What It Means To Be A Cub

Andy Pafko, Billy Williams, Fergie Jenkins, Ron Santo, Jose Cardinal, Bill Buckner, Keith Moreland, Andre Dawson, Greg Maddux, Kerry Wood, Derrek Lee, and Lou Piniella are just some of the Cubs greats who share their favorite stories from inside the clubhouse and on the diamond and explain why playing baseball on the North Side means so much to them.

“Raina Telgemeier fans will lap this up.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books A laugh-out-loud funny and empowering graphic memoir about growing up and finding your voice. Twelve-year-old Cindy has just dipped a toe into seventh-grade drama—with its complicated friendships, bullies, and cute boys—when she earns an internship as a cub reporter at a local newspaper in the early 1970s. A (rare) young female reporter takes Cindy under her wing, and Cindy soon learns not only how to write a lede, but also how to respectfully question authority, how to assert herself in a world run by men, and—as the Watergate scandal unfolds—how brave reporting and writing can topple a corrupt world leader. Searching for her own scoops, Cindy doesn’t always get it right, on paper or in real life. But whether she’s writing features about ghost hunters, falling off her bicycle and into her first crush, or navigating shifting friendships, Cindy grows wiser and more confident through every awkward and hilarious mistake.

Lenny Puddock writes of his experiences as a Chicago Cub during the 2011 baseball season. Puddock is a 32-year-old physical therapist for the Indianapolis National Institute of Fitness and Health who attended Randy Hundleys Fantasy Camp. Part of the Fantasy Camp experience is his developing friendship with Gertrude Castellano, a waitress who becomes a singing star. They romance at a distance. Puddock is invited to the Cubs Spring Training after an outstanding performance at the Camp. The Cubs offer him a contract with the Daytona Class A team and he accepts. Puddock is moved up to Class AA Tennessee in mid-May and is called up to the Cubs in mid-July. He was batting .378. In mid-August Mike Quade resigns as manager. Ryne Sandberg, who had an escape clause in his contract with a Phillies Minor League team, becomes the Cubs manager. When Puddock joined the parent club, the Cubs were 10 games out of first place. By the end of August they are four from the Wild Card spot. In the waning days of August the roster was two short due to injuries. Sandberg did not want to disrupt the Iowa or Tennessee playoff-bound teams, so he activated Greg Maddux and himself, thinking the roster had to contain the maximum 25 players. Plans were to activate two players before the August 31 midnight deadline but due to an interns goof not recognizing the difference in Eastern Standard Time and Central Standard Time, the move came too late. In essence the Cubs would have only a 23-player Post-Season roster. The Cubs win their Division and League playoffs and enter World Series for the first time in 76 years. In an amazing ninth inning of the seventh game, the Cubs win the Series.

Written in a funny, charming, and conversational style, Word Origins is the first book to offer a thorough investigation of the history and the science of etymology, making this little-known field accessible to everyone interested in the history of words. Anatoly Liberman, an internationally acclaimed etymologist, takes the reader by the hand and explains the many ways that English words can be made, and the many ways in which etymologists try to unearth the origins of words. Every chapter is packed with dozens of examples of proven word histories, used to illustrate the correct ways to trace the origins of words as well as some of the egregiously bad ways to trace them. He not only tells the known origins of hundreds of words, but also shows how their origins were determined. And along the way, the reader is treated to a wealth of fascinating word facts. Did they once have bells in a belfry? No, the original meaning of belfry was siege tower. Are the words isle and island, raven and ravenous, or pan and pantry related etymologically? No, though they look strikingly similar, these words came to English via different routes. Partly a history, partly a how-to, and completely entertaining, Word Origins invites readers behind the scenes to watch an etymologist at work.

A darling companion to Old Bear and His Cub from the New York Times bestselling creator of the Gossie books What's an Old Bear to do when he finds a Little Cub all alone and afraid of the dark? Adopt him, of course! And help him try to get over his fears. In this book we see the father and son from Old Bear and His Cub meet for the first time--and grow to love one another. With the same bold art and humorous twist on parenting, Olivier Dunrea's tumbling bears will melt your heart and show how strong the bond is between any father and son pair. Praise for LITTLE CUB *"Readers will treasure the bears’ gingerly give-and-take—watching them serendipitously become a family of two is a joy to behold."--Publishers Weekly, starred review *"Dunrea packs a huge amount of emotion into his limited text and engaging art. A delight for fans of these characters and a lovely next step for children ready to move beyond the “Gossie and Friends” series."--School Library Journal, starred review

Mildred A. Wirt's 'Dan Carter and the Cub Honor' is a classic young adult mystery novel that follows the thrilling adventures of the Boy Scouts in Piney Woods. Written in a concise and engaging style, the book captures the essence of the 1950s American boyhood with its emphasis on teamwork, loyalty, and moral values. Wirt's use of descriptive language vividly paints the backdrop of the forest setting, immersing the reader in the world of the Cub Scout pack and their exciting endeavors. The narrative is filled with suspenseful twists and turns, keeping readers on the edge of their seats until the very end. This book is a shining example of Wirt's talent for crafting compelling and memorable stories that resonate with audiences of all ages.

Respected by his baseball peers, beloved by Chicago fans and teammates, Ernie Banks did everything there was to do in the game he loved. Everything, that is, except play in a World Series. How and why that experience eluded him during one season of particular promise—1969—is a key storyline of this fresh look at one of baseball's legendary players. Banks, who had picked cotton outside Dallas as a youth, ascended from a barnstorming semipro team to the major leagues after Kansas City Monarchs manager Buck O'Neil placed him with the Cubs. During his time in Chicago, Banks won two MVPs and received an education far better than the one he received in the segregated schools he'd attended, gaining important life skills while playing the game he was born to play.

When a tiger cub goes missing from the reserve, Neil is determined to find her before the greedy Gupta gets his hands on her to kill her and sell her body parts on the black market. Neil's parents, however, are counting on him to study hard and win a prestigious scholarship to study in Kolkata. Neil doesn't want to leave his family or his island home and he struggles with his familial duty and his desire to maintain the beauty and wildness of his island home in West Bengal's Sunderbans.