseball's greatest moments are so long in the past they can almost be forgotten. The Batboy and the Unbreakable Record tells us the story from a freshly unique perspective of one of those greatest moments in our national pastime. It is heart-warming to see a story like this can be written for us today."
CF Payne, Illustrator and Cincinnati Reds fan
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"Rob Skead conjures a delightful story, combining an historic moment in baseball with life lessons about bullying. Richie's dream about becoming a batboy for the Reds faces many challenges, but with the help of his parents, his school principal, and the great Johnny Vander Meer, Richie finds himself with a front row seat for one of baseball's legendary feats, Vander Meer's consecutive no-hitters."
Greg Rhodes, Cincinnati Reds Team Historian
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"A unique and inspiring re-telling of the legend of Johnny Vander Meer, Rob Skead brings Vander Meer's record-setting performance to life through the eyes of a young fan who overcomes numerous challenges to achieve a personal dream. The Batboy and the Unbreakable Record is a worthy addition to the baseball libraries of fans of all ages."
Chris Eckes, Chief Curator, Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum

Robert Skead

Robert Skead is the author of several popular children's books, including the American Revolutionary War Adventure series: Patriots, Recoats & Spies and Submarines, Secrets, and a Daring Rescue; Links to Liberty--Defending the Great Chain at West Point (Knox Press). Also several popular sports books for children: Something to Prove: the Great Satchel Paige versus the Rookie Joe DiMaggio (Lerner Publishing), Mighty Mike Bounces Back (Magination Press); Hitting Glory - A Baseball Bat Adventure; Safe at Home-A Baseball Card Mystery (Cross Training Publishing) and many others.

When he is not at work or crafting stories, Robert can often be found at schools speaking with children and adults about creative writing and the importance of discovering one's talents for a fulfilled life. Through these author visits, Robert speaks to more than 5,000 students per year.