Babe Ruth was one of the first five players inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, and for good reason: he broke countless records and hit 714 home runs, an achievement that went unmatched from 1935 until 1974. A legend in baseball and an American icon, Babe Ruth’s impressive tenure with the Red Sox and later the New York Yankees left an enduring legacy.

But did you know that Babe Ruth spent his childhood in an orphanage and reformatory—and that baseball was introduced to him by monks? This narrative biography explores the early life and influences that shaped an athletic boy into an American sports hero.