Rick Kotani’s 400 Million Dollar Summer
Written by Waka T. Brown
Published by Quill Tree Books
Rick Kotani is looking forward to spending the entire summer playing baseball. Sure, his team never wins, but he’s been practicing a special pitch he knows is going to land him a 400-million-dollar major-league contract . . . someday. That all changes when his mother throws a curveball of her own: Instead of playing ball in California, Rick will be heading to Oregon to help keep an eye on Grandpa Hiroshi while they move him to a retirement home. Trading no-hitters to be a babysitter? Rick is beyond bummed.
But once there, Rick discovers Grandpa is actually pretty cool, and the two bond over a Japanese folktale about a fisherman, Urashima Taro, who trades his life on earth for the riches of an underwater kingdom. And like the fisherman, Rick soon forgets about his team back home when he joins a supercompetitive local league that only cares about being the best—at any cost.
As the team racks up the wins and Grandpa makes his final move, Rick must decide which ending he wants for his story: Will he fall in line with his ruthless teammates and their victory-obsessed coach in his own “underwater kingdom,” or will family, true friendship, and integrity lead him back to shore?
Primary ISBN: 9780063230811
Publication Date: February 2025
Available As: Hardcover, Audiobook, eBook
Middle Grade, Age 08 or older
Community Represented: Japanese/Japanese American
Themes: Coming of Age, Cross-Group Friendship, Cultural Empowerment, Cultural Empowerment & Joy: Family, Cultural Empowerment & Joy: Storytelling, Discrimination: Gender and Sexual, Family Relationship: Grandparents, Format: Audiobook, Generation: 2nd, Generational Differences, Genre: Fantasy & Folklore, Identity: Exploration, Own Voices/Lived Experience, Sports, Trauma & Healing, Trauma & Healing: Illness, Trauma & Healing: Intergenerational
Setting: United States (California, Oregon)
Character's Place in the Immigration Journey: 2nd Generation
Book Creator(s) Connection to the Community Represented: Own Voices/Lived Experience
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