Sports and Recreation Books

This is a great source for Yosemite Big Walls. It provides valuable information including strategies, ratings with relative comparisons to other big wall routes, approaches, precise topos, optimum belays and bivy locations, pitch-linking possibilities, weather/seasonal factors, and descent routes. For those interested in Yosemite Big Wall history, there is a section devoted to the pioneers of Yosemite Big Wall climbing that is quite interesting. All in all, a great book for Yosemite's Big Walls. Thumbs up!!

Yosemite's best in painstaking detail -- a truly outstnading resource !

These topos are the best on the planet!

They are so detailed they allowed me to relive most of the hard or akward sections on the wall, occasionally even describing a single move. With the supertopos you can be ultimately prepared, as they include to what extent "clean routes" depend on fixed gear and what to bring if some of it rips out.

Real wall-rats/purists might feel that it removes some of the adventure, but then again you don't have to read everything and there is still plenty adventure left. Also the stories of the first ascents and histories of the climbs make it the ultimate guide, and even a good read.

Reading it got me so psyched up that I can hardly wait for my next "Big Wall" trip.

I can only hope that the other supertopos (e.g. free climbs) will be just as good.

This is hands down the best climbing guide I have ever purchased. Not only does McNamara replace the ambiguous beta from past books with straight-up ratings and tips, he also provides entertaining history and profiles to get you psyched. I also recommend "The Road to The Nose" book that Chris sells on his site ...

This book sets new standards for climbing guides. The production values are superb, and the information contained detailed and informative. If you're even thinking of climbing a big wall in Yosemite, buy this book. If you're a guidebook author, or thinking of becoming one, buy this and imitate it.

Enjoyed the informative, easy-paced style. Unlike other books, this book did not treat me like a complete idiot, but introduced me to new subjects with respect and good information. Would highly recommend this book to soccer players and coaches of all levels.

These are by far the simplest drills I've seen and practiced with my team. Real easy to do and remember for those who don't want complicated practices...good book!

I knew little about soccer before buying this book. The drills in it are very concise and "practical." They're real easy to perform and I can see immediate improvement after repetition. Great gift idea for someone you know who should learn more about the game.

This book breaks down soccer skills into a variety of drills. Many of these drills can be performed alone, with another person, or in a team concept. I found them to be very practical while having enough variety to keep them fun as well. The Olympic section documents the history of Olympic soccer in a concise and entertaining manner. A good book to read if you want to fully enjoy this years' Olympics.

I used to think soccer didn't require much strategy...you either had the skill or you didn't. The drills in this book helped me overcome my lack of skill. It also made me appreciate the sport a lot better.

I recommend this to parents who have kids playing soccer and who themselves have very little background in soccer like me.

These drills were a great way for me to get involved with my daughter's love for soccer. Now, I feel like I am participating in the sport with her.

Hats off to Talmage! Being an avid baseball fan, I have read many baseball books. I discovered many new significant factual nuggets and saw a great number of photographs that I'd not seen before. Obviously written by someone with a great passion for the game of baseball. Can not wait for his next book.

I've been a baseball fan for over 50 years and I have a library full of baseball books. I've even done some free-lance baseball writng of my own. So I don't give out praise lightly. This is a wonderful book and I would have to rank it on my list of Top 10 All-Time Favorites. It is more than just a baseball book...it covers a slice of Americana that all students of American history should find of interest.

The author has done a compelling job developing his premise that 1939 was a extremely important year in the history of baseball and in the history of the United States. The book is actually a collection of twelve essays covering pivotal events and dominant personalities from the baseball world of 1939. Other reviewers have covered these topics, which include notables such as Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams, Lou Gerhig, Leo Durocher, and the great broadcaster Red Barber. I found each essay to be well written and highly informative. Mr Boston has certainly done his research on the selected subjects and he writes in an engaging, highly enjoyable style that kept me turning the pages.

Even though most of the material was familiar territory to an old basball fan like me, I found that I learned something from each essay. Leo Durocher is my favorite character in baseball, and I've studied him intently. And yet I found the chapter devoted to him to be delightful and contained a lot of information that I was not familiar with. Likewise, the chapter on the Reds' great manager Bill McKechnie - one of the lesser known personalities that the author covers - was actually my favorite; and Mr.Boston has convinced me that Bill McKechnie is one of the most underrated managers in the history of the game. Other essays, such as the ones on the Negro Leagues, the founding of Cooperstown, and the advent of televison in baseball were also well done.

