Product Description

The story of black professional baseball provides a remarkable perspective on several major themes in modern African American history: the initial black response to segregation, the subsequent struggle to establish successful separate enterprises, and the later movement toward integration. Baseball functioned as a critical component in the separate economy catering to black consumers in the urban centers of the North and South. While most black businesses struggled to survive from year to year, professional baseball teams and leagues operated for decades, representing a major achievement in black enterprise and institution building.

Negro League Baseball: The Rise and Ruin of a Black Institution presents the extraordinary history of a great African American achievement, from its lowest ebb during the Depression, through its golden age and World War II, until its gradual disappearance during the early years of the civil rights era. Faced with only a limited amount of correspondence and documents, Lanctot consulted virtually every sports page of every black newspaper located in a league city. He then conducted interviews with former players and scrutinized existing financial, court, and federal records. Through his efforts, Lanctot has painstakingly reconstructed the institutional history of black professional baseball, locating the players, teams, owners, and fans in the wider context of the league's administration. In addition, he provides valuable insight into the changing attitudes of African Americans toward the need for separate institutions.

Customer Reviews (7)

Excellent but even handed review of black baseball
Great book, I bought it for my son and ended up keeping it for myself.Maybe he'll get his copy next year!

Fantastic History In One Volume
Neil Lanctot pens an outstanding history of Negro League Baseball and its historical significance in this brilliant one volume work.

There has been several important works on the Negro Leagues over the years, but none have been as inclusive on exploring the era as Lanctot. If the reader is looking for a book to quickly skim over, this is not the one to purchase. But you will be missing a vital book on a professional baseball league that has never received its true recognition.

It has angered me for many years that the Negro Leagues has become nothing more than a footnote in baseball history, seemingly "celebrated" a couple times a season with current pro baseball teams wearing "throwback" jerseys during games.

Lanctot's book should be a required reading for baseball's commissioner and other officials & then the steps should be taken to include the NLB statistics in "official" records, with additional classes of hall of fame inductees to follow the NLB Class of 2006.

A very well researched history that is about more than baseball
This is a very in depth book on the history of the negro leagues, but I feel more on the business side than the games.As I read this book I continually reflected on the business strategy and mismanagement of the league, the racism the players and owners faced, and the changing dynamics of a nation. A good book, but if you are looking to learn about the players and what they accomplished then this is not the book for you.If you want a book about sports management and history of race in the US from 1933 to 1960 then this is a great book.

Exellent History
The author is to be commended for the exellent research on a subject with few primary sources.The downside of this book is that it reads like an acedemic research paper rather than telling the story of a long gone istitution.Not an easy read but very detailed.Anyone truly interested in the old Negro Leagues would find this a very informative book.However if you are interested but would prefer something lighter then I would reccomend Mark Ribowsky's book "A Complete History of the Negro Leagues"

Great History, Boring Read
The book opened my eyes to a lot that I never knew about Negro League Baseball.I did not know how many leagues there were and how the players were treated in regards to Major Leagues.I did not know how the leagues were funded etc.There is a lot of good info in this book and there are parts where the story is good.After that it dies and some of it is quite boring, I mean the way Lanctot writes about certain things in dreadul. ... Read more

Product Description
From its exclusive archives, The Sporting News recreates a century of baseball's moderan era, from 1901 through 2000.

Baseball is a look at baseball history and how The Sporting News-–the Bible of Baseball-–covered the legendary players and events, from Babe Ruth and his 1927 season to Mark McGwire and his 1998 season. From Lou Gehrig's farewell address at Yankee Stadium, to Cal Ripken's Iron Man--breaking celebration at Camden Yards.

Publishing since 1886, The Sporting News not only has a unique perspective in covering the game of baseball since its beginning, but also has played a unique role in the creation of the game, from the birth of the American League to the save. It's a history of baseball like none other done before. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Great book from the best in sports!
From the late stage of the 19th century, the sporting news has been the bible of baseball, it has covered every aspect of the americas pasttime, from little Eddie Gaedel to the big bats of Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, the book is one of the best or perhaps the best on the market covering the illustrated story of the sport. Join TSN from the mere start of the american league, via the upstart federal league, and to modern times of interleague play. Join TSN through wars, depression and a bunch of presidents. Over the years TSN has influenced baseball, for example by the save and relief pitchers. The book contains articles from the times when the events happened plus some text from today. As a regular subscriber, I am proud to have this book in my collection. There is some other stories that have been closed out, but nevertheless this book is given a perfect 10. It makes a hell of a birthday or christmas gift to anyone between 10-100 who loves baseball.

Fantastic
This book chronicles the history of baseball in the 20th century as seen through the momentous archives of The Sporting news, the baseball weekly that has seemingly been around almost since the beginning of professional baseball. Numerous photos, cartoons, articles, and features detail the sport's history, from the beginning of the American League in 1901, the 1914 "Miracle Braves," the Black Sox Scandal, both World Wars, the Babe, the "Iron Horse", Ted, Joltin Joe, Jackie Robinson, and too many other ballplayers to mention, the "Television Age" and the beginning of several major league team moves and expansion, thru to events of the 1990s, inlcuding Cal Ripken's breaking of Lou Gehrig's consecutive games streak and Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa's home run "duel" in 1998, to the 2000 "Subway series."

