Baseball Books

For twenty years, the East-West All-Star Game was a celebration of the outstanding achievements of some of the greatest baseball players ever, and so much more.

The idea of legendary Pittsburgh Crawfords owner Gus Greenlee to have a mid-season exhibition game quickly evolved into a major summer event - there was even fan voting for the starters in some years - with an atmosphere that I compare with college football's Bayou Classic.

Author Larry Lester takes articles, photographs, box scores, league records and other statistics mostly from the leading newspapers that served the black community to recreate the excitement and glory of the games. The book is also an excellent retrospective of the top media sources like the Pittsburgh Courier, Chicago Defender and Baltimore Afro-American.

At its peak, the game was one of the hottest tickets for any sporting event - though mostly ignored by the white press - where Jim Crow could not find a seat in the stadium. There was no prejudice or segregation; the contest was indicative of the openness found on the field, in the seats and within management of Negro Leagues Baseball.

The East-West All-Star Game was truly a showcase, on and off the field.

Bit by bit the obscure story of the legendary Negro Leaguers is being reconstructed, and books like this are playing a major role. Recounted here are all the East-West Games, the annual All-Star Games of the Negro Leagues, complete with boxscores, play-by-play, and contemporary newspaper coverage from the great African-American sportswriters & newspapers of the day. Finally those names from the dusty archives are being fleshed out into real players with recognizable skills. A superb reference. This is also a great companion volume to David Vincent's "The Midsummer Classic" about the (White) Major League All-Star Games, issued by the same publisher.

This book is nearly in Solzhenetsyn's league - and that's the major league for works in this genere. The author novelizes his own experiences with the surreal "family" court system in my native Michigan - of which I am also a surviving father - and in doing so paints a picture vivid in its absurdity, banality, and vileness that an uninformed reader might associate more readily with the Soviet Union - hence the reason that the Gulag comes so quickly to mind.
Like our former adversary, we have psychiatric prisons, where the inconvienent and uncooperative are sent, drugged, and left incommunicado, when it suits the organs of state power to do so. This Dostoyeveski of American fatherhood writes what rings true - as I read, it was "deja vu, all over again" as my thoughts flashed back to my own experiences at the hands of those my taxes supposedly pay to protect the innocent.
The story is of a man who married badly, to what he calls a "human hand grenade," had children, and for their sakes, stayed, like a latter-day Hosea, with his wife of whoredoms to the bitter end, hostage to his loyalty to his children, and to a passion for a woman who utterly scorned and failed him. Like many a man who has beaten the odds in escaping the ghetto, the author bore wounds not visible to himself, but gapingly obvious to the "idiot savant" whose sole talent in life was an ability to play her intellectual superiors like a harp.
More than a page-turning story, this novelization of divorce purgatory, in which the protagonist's most exquisite pain is not for his own suffering, but for that of his children, this book is also an old-school conservative/libertarian indictment of F.D.R.'s Welfare State, in tones that remind this reader of Atlas Shrugged, as Mr. Green digresses to examine the cause of the troubles visited upon his family, which are only the symptoms of the Moocher State brought to its logical perfection. Welfare subsidizes the woman who wants to destroy her family for short-term gain, funds her sloth, and the producers are made to subsidize it all, minus the state's cut of the loot. (Mr. Green owns up to his share of the mistakes, including the cardinal one of marrying Sal, the anti-wife, but that in no way diminishes her guilt or that of her enablers.)
This book now rests on the same shelf as my copies of Stockdale, Sharansky, Denton, and the other confessors who have stood their ground against the last century's great killer of body and spirit - the Leviathan State. It belongs there, as the feminist-led assault on the traditional family is of one and the same character as those of the other corecive utopias that have blighted humanity within living memory. Could it happen here? It is already, and woe to the unfortunates who fall into its clutches! As Paul Craig Roberts once asked, in writing about another kind of judicial misconduct, will it produce a latter-day Count of Monte Cristo to fight it? It's a wonder that it has not already bred many worse than him among its' many victims.
-Lloyd A. Conway

In "free" America, dads are imprisoned for being dads. Millions of bogus temporary orders of restraint are the uncooperative mother's finest tool of ruin. All Constitutional rights are ignored and routinely denied to fathers, including life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; the presumption of innocence, due process, equal protection, and right to counsel. Child support is an autonomous industry run without state oversight or control - ask any Attorney General. The Feds actually pay the states to persecute fathers with matching funds.

For the millions of disenfranchised fathers who suffer two and a half times the psychological stress of the death of a spouse, divorce and its subsequent utter ruin at the hands of a jackbooted state makes life unbearable. Every 38 minutes another takes his own life - and another child goes through hell.

This American Gulag is occurring right in our own backyard. Every minute, every hour, every day.

The Boat is a short picture story, written & illustrated by Monique Felix.

*There is NO text!*

That's right! It's a picture book, but don't assume it's only for the preschool set. When words are missing, imagination has more freedom to develop. The drawings and problem solving aspects of the tale might inspire someone of any age.