If you are a baseball fan as I am - or just a fan of American history - do yourself a favor and read "1939: Baseball's Tipping Point." Trust me...you won't regret it.

Assemble baseball historians over their favorite adult beverages with the topic "most important," "most pivotal," "most famous" baseball season and the conversation heatedly rolls.
Strong cases can be made for several seasons from baseball's past. In my pomposity I always insisted 1947 the most pivotal because of Branch Rickey's breaking of the game's color code with Jackie Robinson. There's no argument, 1947 was a strong and very important year for the game and for society.
My friend and Dallas-lawyer-baseball historian-writer Talmage Boston has changed my mind with his work "1939 Baseball's Tippping Point." So much import was packed that year into a six month baseball season.
Over two years before U.S. involvement in World War II, young up and coming stars outfielder Ted Williams and pitcher Bob Feller had begun showing the stuff that would lead to the Hall of Fame. That year, neither had become jaundiced due to what both thought was an excessive amount of career time lost due to the war effort. Yankees outfielder Joe DiMaggio began defining his career as elite that year.
In 1939 Brooklyn Dodgers General Manager Larry McPhail began dragging a lowly franchise out of the doldrums. By hiring fiery Leo Durocher to manage the club, McPhail served notice to his players and other clubs that wins were expected in Brooklyn. By wisely breaking a very silly, sophomoric ban on radio broadcasts, McPhail with the hiring of southerner Red Barber to call Dodgers games, took soap operas away from New York women and gave them the game. In doing so, the Dodgers created a completely new, educated genre of fan--females. That year, Barber also broadcast baseball's first televised game.
If 1947 marked the official end to appartheid in baseball, 1939 represented the time when newspaper editors both black and white began screaming for social change. Bigotry stories abounded. One of the most famous was a Daughters of American Revolution attempted ban on black singer Marion Anderson's appearance on the steps of the Lincoln Monument. Press coverage beat the ban.
While the Baseball Hall of Fame opened its doors in 1939 to its first class including Babe Ruth and Walter Johnson, in Cooperstown,New York, historians began refuting claims that native Cooperstown son Abner Doubleday invented the game.
Little League Baseball began operations in 1939, giving youngsters ages 8-12 their first shot at an organized style of play.
But perhaps the most famous historical item coming out of '39 was Yankees slugger Lou Gehrig's demise. Gehrig that year had been diagnosed with Amyotropic Lateral Sclerosis, a form of polio, now known as Lou Gehrig's disease. As Gehrig stepped out of the playing field limelight, he gave his famous, "Luckiest Man on the Face of the Earth," speech to a sold out Yankee Stadium.
To me, "1939 Baseball's Tipping Point," went one step further. It is a missive that should be read and re-read by baseball fans as one more poignant reminder how this grand game became that way.

This is an excellent baseball book -- about the unique baseball happenings in 1939. Each chapter is devoted to a special story ... Ted Williams rookie season with the Bosox, the Yankee team after Gehrig retired and other interesting stories. There is a lot of great background regarding each story -- and is very well written.

This would be a great gift for Christmas or birthday

Greg Langdon

I have read this book....TWICE. You need to read it because it is different from any book on baseball you have ever read. Instead of it being about a team or a player, it identifies a YEAR, a time period that, basically, changed baseball in all areas FOREVER: the first televised game, the first games at night, the founding of Little League was in 1939, the passing of Lou Gehrig but the rookie year of Ted Williams, etc. I learned things I had never known about baseball and WHY this was such a pivotal year for the game. I've read a ton of books on baseball and donated them and gave them away. This one is mine to keep.

My six year old,who loves football, really enjoyed this book. It lists all of the players in the Football Hall of Fame and has lots of interesting statistics for all of the players. This was a great introductory book to football.

I would recomend this becous it is a good book if your in to football. What I like aboult this book is aboult the superbouls. Another thing I like is the troqh's/record's.I liked how it told about pass's and run's during the superbouls and game's. I would recomend this book to people who like football.

I think this is a good book becouse it tell's aboute the Super boul's.Another thing I like about this book is it tell's about good run's quarter back's and runing back's made.It also tell's about touchdown's they made and how many yard's they ran and how many yard's they pased it also tell's about wait they did to make the tochdown's.Another reson I like the book is about the Super boul winning's.That's why I like the book becouse I like Football very much that's why I would recomend this book.

