Roxy Rogers: Your Destiny is Calling

Written by Emily Siskin-Toy

Illustrated by Brian C. Krumm

Roxy Rogers comes from a baseball family. From the day she was born, her family groomed her to be a talented ball player. Everyone in the family, great grandparents, grandparents, and parents had been star baseball players. Her great grandfather had played with Joe DiMaggio, grandpa was on the team with Jackie Robinson, and her dad played with the Los Angeles Dodges in the 1980’s. Her grandmothers played professional ball and even her older sister Morgan had already played on an Olympic team. But Roxy had a passion that she enjoyed more than playing baseball; she wanted to be a soul singer like her idol,  Aretha Franklin.

Roxy hummed while she walked in the opening day parade with her team. When the singer slated to sing the National Anthem at her game gets stuck in traffic, she is invited to sing. The crowd goes wild and Roxy realizes that she has another real talent. To their credit, her family cheers her on. It seems like Roxy might be breaking the mold of family tradition.

This book is executed well. The illustrations are charming. I like the game at the end challenging readers to find the 48 musical clues, and the background information on names of famous baseball players mentioned in the story. Encourages children to act independently and be true to their passions, even when others expect something else. Good choice for early readers, aficionados of baseball, and admirers of strong female characters.

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