Rick Kotani’s 400 Million Dollar Summer

Rick Kotani is looking forward to spending the entire summer playing baseball. Sure, his team never wins, but he’s been practicing a special pitch he knows is going to land him a 400-million-dollar major-league contract . . . someday. That all changes when his mother throws a curveball of her own: Instead of playing ball in California, Rick will be heading to Oregon to help keep an eye on Grandpa Hiroshi while they move him to a retirement home. Trading no-hitters to be a babysitter? Rick is beyond bummed. 

But once there, Rick discovers Grandpa is actually pretty cool, and the two bond over a Japanese folktale about a fisherman, Urashima Taro, who trades his life on earth for the riches of an underwater kingdom. And like the fisherman, Rick soon forgets about his team back home when he joins a supercompetitive local league that only cares about being the best—at any cost.  

As the team racks up the wins and Grandpa makes his final move, Rick must decide which ending he wants for his story: Will he fall in line with his ruthless teammates and their victory-obsessed coach in his own “underwater kingdom,” or will family, true friendship, and integrity lead him back to shore? 

When Rick meets Toni, a girl his age who loves baseball, he is excited for the opportunity to play ball. However, the coach and players don’t care about having fun, they just want to win. The baseball coach is truly despicable because he belittles the players and doesn’t follow the rules. Even though it’s against the rules, the coach allows Rick to play, which requires Rick to lie so he can take the place of another player. Rick explains, “Technically, I wasn’t allowed to be part of the team since I lived outside the area and the team roster had already been finalized.” To make matters worse, the coach encourages Rick to throw a curveball, eventually leading to an injury. In the end, Rick acknowledges that he will never play for the MLB. While the realization is heartbreaking, the story ends on a hopeful note and hints that Rick could continue to love baseball and shift his focus to being a referee.  

Rick’s relationship with his teammates is superficial, and his only true friend is Toni. However, Toni’s role is confusing. Plus, her parents’ sole focus is on her brother, and the coach wouldn’t allow her to play on the team because she is a girl. Toni’s situation is reminiscent of older times when general roles were more rigid. This dynamic makes Rick’s relationship with Toni feel one-sided. Despite this, Toni plays an important role and demonstrates the qualities of a good friend. In the end, Toni reminds Rick, “You can’t change what happened. But what happens next is up to you.” 

Rick Kotani’s 400 Million Dollar Summer revolves around baseball and is interspersed with Rick’s family life and a Japanese folklore. The combination allows the story to have a fast pace as it weaves between topics and explores the difficulty of divorce and dealing with an aging relative. The realistic conflicts will draw readers into the story as well as teach them the importance of sharing your feelings with others because “If you keep it in, it will eat you up.” Rick Kotani’s 400 Million Dollar Summer will entertain middle school readers who dream of playing for the MLB and remind them that winning isn’t the most important thing in baseball or in life.  

Sexual Content  

• None 

Violence  

• None 

Drugs and Alcohol  

• None 

Language  

• Profanity is used occasionally. Profanity includes crap, dang, darn, fricking, heck, and hell. 

• The word ass is implied but is spelled “a$$”. 

• After throwing rocks at turtles, a boy says, “What about this bonehead tortoise?” 

• There is some name-calling, including jerk and dingbat. 

• “Good god” is used as an exclamation. 

• While talking to a boy, the coach uses the word “goddamn.” 

Supernatural 

• In the tale of Urashima Taro, magic is used several times. For example, when Urashima opened a box, “a plume of smoke wafted out, followed by a cloud that billowed around him.” After opening the box, Urashima turns into an old man. 

Spiritual Content  

• None