Another fantastic edition of the NFL book that never lets you down. All the usual stats, facts and info that you need if you follow the NFL. Highly recommended.

I RECOMEND THIS SALER LIKE VERY SERIUS AND EXCELLENT, DELIVER THE PACKAGE ON TIME AND WITHOUT PROBLEMS.

This book is excellent reading for "armchair enthusiasts", serious mountaineers, or anyone in between. Before reading this book I did not even know who Anatoli was. Now, I see him as one of the true great mountaineers. I really related to his feelings for the mountains, and I share many of his philosophies regarding climbing. Reaching the summit is not success; to be successful, you must make it safely down. Even if Mallory and Irvine reached the summit of Everest, they didn't achieve success by living to tell about it.

As a mountaineer and author myself, I was very pleased how easy I could relate to Anatoli's feelings and philosophies about the sport of mountaineering. On page 123 he states that he treated the mountains "like cathedrals where worship gives you strength and strips off the scale of ordinary life." He also told a different version of the accounts of the disastrous climbing month in May 1996 on Mt. Everest, which catapulted high altitude mountaineering to the front pages of newspapers around the world. I still view Reinhold Messner as the best mountaineer of all time, but had Anatoli lived longer he would have surely closed the gap.

Although having a personal interest Wylie does accomplish the fact that Anotoli Boukreev was greatly denigrated by Jon Krakauer in his Into Thin Air while only mentioning the fact once.....Rowell's being associated with the book convinced me of Boukreev's authenticity....he was truly a mountaineer...I think Krakauer recognized this fact but because of his bias and his paycheck together with his group's failure on Everest he felt compelled to place the blame. He apparently failed to accomplish this as evidenced by the awards and accolades Boukreev received by other mountaineers.....but Boukreev was his victim and all Krakauer was looking for was an American audience, and as I said, a paycheck.......This book is not an attempt to portray Boukreev as he wasn't but accomplished to show Boukreev as he really was, truly an outstanding individual....truly and individual....his returning to the mountain to find Scott Fisher and Yasuko Namba only indicates the person he was......

A joy to read - this man had the spirit of a true mountaineer. His co-author did a wonderful job.

Anatoli Boukreev was one of the most remarkable mountaineers in history. This book gives the reader great insight into Boukreev's thoughts, as well as the Soviet culture. Having read many other books, the similarities between Soviet athletes, chess masters and intellectuals is stunning. Anatoli Boukreev hints at the pressure placed upon him and others prior to the fall of his government. "Above the Clouds" has excellent narratives about climbing, but it is much more than that. His writings about the Everest tragedy are striking.

This book is based on the journal of Anatoli Boukreev and his diary of mountaineering. The book does a great job of describing his life before large expeditions and his struggle to make it to the top. The book does also focuses on his life and relationships as well as his personal accounts of his adventures. The journal rarely goes into his deep feelings which gives a better understanding of how he was as person. However, when it does go deep, it speak deeply and touches the essense of mountaineering.

Well written with lots of beneficial information. Not all of it is relative but all of it has it's purpose. It definitely gives those of us who are interested in touring food for thought.

This is a fantastic book about the realities of bike touring. Everything you need to know about the appropriate equipment, the countries, road conditions, visas, weather, etc. I couldn't put it down.

In the mid 1970's when I was a kid my mom gave me a coffee table book on bicycling. I forget the title and author and the book is long gone. In it was a section on "bikepacking" as cycle touring was coined back then. It was the inspiration for a life of traveling by bicycle. Stephen Lord's "Adventure Cycle-Touring Handbook" will do the same for countless others with a spirit of adventure, but the information contained within is invaluable. No more learning the hardway. Pay attention to what is written and know yourself; you will go a long way. Like the Patagonia cataloges of the era in which I grew up and the Bridgestone Bicycle cataloges of the era in which I matured, this book will be coveted by those in the know and become treasured and collected. If you've ever toured, read it and know what I mean. If you haven't, pick up a copy and hit the road.

I thought this book was very through, from gear selection, to stories to get you excited go on a trip. I would recommend it to any long-distance dreaming cycler.

