Review of "The Hero Two Doors Down," by Sharon Robinson

Review of

The Hero Two Doors Down, by Sharon Robinson ISBN 9780545804516


Five out of five stars

 Written by the daughter of the great and pioneering baseball player Jackie Robinson, this book is a slightly fictionalized account of one component of his incredible life. Once he was established as a star for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Jackie rented an apartment in an almost exclusively Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn. It was a short distance from Ebbets Field and Jackie’s wife and son lived there as well.

 Stephen Satlow was an eight-year-old Jewish boy that lived in Brooklyn and was a devoted fan of the Dodgers. He did in fact live two doors down from where the Robinson family lived. Before Jackie moved in, a petition was circulated in the neighborhood stating their opposition to having blacks live in the area. The Satlow adults refused to sign it.

 It was not long before the Robinson and Satlow families were close friends, a relationship that remained until this book was written. Stephen quickly became a hero among his peers due to his friendship with Jackie, for Jackie was a generous man and made a large number of tickets available to Stephen, his family and classmates.

 This book shows another side of Jackie Robinson, the devoted family man that was also a low-level community activist. It is a very good story of how small acts of kindness do make a significant difference in the lives of others.