I can't think of anyone better to take on a project like this and publish a book that covers the last century of baseball so well. ... Read more

Product Description
This in-depth treatment of the organization and operation of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League draws on primary documents from league owner Arthur Meyerhoff and others for a unique perspective inside the AAGPBL. The study begins with a brief history of women's softball, an important precursor to, and talent pool for, women's professional baseball. Next the book investigates league administration and organization as well as publicity and promotion. Later chapters cover team administrative structures, managers, chaperones, player backgrounds, and league policies. Finally, discussion focuses on the activities of the AAGPBL Players' Association from 1980 onward. Informed by many years of research and insights from former players, this exhaustive history contains 149 photographs. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great History of a unique period of social history
A thoroughly entertaining and engrossing read about an enterprise that predicted the soon to emerge the second wave women's movement in an area, women's sport, that is sadly neglected. Highly recommended. ... Read more

Product Description
The companion audiobook to Ken burns's magnificent PBS television series

The authors of the acclaimed and history-making bestseller The Civil War flow turn to another American phenomenon. Their subject is baseball.

During eight months of the year, it is played professionally every day; all year round, amateurs play it, watch it, and dream about it. Baseball produces remarkable Americans: it seizes hold of ordinary people and shapes them into something we must regard with awe. Babe Ruth, Jackie Robinson, Joe DiMaggio ... truly gifted human beings acting out universal fantasies that, for whatever reason, are most perfectly expressed on a baseball field.

All this and more rings through Ward and Burns's moving, crowded, fascinating history of the game -- a history that goes beyond stolen bases, triple plays, and home runs to demonstrate how baseball has been influenced by and has in turn influenced, our national life: politics, race, labor, big business, advertising, and social custom. The audio covers every milestone of the game: from the rules drawn up in 1845 by Alexander Cartwright to the founding of the Brotherhood of Professional Base Ball Players in 1885, from the 1924 Negro World Series through Jack Roosevelt Robinson's major-league debut in 1947, and Nolan Ryan's seventh and last no-hitter in 1991.

Monumental, affecting, informative, and entertaining -- Baseball is an audio that speaks to all Americans.

Baseball is available in hardcover from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (170)

Baseball
I am not able to give a review of this material as I purchased it for another person not in my household.

Quintessential documentary on baseball.
Absolutely awesome, indepth documentary.I only have one complaint:It seems that it is a rather biased view of the Dodgers move to Los Angeles.I don't see how a documentary can be made on this subject with absolutely no mention of Robert Moses and the battle between him and O'Malley.Other than that, I love this set and watch it over and over again.

Simply stupendous
It brought me back to loving and following the game I loved for years. For that alone it is worth everything bright and beautiful.

baseball
a great look at the times and history as seen through baseball along with the some great stories and facts about baseball a enjoyable dvd trip for a few quite nights

Another success with Amazon
Our purchase was priced better than anywhere else we had checked.We received our package quickly and in excellent condition.Over and over, we choose Amazon for good deals, quality service, and straight-to-our-door delivery.A pleasure.Thanks. ... Read more

Amazon.com Review
Given The Sporting News's criteria for a GreatestMoment--a dramatic, nail-biting situation; an out-of-the-bluehappening; or the culmination of a record chase--the list of 25 theysend to the plate may be predictable, but so what? These are momentsof such myth and import--not surprisingly, most were born under theintense spotlight of a World Series or playoff game--that if baseballmeans anything to you, you'll feel your pulse pounding just browsingthe table of contents.

Leading off is exactly what shouldbe leading off: Bobby Thompson's 1951 "Shot Heard 'Round the World,"with Bill Mazeroski's 1960 World Series-winning home run rightbehind. Not every moment is defined by a dinger, though theextraordinary World Series bops by Carlton Fisk and Kirk Gibson, HankAaron's chase of the Babe, and Mark McGwire's hunting down of RogerMaris all make the Top 10. So do Don Larsen's perfecto (No. 3), BillBuckner's awful boot (No. 8), Willie Mays's catch (No. 9), andCardinal Enos Slaughter's "Mad Dash" from first to home on a two-outsingle in Game 7 of the 1946 World Series (No. 10). Each is fullyillustrated and recounted in rich detail by its participants--winnersand losers alike. Following the 25, a series of less-detailed listsunveil events like moments that changed the game (Jackie Robinson is aclear number one here) and great individual feats (Ruth's calledshot).

