The Great Ball Game: Bat Brings the Animals and Birds Together; A Circle Round Book

The Great Ball Game, a classic folktale originating from the Cherokee, Creek, Ojibway and Menominee people of North America, is adapted for a contemporary audience by Rebecca Sheir, host of the award-winning Circle Round podcast, and accompanied by the vibrant illustrations of Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley, an Ojibwe Woodland artist. A dispute between the animals and the birds over who is best leads to a ball game challenge. When the game is disrupted by the arrival of a tiny creature named Bat, who doesn’t seem to fit on either team, all the participants learn the value of diversity and celebrating those who seem ＂different.＂ The accompanying activities and prompts encourage children to develop their own storytelling skills.

Rebecca Sheir is the author of the Circle Round books The Unwelcome Guest and A Taste of Honey, and the host, writer, and producer of the Circle Round storytelling podcast for kids and the grown-ups they love. Distributed by WBUR (Boston’s NPR station), Circle Round is heard in all 50 states and nearly 200 countries, and has been featured in the New York Times, The Washington Post, and TIME. Sheir has also brought thousands of stories to life as a news reporter on public-radio shows like Morning Edition, All Things Considered, Here & Now, The Splendid Table, and Marketplace. She’s hosted several weekly news programs, including AK (Alaska Public Media) and Metro Connection (WAMU 88.5), along with podcasts for the Folger Shakespeare Library and Slate Magazine. Sheir holds a BA in Film Studies from Columbia University and an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from the University of Iowa. She lives in western Massachusetts with her husband and son.
Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley is an Ojibwe Woodland artist and a member of Wasauksing, First Nation. His fine art focuses on promoting and reclaiming Ojibwe stories and teachings, in a modern interpretation of the Woodland tradition. He resides in Barrie, Ontario, Canada.