The T-206 Honus Wagner Caper by Janet Amann

Nick Avery is a twelve-year-old boy with a mild heart murmur. Because his father has recently died of a heart attack, his mother is very protective. Since Nick is not allowed to play shortstop, he decides instead to start a baseball card collection.
Nick becomes engrossed in the world of baseball cards. Soon he finds himself deeply involved in the mysterious events surrounding not only his favorite baseball card shop but a nearby printing plant. It becomes clear to Nick and his two friends that there is a scheme under way to make forged copies of the T-206 Honus Wagner baseball card. This is the rarest known to collectors. (Cards were originally printed as a stiffening to tobacco packages, and Honus Wagner detested tobacco, so he insisted that no cards of himself be distributed with tobacco. Most of the Honus Wagner cards were destroyed. One was auctioned in 1991 to Wayne Gretsky for $419,000! and by 1997 was valued at $450,000.)
This exciting story also addresses a number of psychological situations. It deals with family loss, with pre-teen ailments, with making the best of a less than good situation, and with the stress that some adults face in life. It also features Nick’s relationship with his sister, two years his senior, substantially larger, and an excellent baseball player in her own right.

Janet Amann is a resident of Wisconsin.