In his foreword, Joe Morgan recounts Fisk's 12th-inning homerun from his perspective--he was playing second that night forthe losing Reds--and deftly points out what makes this enterprise somuch fun: "It makes you think of more than just the momentitself. When you think of your favorite moments on this list, think ofwhat preceded these great accomplishments, and think of where you weresitting when you watched, read, or heard about them. If you are trulya baseball fan, you will remember." As if a true baseball fan couldever forget. --Jeff Silverman ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

25 Great Baseball Moments to argue about with your friends
"Baseball's 25 Greatest Moments" as selected by the Sporting News is a book that you argue about rather than review.The book begins the top position, Bobby Thompson's 1951 home run, "The Shot Heard 'Round the World" when the Giants won the pennant, the Giants won the pennant, the Giants won the pennant.This is one of a dozen home runs listed in the 25 Greatest Moments, and while you will not be surprised to find Fisk, Mazeroski, and Dent on this list you might be stunned to find that Babe Ruth is absent: no Number 60 and no "Called Shot."The list also includes defensive plays by Mays and Richardson as well as fatal errors by Buckner and Owens, pitching performances by Larsen and Haddix, and record setting performances by Aaron and Ripken.There are even looks at the home run races 1961 and 1998 and the Brooklyn Dodgers "Boys of Summer" season in 1955.Including Lou Gehrig's "Luckiest Man Alive" speech is a nice inclusion on the list.

Even the Sporting News finds it impossible to stop at 25, as the book also offers lists of Other Great Moments that feature The Next 10 (e.g., Johnny Vander Meer's back-to-back no hitters), The All-Star Game (e.g., Carl Hubble strikes out five straight future Hall of Famers in the All-Star Game), Moments That Changed The Game (e.g., first night baseball game), Unusual and Unforgettable (e.g., Bill Veeck sends Eddie Gaedel to the plate), and Individual Feats (e.g., Wambsganss unassisted triple play in the World Series).This books features lots of great pictures and recaptures those moments you remember actually watching on television as well as those you have only heard about in baseball lore.I especially like the retrospective comments on the players involved looking back on the moments that made them immortal.

Okay, for the record, here is my argument for obvious changes: I would put Ruth's 60th home run, DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak, Williams finishing at .406, and Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier on the list.What would I take off the current list?The homers by Chambliss, Brett and Carter, and Cobb's all-time hit record being broken by that compulsive gambler fellow who got banned for life.Now it is your turn at bat...

Great Pictures
This book has wonderful pictures and stories.I bought this book for my boyfriend, a huge baseball fan, and he really loved it! ... Read more

Product Description

Joe DiMaggio . . . Ted Williams . . . Joe Louis . . . Billy Conn . . . Whirlaway

Against the backdrop of a war that threatened to consume the world, these athletes transformed 1941 into one of the most thrilling years in sports history.

In the summer of 1941, America paid attention to sports with an intensity that had never been seen before. World War II was raging in Europe and headlines grew worse by the day; even the most optimistic people began to accept the inevitability of the United States being drawn into the conflict. In sports pages and arenas at home, however, an athletic perfect storm provided unexpected—and uplifting—relief. Four phenomenal sporting events were underway, each destined to become legend.
In 1941—The Greatest Year in Sports, acclaimed sportswriter Mike Vaccaro chronicles this astounding moment in history. Fueled by a somber mania for sports—a desire for good news to drown out the bad—Americans by the millions fervently watched, listened, and read as Joe DiMaggio dazzled the country by hitting in a record-setting fifty-six consecutive games; Ted Williams powered through an unprecedented .406 season; Joe Louis and Billy Conn (the heavyweight and light-heavyweight champions) battled in unheard-of fashion for boxing’s ultimate championship; and the phenomenal (some say deranged) thoroughbred, Whirlaway, raced to three heart-stopping victories that won the coveted Triple Crown of horse racing. As Phil Rizzuto perfectly expressed, “You read the sports section a lot because you were afraid of what you’d see in other parts of the paper.”
Gripping and nostalgic, 1941—The Greatest Year in Sports focuses on these four seminal events and brings to life the national excitement and remarkable achievement (many of these records still stand today), as well as the vibrant lives of the athletes who captivated the nation. With vast insight, Vaccaro pulls back the veil on DiMaggio’s anxieties and the building pressure of “The Streak,” and chronicles the brash, young confidence Williams displayed as he hammered his way through the baseball season largely in DiMaggio’s shadow. He takes readers inside the head of Billy Conn, a kid who traded in his light-heavyweight belt for a shot at the very decent and very powerful Joe Louis, and tells the story of the fire-breathing racehorse, Whirlaway, who was known either for setting track records or tearing off in the wrong direction.
Rich in historical detail and edge-of-your-seat reporting, Mike Vaccaro has crafted a lasting, important book that captures a portrait of one of America’s most trying, and extraordinary, eras.

Customer Reviews (9)

BUY THIS BOOK!
I was shopping with my wife & daughter in downtown Boston and managed to sneak away for a latte in one of those chi-chi bookstores. As I walked over to a table to sip my liquid treasure I passed by a table full of display books and this was one of them. I picked it up and started reading. It was about 30 minutes later my wife found me, and I was so involved in this book I didn't see her approaching the table.

