Reviewed by Jamie Michele for Readers' Favorite

In Is That DiMaggio? by Nick Brigeman, New York middle school student Dave spends his afternoons collecting baseball memorabilia at Triple Crown Trinkets, a neighborhood shop run by former Montreal Expos player Lenny Johnson. After purchasing a rare 1941 Joe DiMaggio baseball card, Dave becomes the target of school bully Kyle, who believes the son of Yankees general manager Brian can provide access to Opening Day tickets. One night, the card reveals its secret when Joe DiMaggio steps out from a hidden baseball realm where legendary players are losing their connection to the sport that once sustained their world. Convinced that returning to Yankee Stadium could restore what is disappearing inside the card, DiMaggio turns to Dave for help. While trying to protect the card from Kyle, Dave must conceal a living baseball icon inside his family’s Manhattan apartment before Opening Day arrives.

Nick Brigeman takes a childhood baseball obsession seriously in Is That DiMaggio?, and writes a perfect story that looks at what baseball means to kids. Especially a kid who carries a precious piece of history through crowded New York school hallways. Joe DiMaggio fumbling through social media inside Dave’s bedroom gives the book humor that feels tied to character. Dave does his level best to make good choices, even when those choices place him in uncomfortable situations involving his father, Yankees' tickets, and classmates demanding access to privilege. Kyle is the quintessential bully, but as a parent, I can understand his fixation on mint condition memorabilia, which exposes loneliness, something he buries in intimidation. The author nails this subtly, with the restraint of a skilled writer. He also understands stadium atmosphere, with an eighth-inning scene inside Yankee Stadium demonstrating the size and noise of a real Bronx game night. Baseball fans who are young and young at heart will adore this book.