I discovered Monique Felix about 20 years ago when I was reading to my two young daughters. They adored the clever little mouse and we would take turns "reading" the pages. I never got tired of reading those books - it was always a fresh story, and now one of my fondest memories. The girls have graduated college, are working adults, but still they ask about these books which brought us all such good times. (Mom won't give them up!)

The author's drawings are quite detailed as weather or seasons change. The mouse's expression of emotion varies on each page, as Monique Felix brings the little mouse to life. These are more or less "naturalistic" drawings. Cute, but not cutesy, cloying, or cartoon-like. They have a timelessness of style.

Caveat Emptor -YMV

Just as a side note:
I am reviewing an edition from a different publisher.
My edition of "The Boat" was actually called "The further adventures of the little mouse trapped in a book" c. 1983 and
what is sold here as "Wind", I have as "The story of a little mouse trapped in a book." c. 1980
Both were "A Star & Elephant Book from The Green Tiger Press"

This is a very lovely little book. It has no words, only beautifully-painted pictures. The little mouse scampers over a blank book and carefully chews away at the page, revealing the ocean underneath. He proceeds to make a little paper boat with the page and sails away to adventures on the high seas.

If you've ever wondered HOW Bostonians became the most passionate fans in the country, this explains it. It's amazing to think it just started with a few people in a bar. Just like any religion, it spread until it went worldwide. And that's where we are today.
This book is the only one out there that gives you that story. Thanks to Pete Nash! -- Andy Wasif, author Green Monster University: Creating Die-Hahd Fans Since 1901

Buy this book for one reason -- the author is Pete Nice. Dig it. 3rd Bass, y'all.

In my opinion, THE HOME RUN MYSTERY is the Best Boxcar Children book ever written! I won't spoil the book, but it's probably one of the most mysterious one ever. A+

Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny are taking another trip with their Grandfather, and you know what that means! Another mystery! This time they're involved in a baseball game, playing in a lot that has a story behind it, but time is running out. The lot may soon be changed into a parking lot! What happened to the legendary player Home Run Herman? And how is the opposite team winning the games? Can the Boxcar Children solve these mysteries before it's too late? Enjoy!

Having looked at numerous baseball photography books, from Conlon to Brace to TSN, SI, you name it, Sweet's book is one of the best I've ever laid hands on. Many of the photos have similar shots of what you see today, until you read the book and realize that Sweet was THE FIRST ONE to shoot baseball photos from these great angles. But many of the shots you'll see in here are complex shots that you likely won't see anywhere else, such as the simulated action shots of a pitcher throwing a ball (ball included) or a closeup of a fielder turning two. Sweet's photos also offer a great deal of detail via the medium format film--lots of textures of wool-uniform, felt logos, embroidered logos, sweat beads, pores, stubble. Then on top of all that you notice a slightly different take or emotional expression that Sweet had a knack for capturing. Cap it off with a bright yellow background or blue sky and the results have a timeless quality.

Where George Brace's work (black/white photography) primarily ends is where Sweet (color) picks up--1949 to present. With the invention of color film at mid-century, Sweet's early photos were taken at the dawn of a new era, and we're priviledged to be able to see those legends in full color from 1949 with Joe D to Hideki Matsui in 2005.

The focus of this book is spring training, and looking/reading through it is about as enjoyable as being there. The book has a nice 1950's vintage feel with softer colors and great use of negative space. The stories are very informative and entertaining--a commentary about the shot, each player's personality, as well as some historical info/data on the players.

Many of the photos have a vintage/retro coloring to them, as if the negative had already been oxidized a bit. and it's not clear to me whether they were intentional or just not color-corrected. In any case, the result does produce a more vintage feel, particularly the 50's-60's shots.

Baseball fans who grew up during the 50's-70's will appreciate the photos in this book. I can't see why sports photographers would pass this book up, not for someone who is considered to be the greatest by his peers.

I thouroughly enjoyed viewing the old and new photos in Ozzie Sweet's new book and reading the accompanying stories. His photographic style is unmatched even today in the unique way in which he posed his shots. It's amazing how he captures such such great colors and seems to look into the souls of his subjects. After reading the book it is amazing how many current day sports photographers look at him as a baseball player would look at Babe Ruth. Whether you are a camera buff or a sports fan, I highly recommend this book.

This is perfect, if your a true fan, your in for a treat. Done by the superstars of yesteryear, great content, fun to learn how they played the game. Quality is outstanding, I should have bought more to have for grandchildren!

The recorded voices on c/d of these six Brooklyn Dodgers, along with their many illustrations in the book, really make you feel like you are being personally trained at Ebbets Field by six of the "Boys of Summer". My father really enjoys the rekindled memories of those days, and my son enjoys the tips that these "pros" have to offer.