This is one of the most facinating books I have read in a long time.

Yes, by all means sports fans will enjoy the four major events convered by "Greatest Year", but what is also convered is a years worth of major events also taking place on the world stage. 1941 was the last year America would know peace until 1945, and everybody knew, at some level, that war was coming and it was going to be ugly. Sports got us off page #1 and something else to think about for a while.

My favorite sporting item from this book was being reminded that while Joe DiMaggio was famously chasing his hitting streak, Ted Williams was quietly performing his own unique feat hitting .406 in an era when there was no such thing as steroids, Nautilus machines, Phd'd sports trainersor a "sacrifice fly". An era when pitchers never hesitated to knock batters down and umpires casually called a "ball" as punishment.

My favorite political item was learning that President Herbert Hoover warned against a rush to war. His concern? Wasting American lives in order to rescue Europe from Nazi enslavement only to see it handed over into Soviet enslavement. I had no idea anyone foresaw the "Iron Curtain", but Hoover did.

This is a great book, and a must read!

One of the Best Sports books on the market
Mike Vaccaro does it again. His New York Post columns are great, but his ability to pull a book together is fantastic. He also just recently wrote the foreword to the SportsByTheNumbers Yankees book: New York Yankees: An Interactive Guide to the World of Sports (Sports by the Numbers) If you love Mike Vaccaro, the New York Yankees, or baseball, then you need to buy both of these books.

awesome
Every summer I like to read a baseball book about the history of the game.Adding boxing and horse racing gave me an even better perspective about sports in that bygone era

Wonderfully engaging slice of American (sports) history
An eminently readable, enjoyable and enlightening work, one that weaves together not only Joe DiMaggio's and Ted Williams' early spectacular achievements, Vaccaro adds world history to the mix, breathing life into the memorable year, 1941. Throw in Billy Conn versus Joe Louis and mention the leading race horse of the day, and you have a full year of records, successes, and noteworthy competition -- darkened by Lou Gehrig's rapid demise and death and the Japanese and German march across the globe. Using daily highlights of games and events, quotes and personal angles on the stars, interviews with men who were there, and other sporting details, Vaccaro makes 1941 a wonderful year for sports fans.

A Book Worthy of a Great Sports Year
Mike Vaccaro's 1941 THE GREATEST YEAR IN SPORTS reads with all the excitement that well written sports stories should.Whirlaway's Triple Crown, the Louis-Conn title fight, Joe DiMaggio's 56 game hitting streak and Ted Williams' .406 batting average are four of the most significant events in sports history and for them to have occurred in the same year is remarkable.The political events in Europe and America are the backdrop for these events.

Whirlaway a three year old thoroughbred, that many thought was past his prime wins the Triple Crown and ultimately becomes the leading money winner, surpassing Seabiscuit.Eddie Arcaro replaces the regular jockey hours before the Derby, "connects" with him and rides Whirlaway to records that would stand until Secretariat in the 1970's.Vaccaro's writing style captures the drama and excitement of the Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes such that it seems you're there, against the rail, shouting "here comes Whirlaway" along with the rest of the crowd.

The second event is the Joe Louis Billy Conn heavyweight fight.Louis was the reigning heavyweight champion while Conn held the light heavyweight crown neither fighter was being challenged by their competition and Conn knows that the only way to get respect and larger purses was to fight Louis and win.Vaccaro describes the pre-game hype and the personal side of each fighter; the description of the fight itself is like being ringside.The fight set records for gate and size of the purse as well as radio listeners.Louis wins in what may have been his toughest fight.

DiMaggio and Williams battled it out during the entire summer; both had significant hitting streaks with DiMaggio's likely never to be broken; while Williams' .406 batting average made him the last major leaguer to reach that milestone which is also destined to last for a long time.The two men had very different personalities, DiMaggio quiet and reserved; Williams cocky and verbose.Both exceptionally talented; DiMaggio assumed the mantle of Lou Gehrig, who died during the 1941 season, and led the team to a World Series win while Williams played for a Red Sox team that was mediocre at best.Both feats required incredible abilities and luck.Changes to baseball make the likelihood of a 56 game hitting streak or hitting over .400 unlikely.

These events served as a distraction to what was becoming the imminent involvement of America in the War and many of the sports figures, including Louis, DiMaggio and Williams would leave sports behind and do their part, even Whirlaway would compete in races that sold war bonds.

For the sports fan and general reader 1941 THE GREATEST YEAR IN SPORTS is an exciting, informative and enjoyable book.

