As a “step” in her large family, Tania doesn’t feel like she fits in. Especially at the swank upstate hotel that the family runs, one that caters to the rich and famous NYC clientele.

One day, famous athlete Jackie Robinson pries Tania out of her shell by asking her to play ping-pong. He talks to her kindly, helping to bolster her self-esteem.

That chance encounter lead to a lifetime friendship between Tania and Jackie. From that point on, they corresponded constantly, until Jackie’s death in 1972.

A surprising, intimate portrait of an American hero and trailblazer – as told through the eyes of an innocent young girl, who grew up to share this ‘real’ side of Jackie Robinson.

Illustrated by: Charles George Esperanza