This is a great book. The 3 sections allow riders to learn about adventure travel according to the mood they are in. I used the bike recommendations to buy the Volpe. Great purchase. Warning: this book will encourage you to travel. Wish list: a web site like crazyguyonabike.com so readers can keep abreast of updates. Cheers Lord. Nice job.

Read this book. It draws you in because it tells you something you don't know and never thought about on just about every page. When most of us travel, we go to a specific destination, and we go there on an airplane or on an Interstate. More than anything I've read in years, this book reminds me of how much of America exists on the back roads, and of how little of it I've actually seen in my years of travel throughout the country.

I really like this book the auther really put a lot of insight into her bok and talked about the weather and hardship along the way. its a really good book

A wonderful book by a determined rider and insightful writer. Bill really knows how to engage the people and capture the sites he encounters along the way. He brings them to life with a great combination of words and photos. Best of all, Bill makes you feel like you were along for the ride.

Not only Bill's adventure, but the people, the history, the nostalgia, the landscape, are all captured in Bill's journal. The photos are fabulous! This is one of the best cycling adventures I have read because it is about the adventure, not the ride.

Mr. Roe is one lucky guy! He has convinced his lovely wife to drive his 24-foot camper along on his coast-to-coast bicycle trip. The two seem to enjoy themselves almost every mile - even when the people they run across are less than hospitable, they seem to take it all in stride and enjoy the trip.
The author's ability to relate what he sees and experiences makes it a very comfortable read, and the photographs that accompany the text are fabulous. I really liked this book. As long as you don't expect to get a history lesson here (I spotted a few historical errors), aren't put off by editing goof-ups (seems like the editor fell asleep at the switch the last third of the book), and don't expect to learn technical information for a trans-continental trip of your own, you should like this book too.

Hi my name is Skyler Williams and Allen Iverson is my favorite basketball player. I've liked him ever since the first time I saw him play. He plays like he's been playing all of his life every day, but he didn't start until he was ten years old. I like his cross-over alot, but my favorite move is his comercial move, the answer shoe commercial. I am hoping that he does more commercials. I like his cornrows. Someday I hope to meet him. If I ever met him I would probably faint. I think it is awsome how he is so good and yet he started playing at the age of 10. I like the way he is shorter than everybody and he is still better than everybody. I think that he is the next Michael Jordan. Every move he does, I try to do and it takes me an hour to get it good and he is the one that makes them up. That is awsome. And he is good at making poems and rap songs. He might come out with a record. He is also good at football and won the AAA MVP award in high school. I wish I could meet him. I have collected 50 of his basketball cards so far and I am hoping to collect some more. Allen Iverson is the best.

Skyler Williams

WHATZ UP TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN, I JUST HAVE A COUPLE OF THINGSTO SAY TO/ABOUT ALLEN IVERSON. I LOVE YOU AND KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK.

buy this book.It is the best

I thought the book was very entertaining, mainly because of my love for the man the book was based on. I think he is great basketball player and I have never known a point guard to score like him. Although we live two different lifestyles, I admire you because you shine regardless! I love that about you. My personal advice to Allen Iverson is to keep your head up and continue ballin'. The next Director of Public Relations for a team in the league, Miss La'Keisha

I LOVE IVERSON he is an true role model. He went through alot as a child and teen and still going through pure hell as an adult. He shows me that you should never give up and forget where you come from. If you have an goal and dont understand Iverson and you only know him as an ball player and dont know why he has so many fans you should read this book. It made me think and rewind my thoughts on the game of basketball and look at him as a total different person. Hes a true role model and thats why true fans like me dont look at him and just see cornrows and tattoos we see an awesome gift from god and a pro at the game of life as well

This is a great intstructional manual from the novice to the more experienced. Much better than Freedom of the Hills, which I also own. I also recommend Extreme Alpinism and The Mountaineering Handbook (these are arguably the 3 best books out for the alpinist).

I bought this book because I had been out of alpine climbing for 10 years and I wanted to get back into it. The authors are professional mountain guides but more than that, alpine climbing seems to be an integral part of who they are. I picked up a lot of very helpful information that covers everything from training, to equipment and boot selection, to alpine travel and avalanche knowledge. It is very suited to the Sierra Nevada range, where I do most of my climbing. This is the best book I have found on the subject.