... Read more

Product Description
Captures more than a century in the history of America's national pastime, providing a lavishly illustrated, decade-by-decade survey of the game and including essays, chronologies, statistics, and lists of memorable games, World Series, and players. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Very well done.
Only last year did I start watching baseball, because my boyfriend is addicted to it. So, I thought this book would help me know something about it. Sure enough, it has. And he's very grateful. Purrrrr. ... Read more

Product Description
Much of the credit for helping the Red Sox win the World Series went to a more scientific approach to baseball statistics, dubbed "sabermetrics" by its greatest proponent, Bill James. But one aspect of the game has defied quantification: the number of runs individual fielders save. Traditional fielding statistics count errors and plays made, but not hits fielders 'should' have reached. Major League teams have recently addressed this gap using proprietary records of the location of every batted ball, but the underlying data has been kept secret and will never exist for the first century of modern major league baseball history.

Now, in Wizardry, comes the long-awaited breakthrough, Defensive Runs (or Regression) Analysis (DRA), created by Michael A. Humphreys. Drawing on entirely public information available to any fan, and using clear concrete examples, Humphreys demonstrates how to apply classic statistical methods to estimate runs saved by fielders going back to 1893. Humphreys tests his results against other fielding measures, including published ratings based on proprietary batted ball location data, and explains their respective strengths and limitations. More than that, Humphreys introduces the first method for adjusting historical player ratings to take into account the expansion of baseball's talent pool due to population growth, integration, and international recruitment. From shortstop to left fielder, he presents and defends his list of the greatest fielders of all time with anecdote-rich essays. And he caps off this book with extensive on-line appendices, including downloadable files of single-season DRA ratings for every fielder since 1893.

Sabermetrics changed baseball and introduced a generation of young people to the art of statistical inference. Now a seasoned analyst makes the case for the biggest changes in historical player valuations in decades, while opening up new approaches for further exploration. ... Read more

Product Description
Early in the 1920s, the New York Giants sent a scout to watch a young Cuban play for Foster's American Giants, a baseball club in the Negro Leagues.During one at-bat this talented slugger lined a ball so hard that the rightfielder was able to play it off the top of the fence and throw Christobel Torrienti out at first base.The scout liked what he saw, but was disappointed in the player's appearance. "He was a light brown," recalled one of Torrienti's teammates, "and would have gone up to the major leagues, but he had real rough hair." Such was life behind the color line, the unofficial boundary that prevented hundreds of star-quality athletes from playing big-league baseball.

In Only the Ball Was White, Robert Peterson tells the forgotten story of these excluded ballplayers, and gives them the recognition they were so long denied.Reconstructing the old Negro Leagues from contemporary sports publications, accounts of games in the black press, and through interviews with the men who actually played the game, Peterson brings to life the fascinating period that stretched from shortly after the Civil War to the signing of Jackie Robinson in 1947. We watch as the New York Black Yankees and the Philadelphia Crawfords take the field, look on as the East-West All-Star lineups are announced, and listen as the players themselves tell of the struggle and glory that was black baseball.In addition to these vivid accounts, Peterson includes yearly Negro League standings and an all-time register of players and officials, making the book a treasure trove of baseball information and lore. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (17)

Very Good Baseball History
Robert Peterson (1925-2006) wrote this pioneering history in 1970 when many ex-players were living.Drawing on interviews, Peterson makes the Negro Leagues come to life.Readers learn of stars like Bullet Joe Rogan, Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson ("the black Babe Ruth"), Cool Papa Bell, Oscar Charleston, etc., and teams like the Kansas City Monarchs, Homestead Grays, Indianapolis Clowns, Chicago American Giants, etc.The Negro Leagues were one of the largest black-owned businesses, though a couple teams (Pittsburgh Crawfords) were run by racketeers.Readers learn about Rube Foster, who founded the Negro National League in 1920, the annual All-Star game in Chicago's Comiskey Park, barnstorming against white big leaguers, and travel conditions that ranged from decent to difficult and discriminatory.There is also an appendix with team rosters and yearly standings.

The Negro Leagues began to fade as Jackie Robinson joined the Dodgers in 1947, and folded completely in 1960 - a sad day signalling a better era. Then this book arrived to bring attention to the Leagues and its players. One, Ted "Double-Duty" Radcliffe (1902-2005), became a fixture at White Sox games, signing autographs, and throwing out the first ball on his 101st and 102nd birthdays.

Today fans can visit The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, buy team merchandise, and enjoy several good books on the subject, including I WAS RIGHT ON TIME (by Buck O'Neil), BASEBALL'S GREAT EXPERIMENT and several others.Peterson deserves at least a little credit for this.

Only the Ball Was White
A scholarly effort by a great Negro Leagues historian, evidenced by Oxford University Press imprint. Highly informative, a tremendous read! Five-star plus*****

A Monumental Journey Into The Forgotten History Of NLB
"Negro baseball," writes Robert W. Peterson, "was both a gladsome thing and a blot on America's conscience."

And in that one sentence, Peterson defines the glory of Negro Leagues baseball and how it also magnified the sordid race hatred of this nation, with the ramifications still being felt today.

