Tavares adapted his senior thesis at Bates into Zachary’s Ball, whose black and white drawings and simple text portray a young boy’s fantasy life at Fenway Park. The book was published in 2000 by the Candlewick Press, which has since published a new edition of the 1823 poem ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas with illustrations by Tavares. He has a third, all-original book on the way.

“In this age of Astroturf and retractable dome stadiums, I wanted to create a story that portrayed baseball in a simple, timeless way — a child going to an old-time ballpark with his fielder’s mitt, hoping to catch a foul ball, or maybe even see his hero hit a home run,” Tavares says of his first book.

The Boston Globe used the book in a campaign to encourage children to read more.

In the book, according to Kirkus Reviews, “the mystique of our national pastime is artfully captured through the eyes of a child in this sports story with a feel-good ending.”

“I’ve never been anyplace more magical than Fenway Park,” says Tavares, who spent much of his childhood hoping to become a baseball player. He lives with his wife in Ogunquit.