Well, I am completely biased having climbed several times with Kathy. In practice, all her mountain judgment seems so seamless! One minute we're just chatting away and the next we're on an exposed ridgeline for five miles, still calm and collected. It's amazing how much judgment is about the conditions (the mountains and ours), and knowing how to read them correctly. One memorable experience was just killing some time during a complete whiteout, and seeing what was possible with a new GPS gizmo. Anyway, what I've learned from Kathy and this book? How to judge my limits far better than before. It's easy to get overconfident and stop thinking. When I'm alone in the mountains now, I actually pay attention and learn to retreat better. Those mountains will wait for another day -- although the glaciers may not!

The section on Common Problems with Decision Making was alone worthy the purchase!I could identify many issues and suggestions with my own experiences. Very well laid out book and a must read for anyone venturing into the sport of climbing, or those of us who wish to brush up on skills and ponder ways of continuous learning no matter the level of prior experience. One of definite climbing "bibles" written by people who do it for a living and are prepared to share their experiences and knowledge. Five stars IMHO!!! Happy climbing!

I agree with the reviewers above (below) that this book complements "Freedom of the Hills". In particular it focuses more on the decision making process than most books of these types. Although I've never traveled with either of the authors, they seem like lovely people and the stories they tell flesh them out for the reader. They also answered a question I had when I wrote them via email. In all, a solid book that it would do to put on your bookshelf.

It's a nice book, well written and with a nice alternating between anedocts and game recaps with box scores and precise recollection of the Mets most important games over their history. I wish the author had expanded a bit more the final part of the book dedicated to players profiles. But overall it's a nice reading for baseball fans interested in the recent history of the game, not only Mets fans

I loved this book. If you are a baseball fan, half the fun is reliving great moments. Blatt puts you back on the field only the way a seasoned sportswriter can. There is also plenty of stuff from off the field. I love baseball and this book does it for me. Even after reading it, it's a book you can pick up and enjoy all over again. Buy it.

I just finished reading Howard Blatt's book, Amazin' Met Memories. I really enjoyed the trip down memory lane with the Mets. This book had terrific accounts of over 40 of the greatest games in Met history. My whole family have been fans of The NY Mets for many years. Since we don't live in New York anymore we can't attend the games, but this book made me feel that I was sitting on the third base line at Shea. I will keep this book in the company of every Met yearbook I own, since '62. Mr. Blatt, keep the Met books coming!!!

After realizing that Howard Blatt couldn't possibly have spent 40 years in the Mets' lockerroom, I became aware of the fact that his amazin' book only makes it seem so, and that he has astounding knowledge of both the Mets and baseball in general.
This is an enjoyable and fascinating chronicle of 40 sometimes great, often frustrating years.
Perhaps my biggest kick, however, came from Bud Harrelson's wonderful and honest introduction. It alone makes the book a great buy, and brought back for this original Met fan many fond memories of the '69 Miracle Mets.

Might this be the best Mets book -- ever? I'm old enough to recall the Mets first win in 1962, and here's that game again, one of dozens of games -- from the good years and the wishful -- with dozens of box scores (box scores! Why don't baseball books have more box scores like Blatt gives us?) and excellent game stories, with the best quotes, scene-setting and analysis you could want. I just pick this book up, read any game at random and next thing I know I'm reading three games, four, and the writing of each game-story is so crisp, evocative, witty and intelligent that nothing about it tires. It's like sitting next to a great afficianado who's seen it all and makes you feel as if you're seeing it fresh in the thrill of the original nights and afternoons. Like a time machine, you're placed in the game's seasonal situation, the immediate dugout calculations, and the cultural implications for the Blue and Orange. And then there are the chapters on best/worst trades, best players (complete with stats and rain-delay musings) and like the song says, "I don't care if I ever get back." And the topper is that he even includes "bonus" games, plucking the extraordinary from the ordinary (if there is such a thing as ordinary in baseball). Any old book can give you the World Series games but Blatt gives you it all, from the Aprils to the warm summers to the October chill. It works on every level. Not only is this a book for the deepest, most passionate fan but also the perfect volume to introduce and explain to your girlfriend, wife or kids why the Mets matter, why this is not just the Mets history but our own. Just as you can love and appreciate Wrigley without being a Cubs fan, or appreciate Jordan without being his team's fan, you can love this book even if you're not a Mets fan. If you value great baseball writing you'll become a Howard Blatt fan. As do all great authors and their classics, this book transcends its particulars to become something any fan will find fascinating and historically compelling. This book will become as dog-eared as your first scorecard and just as precious.