Publication Date: August 6, 2024
From the author of Sisters in Arms comes the incredible, untold story of Effa Manley, a black businesswoman in the male dominated baseball industry, and, currently, the only woman inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
1930s, New York City
An ambitious Harlem woman’s husband upends her social climbing when he buys a Negro Leagues baseball team and appoints her as the team’s business manager. Overnight, Effa Manley goes from 125th Street’s civil rights champion to an interloper in the boys’ club that is professional baseball.
Navigating her way through gentlemen’s agreement contracts, the very public flirtatious antics of superstar Satchel Paige, and a sports world that would much rather see this woman back in her “place” at home, Effa ultimately whips her team, the Newark Eagles, into the Negro Leagues Champions of 1946. But how long will she get to enjoy the fruits of her success before Major League Baseball tears it all apart?
Based on the incredible life of Effa Manley, an unforgettable and inspiring story about a woman with a dream who wound up with a baseball team.
In the 1930s, the world of baseball and the nation still focused on a racial divide. For Effa Manley, she had to fight men of both races for a seat at the table.
Author Kaia Alderson highlights a little-known figure in African American women’s history with In a League of Her Own.
The story centers around Effa, who is able to pass as a white woman but identifies strongly with her family’s heritage. She defies the conventions of the times and gets a divorce. Her second marriage, though, provides her a gateway into her beloved world of baseball.
However, even with her husband’s support, the other men resist her involvement. Her determination for success pays off when her team wins the championship. Yet the struggle for success is filled with ups and downs, as illustrated by the author.
In a League of Her Own details the story of a woman with a dream whose journey leads her to being the only woman inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Kaia Alderson is a women’s historical fiction author with a passion for discovering “hidden figures” in African American women’s history. Her specific areas of interest are women’s military history, popular music, women in sports, upper-middle-class African American society, and women’s international travel. She holds a sociology degree from Spelman College and a master’s degree in education from the University of West Georgia. She honed her writing chops at the Hurston/Wright Foundation’s and VONA’s writing workshops.