When the book was published in 1970, the Negro Leagues was not really known by a whiter (oops, I mean "wider") audience. Peterson, who had a journalism background as an editor for the New York World-Telegram and The Sun, set out on this journey in 1966 by interviewing players, studying microfilm of black newspapers and delving into game accounts & features in sporting publications.

He traces the history of some of the greatest players and teams ever in the game from post-Civil War to 1947. Along with a history highlighted through extensive interviews are a recap of yearly standings and a register of players and league/team officials.

Names such as Cool Papa Bell, Judy Johnson, Buck Leonard and Rube Foster & teams like the Kansas City Monarchs, Cleveland Buckeyes and Pittsburgh Crawfords come to life and opened a door to a wealth of research into NLB that continues today.

Peterson, who passed away in February 2006 at the age of 80, was on a 2006 committee thatselected players/executives from NLB and the pre-NLB era for baseball's Hall of Fame. His ballot was filled out before his death and used in the vote.

It can't be forgotten that NLB welcomed whites and women on the field of play, in the grandstands and in the front offices. Truly, Peterson shows in Only the Ball Was White that there were no rear entrances, separate facilities and racial hatred in Negro Leagues Baseball. The book will never lose its standing as a true beacon to a history that must never again be forgotten.

Wonderful Book
I consider myself a self-educated baseball historian, but had very little knowledge of the Negro Leagues - until I read this book. It's a wonderful introduction to the proud but sad history of the African American experience in baseball in the first half of the 20th century. I now have a strong working knowledge of the dominent personalities of the Negro Leagues and its many extraodinary athletes - many of whom would have been certain stars in the Majors.

As I read it, I kept thinking to myself what a tragedy it was that these great black ballplayers were barred from the Major Leagues. How different the game would have been. Cool Papa Bell - maybe the fastest man ever to play the game. Satchel Paige - one of the greatest pitchers of all time, black or white. Josh Gibson - the Babe Ruth of the Negro Leagues. Pop Lloyd - the Black Honus Wagner.

It's a overwhelmingly sad chapter in American history for sure; but it's also a compelling story of perseverence and dedication that allowed the Negro Leagues to succeed for so long in the face of incredible obstacles. If you love baseball history, do yourself a favor and read this book. Your baseball knowledge will not be complete without an understanding of the Negro Leagues.

Oh, what a game.
Robert Peterson originally published this book in 1970 so it's really the original and standard history of the Negro Leagues. Peterson not only tells the history of these leagues and some of the great players, but also provides brief biographical sketches of dozens of players whose big league service would otherwise be lost to history. The book also has extensive appendices with annual standings and box scores of all-star games. The book gives us glimpses into Jim Crow America (and it was not just in the South).

Peterson portrays the often overlooked fact that the Negro Leagues were a business venture run almost exclusively by and for black people. And it was a tough business at that, but one that drew often sizeable crowds, especially on exciting and exhausting barnstorming tours. The Negro Leagues could not survive integration as its best players were siphoned off to the 'majors'. Despite the obvious benefits to those men who were finally broke through the wall of prejudice, the reader also understands that there was a sense of loss when the leagues shut down in 1960. More powerfully, the reader experiences the lost opportunities suffered by those players who never got the chance to play in the majors and make major league money, like Jimmie Crutchfield, the Black Lloyd Waner, who barely made a living on one side of Pittsburgh playing for the Crawfords while Waner hauled down $12,000 a year (a princely sum at the time) playing for the Pirates.

A must read for anyone interested in baseball, race relations, or American history.
... Read more

Product Description
The 1970s represent one of the most turbulent times in baseball’s history. This decade of disco was for baseball fans the decade of divisions and DH’s. The major leagues grew by four teams in 1969, and aligned themselves into divisions for the first time. The owners added the designated hitter in 1973 to provide additional offense to a game they feared was becoming dull. Labor strife became a recurring problem during the early part of the decade, and it led to free agency.

Herein are interviews with 16 players who played during the turbulent 1970s. John Montefusco, Fred Lynn, Ron Cey, Vida Blue, Jerry Koosman, Rick Wise, Jeff Burroughs, Butch Wynegar, Fred Patek, Darrell Evans, Bob Boone, Buddy Bell, Don Gullett, Tommy John, Don Money, and Al Oliver tell how baseball really was in the 70s. Each interview is preceded by a short profile of the player and noteworthy statistics, transactions and accomplishments. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

For fanatics only?
I came of age as a baseball fan in the 70s, so sure, I read this from cover to cover and got some warm fuzzy nostalgic feelings. As to what the players actually say....well, you know those post-game interviews that consist of not much more than "I love this game, it's been a thrill, as long as I can contribute to the team I'm happy, thanks to my manager for all the faith he's had in me, etc., etc."? I won't say these interviews are THAT vapid, but it's pretty close. I wasn't looking for a "Ball Four" type of thing filled with gossip and scandals, but STILL....

Good first-person perspectives
Oral histories of sports seem to be pretty popular right now, and this is a good addition to that canon.For fans who watched a lot of ball in the '70s, this should be especially enjoyable.

