advertisement

Author's book details twists, turns of father's life

Washington Junior High students recently got a lesson about the curve balls life can throw.

Naperville Reads author Gary W. Moore talked to the Naperville eighth-graders this week about the unexpected twists and turns in life and how they shaped his family. It's a tale he tells in his book, "Playing with the Enemy."

The book is a story about his father, Gene, who grew up in the small Illinois town of Sesser and was a talented baseball player recruited by the Brooklyn Dodgers as a teenager.

However his professional career was put on hold when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Gene signed up for the Navy and was placed on its baseball team. One of his assignments during the war was to guard German captives, and he ended up teaching them how to play baseball. Moore told students his father realized that although they were supposed to be enemies, they actually had more similarities than differences.

As the war ended, Gene's professional baseball career hit another snag when an ankle injury sidelined him. He returned home and turned to alcohol until several years later when a Pittsburgh Pirates scout came to the rescue.

"People ask me, is this a baseball book and the answer to that is no," Moore said. "It's a story about life and it's a story that all of us, if we can't relate to it yet, we will because we all have dreams, we all have passions, we all have things we want to do in life and sometimes life throws us a curve. Sometimes things don't work out the way we expect and this story is about the journey, which is more important than the destination."

Eighth-grader James Ryan just bought the book and said he is eager to read it.

"I really like World War II and especially since we've been to the U-boat 505 in the city I kind of feel like I can connect to it, and my grandpa also played baseball in the Philippines during World War II (for fun)," Ryan said.

"Playing with the Enemy" is being made into a movie that will star Moore's own son, Toby. Moore too will make a cameo appearance.

He called the creation of the book and movie a "conversation between generations" and encouraged students to talk to their parents and grandparents about their lives. Moore didn't know about his father's experiences until the day before he died.

"When a person dies, if they didn't share their stories it's as if a library burns to the ground," Moore said. "It's full of one-of-a-kind books. If they don't share those stories, if we don't ask them the stories, if we don't encourage them to talk about the stories they'll be lost forever."

Moore is the second Naperville Reads author to visit Naperville this month. Children's author Dan Gutman also spoke with students and gave a talk to the community.

The Naperville Reads campaign began in 2002 to spark interest in reading for residents of all ages. It is a partnership among Anderson's Bookshop, Naperville Public Library, Naperville Unit District 203 and Indian Prairie Unit District 204. It is partially funded by a Special Events and Cultural Amenities grant from the city.

Naperville Reads author Gary Moore talked to Washington Junior High students this week about his book, "Playing with the Enemy," a story about his father's journey in professional baseball and the Navy. Daniel White | Staff Photographer
Article Comments
Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.