Throwing Smoke Author:Bruce Brooks Grade 4-6-With poor facilities, no coaching, and little talent, the Breadhurst Newts, who attend a small private school, find themselves slaughtered in every game they play in their "town's otherwise snazzy Little League." Yet, they bring to their games a certain joie de vivre. Then Whiz, one of the cocaptains, finds a way to have a winning team... more ». He helps out at a print shop after school and entertains himself by creating personalized baseball cards for each of his teammates. Late one night, he sneaks into the shop and prints a card for an ideal pitcher. The next day, a boy fitting the description magically appears as the Newts' new hurler. As the season progresses, Whiz creates a girl who is a powerhouse hitter and a pair of ace fielding brothers to shore up the team's infield. Soon, the Newts are contending for the league championship, but before the season's finale, Whiz recognizes that his ringers have taken the fun out of the game. Afraid to destroy the cards, he rewrites them, trading the players to teams in faraway places. The novel ends with the Newts taking the field, ready to do battle and have fun at the same time. Brooks obviously had fun himself, creating the dead-on parodies of the language of baseball cards and using obscure words of the printing trade such as brayer, platen, and quoins. It adds up to a lighthearted blend of sports and magic.« less