What's interesting about Ballew's book is that he didn't focus on the decade's biggest stars.Several of the interviewees were outstanding players - Vida Blue, Tommy John, Bob Boone - but there's not a Hall of Famer among the bunch, and lesser names like Fred Patek and Don Money are given an equally large share of time.This approach is great, as it gives us perspectives from several angles, not just from dominant players.

Highly recommended, a good book to leaf through while watching an early season game. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

new baseball parks and urban culture
A work in the publisher's series Sport and Popular Culture, "Retro Ball Parks" looks at the urban phenomenon of the building of new, state-of-the-art, baseball stadiums to try to bring back this sport as it is viewed nostalgically. These are the stadiums built in cities around the country usually with some public funds and big tax breaks and other economic favors to the team owners. They are characterized by costly suites for corporate and well-to-do fans, rising ticket prices for all levels of regular seats from boxes to bleachers, moveable roofs and other features to provide comfort for the fans, and corporate logos lining the walls of the playing fields. Rosensweig is interested not only in how these stadiums promising revivals of urban centers come to be out of aspects of contemporary culture and political and economic interests; and also in the peculiar, particularly postmodern, notion of authenticity regarding baseball such stadiums are supposed to revive. In many cases, new businesses have sprung up around the new stadiums attempting to replicate neighborhoods that have been torn down to make way for them. Rosenweig's feelings on this phenomenon he covers are seen in the title of his introduction--"Cheap Grace." The author did most of his research in Cleveland, where the Cleveland Indian's Jacobs Field was built as the anchor of the Gateway Developmental District. "The Gateway serves as a fascinating case study of the cultural shifts enacted by the transformation of a city's economic base from local commerce and manufacturing to recreational tourism." Stadiums in other cities are brought in as well, notably the Baltimore Orioles' Camden Yards, the major urban stadium project giving rise to the others. Rosenweig is a professor of Inter-Disciplinary Studies at the U. of Virginia.
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Product Description
Discover baseball's role in American society!

Baseball and American Culture: Across the Diamond is a thoughtful look at baseball's impact on American society through the eyes of the game's foremost scholars, historians, and commentators. Edited by Dr. Edward J. Rielly, author of Baseball: An Encyclopedia of Popular Culture, the book examines how baseball and society intersect and interact, and how the quintessential American game reflects and affects American culture. Enlightening and entertaining, Baseball and American Culture presents a multidisciplinary perspective on baseball's involvement in virtually every important social development in the United States—past and present.

Baseball and American Culture examines baseball’s unique role as a sociological touchstone, presenting scholarly essays that explore the game as a microcosm for American society—good and bad. Topics include the struggle for racial equality, women’s role in society, immigration, management-labor conflicts, advertising, patriotism, religion, the limitations of baseball as a metaphor, and suicide. Contributing authors include Larry Moffi, author of This Side of Cooperstown: An Oral History of Major League Baseball in the 1950s and Crossing the Line: Black Major Leaguers, 1947-1959, and a host of presenters to the 2001 Cooperstown Symposium on Baseball and American Culture, including Thomas Altherr, George Grella, Dave Ogden, Roberta Newman, Brian Carroll, Richard Puerzer, and the editor himself.

Baseball and American Culture features 23 essays on this fascinating subject, including:
“On Fenway, Faith, and Fandom: A Red Sox Fan Reflects”
“Baseball and Blacks: A Loss of Affinity, A Loss of Community”
“The Hall of Fame and the American Mythology”
“Writing Their Way Home: American Writers and Baseball”
“God and the Diamond: The Born-Again Baseball Autobiography”

Baseball and American Culture: Across the Diamond is an essential read for baseball fans and historians, academics involved in sports literature and popular culture, and students of American society. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (23)

High Marks for High Heat
With Steven Strasbourg coming on board with the Nationals and all the media hype surrounding the young, fast ball phenom, I found myself engrossed in Wendel's informative anecdotes highlighting baseball's elite league of fire ball pitchers. A baseball aficionado I am not. Nor did I anticipate being drawn into a narrative about a sport I rarely observe or ever follow. But hasty assumptions retreated to the sidelines as I became immersed in a world of fast pitch and high drama. From The Wind Up to The Call, Wendel entertains the reader with vignettes that enhance the vitals. A great read even for those who espouse but a passing interest in the game!

The Loneliness of the Fastball Pitcher
Tim Wendel's approach to telling High Heat had an immediate impact on me. It reminded me of some recent documentary work that is as much about the storyteller as it is about the subject. This technique made me identify with the author. I felt that was the best way to draw me in (and it did). I am not a professional athlete and Wendel did not write High Heat as a pamphlet for professionals--a kind of owners manual for the fastball pitcher (now that you have that arm, he's what you can do with it!). Since the story is intended for a much broader audience it was more assessable to the baseball fan or any other civilian by his technique of grounding the reader in a focused perspective. Once he had me engaged on his level, one of passion and intense curiosity about a mysterious human phenomena, I could stand next to men like Nolan Ryan, Walter Johnson, and Steve Dalkowski and not see them as alien oddities, but feel a deep empathy for them. And isn't that what great stories, fiction or non, are striving for--to create empathy for others, even those who seem blessed?