This is wonderfully informative and well written book! It takes the reader on a fascinating journey of the mysterious House of David, and allows you to take an exciting ride into the lives of a rare and wonderful group of individuals that very well may have accomplished more than any small group in America. The book is on display at the House of David Museum and is used as a reference guide for those that stop in for a visit or to learn more about this fabulous religious colony. Mr. Adkin lived in the area of the House of David, and had the fortune of becoming familiar with many of those that still survived at the House of David Grounds in Benton Harbor, Michigan. The book is the best to date in regards to telling the complete, unbiased story of this great piece of American history!

This history of the House of David is objective, informative, and very well documented. The author conducted interviews with members, ex-members, and people who were in one way or another had interactions with the group and has many first hand stories included in the book. I enjoyed reading about all the things the group was involved in, made, invented, and the impact they had on the surrounding area and America as a whole.

The pictures included in the book enhance the text by giving faces to associate with some of the people involved in the group.

A fascenating history of one prophet, two cities, and the many good people who lived the religion. Well done, Mr. Adkin!

i read this book cover to cover and it just arrived yesterday.
i could not put it down. being to young to actualy have any rememberance of the acual event, this book takes you and puts you there, giving you a great feeling of what it must have been like, for the fans & the players. i have read bums, boys of summer, the last good season & this book here. they are all great and i would have to give this book 5 stars..it is a little on the expensive side now that it is out of print and in such high demand but it is definitley worth every penny.
i have added this to my collection and it is a perfect complement to my magazine "who's a bum" the 40th anniversary of the 1955 brooklyn dodgers"..you get that magazine and this book and you got it all!! BUY IT IF YOU CAN!!!!

In 2004, the Boston Red Sox finally broke their long standing curse and won the World Series. In 1955, a similar event occurred. The Brooklyn Dodgers, who had won many more pennants than the Red Sox, finally defeated their longtime nemesis, the New York Yankees, in the World Series. It was a time of enormous rejoicing in Brooklyn, but in many ways it was the last hurrah. Changing demographic patterns had led to a consistent decline in attendance at Ebbets field, and in a few years, they were the Los Angeles Dodgers. Furthermore, Ebbets field had been leveled, so both aspects of the team in Brooklyn were nothing but memories.
This book is an account of that wonderful season, where all of the memories of previous defeats were erased. It starts with a recapitulation of the failures, the greatest of which was the collapse in 1951, where the Dodgers led the Giants by 13 ½ games in the early part of August. They ended the season in a tie and in the third playoff game, Bobby Thompson hit a home run to send the Dodgers home for the winter.
It is also an account of how the Brooklyn people felt about the Dodgers. When I watched the fine Ken Burns video on baseball, some of the interviews were with people who grew up in Brooklyn and worshipped the Dodgers. This book captures the passion that those people felt for their team, and how in many ways, it was also America's team. When Jackie Robinson became the first black to play in the major leagues, it was for the Dodgers. For years after the color barrier was broken, the Dodgers continued to lead in having black players, so blacks all over the country considered the Dodgers to be their team.
There are some events in baseball that will stand forever, and the Red Sox victory in 2004 will be one of them. However, given the number of times they had played in the World Series and lost, the Dodger victory in 1955 probably surpasses the Red Sox in terms of breaking the pattern of failure. This is especially true when you factor in the fact that it was truly a climax, as shortly after, the Brooklyn Dodgers and their stadium were no more. But, it was truly a joy ride while it lasted, and this book is a wonderful description of an extraordinary season. It is a classic in the history of baseball.

The Mom's Choice Awards® honors excellence in family-friendly media, products and services. An esteemed panel of judges includes education, media and other experts as well as parents, children, librarians, performing artists, producers, medical and business professionals, authors, scientists and others. A sampling of the panel members includes: Dr. Twila C. Liggett, Ten-time Emmy-winner, professor and founder of Reading Rainbow; Julie Aigner-Clark, Creator of Baby Einstein and The Safe Side Project; Jodee Blanco, New York Times Best-Selling Author; LeAnn Thieman, Motivational speaker and coauthor of seven Chicken Soup For The Soul books; Tara Paterson, Certified Parent Coach, and founder of The Just For Mom Foundation(tm) and the Mom's Choice Awards®. Parents and educators look for the Mom's Choice Awards® seal in selecting quality materials and products for children and families. This book has been honored by this distinguished award.

Greetings from the city with the greatest baseball fans in the world (Go ahead, look it up in the Sporting News). Baseball is, at the very earliest stage in a boy's life, the most innocent of times for them to challenge and learn about themselves and how to relate to others.

Any book about baseball is valuable for my 6 yr-old Grandson who is, aside from his Dad and Grandpa, the biggest Cardinal fan around. He just can't wait to come over to read about Bur Bur getting to throw out the 1st pitch and he dreams of those "Boys of Summer" and someday joining them as well.

I highly recommend getting all the Bur Bur books. They will be treasured by your kids or grandkids for many generations to come.