Passionately told and well researched
Wendel's combination of research and storytelling made this book near impossible for me to put down. I'm not normally a large fan of baseball, but reading his story made me wonder otherwise.

The epic stories of glory and loss are woven among a century of baseball history and over a dozen great pitchers--right down to the motions many of them used to create their high heat.

The book goes beyond merely pitching, however, and contemplates the things that make great gifts great curses.

Why Baseball Matters
I try to read at least one book about baseball during each season.This year I chose High Heat:The Secret History of the Fastball and the Improbable Search for the Fastest Pitcher of All Time by Tim Wendel.This is exactly the type of book I need when I start struggling with the state of current sports.It articulates why baseball matters, and why it retains its unique mystique in American culture.Tim Wendel takes us on a journey through time and history and unravels one of the most intriguing debates:whowas the fastest fastballer of all time?The prose is engaging and the story is compelling. Highly recommended.

High Heat delivers a blazing strike
"The fastball remains mysterious, downright mystical," writes Tim Wendel.His search for the fastest pitcher of all-time is interesting, insightful and entertaining.

Wendel looks at familiar fireballers such as Amos Rusie, Walter Johnson, Lefty Grove, Bob Feller, Satchel Paige, Bob Gibson, Sandy Koufax, Nolan Ryan, Randy Johnson, Billy Wagner, Steve Dalkowski as well as relative newcomers David Price, Jobba Chamberlain and Steven Strasburg.

Nolan Ryan said, "Throwing hard is a gift."

Troy Percival added, "You can't teach a good fastball."

Sandy Koufax said, "Every pitcher's best pitch is his fastball.It's the fastball that makes the other pitches effective."

Wendel writes that fireballers enthrall us.Each struggled to find a way to make all the pieces fit and none had a perfect path to the top.

"Hard throwers make things look easy early on.Everyone expects them to win every game just because they can throw hard.A little torment and heartache is usually required.In every pitcher's journey, there are obstacles to overcome.How they respond, what they learn about themselves is often the tale.It takes more than being able to throw hard," he writes.

Of all the pitchers in the book, Steve Dalkowski, a 5-11, 170-pound, hard-drinking lefty in the Orioles farm system, is the only one not to make the majors. And, it's probably why his story is the most interesting one.His story alone is reason enough to buy this book.Dalkowski's blazing speed and wildness are legendary.

Umpire Doug Harvey said Dalkowski (ranked No. 2 on the fastest of all-time list by Wendel) brought it harder than Koufax, Gibson, Drysdale, Seaver or Marichal.Wendel names his 12 fastest pitchers of all-time at the end of the book.

In addition to giving us glimpses into the struggles of many of the fastest pitchers ever, Wendel offers a history of the attempts to measure the speed of a baseball and recounts some of the most famous beanings in baseball history (Ray Chapman, Tony Conigliaro).

"High Heat" benefits from Wendel's excellent writing, deft transitions, thorough research and thoughtful organization.This book is a treat for baseball fans--young and old. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (4)

Great Baseball Book
Some great stories in this book. I would recommend it to any baseball fan.

Some cheaper New copies on [...] for those looking to purchase. Only [...] bucks for a new copy of this book.

[...]

RICK "SHAQ" GOLDSTEIN SAYS: "BASEBALL HELPS SOME ADULTS NEVER GROW UP!"
The author Talmage Boston is a lawyer as well as a writer and like many of us men who never grew up... he had dreamed of being a Major League baseball player. For him... writing this book about players from his generation is as close as he will come to the big leagues. For me... reading books like this and writing reviews is as close as I'll come. Talmage (In a normal review I probably would have used the author's last name here instead of his first... but being that his last name is Boston... the potential reader might get confused and think I'm talking about the Red Sox or the city. And by the way... that's how Boston... became Boston's favorite team when he was a young boy growing up in Texas. Seeing his last name ("Boston") on the front of the Red Sox's road jerseys... resulted in Boston's favorite team being Boston.). (Wooo! Glad that part of the review is over.) And of course if the Red Sox were the author's favorite team during those years... then the odds are quite high... that the "YAZ"- Carl Yastrzemski would be his favorite player. But more on that later.

Let's first define what "those years" consisted of. The author and I both are part of the "BABY-BOOMER" generation. The first thing I learned from this book is that the time period that defines the "BABY-BOOMER" generation is a longer period than I would have guessed. The author lists those magical years as 1946 thru 1964... off the top of my head I would have thought it was approximately 1946 thru about 1956... but lo and behold... according to the internet the author is correct. The author divides the book into nine chapters that are really nine short stories. The subjects of these short stories are: "MICKEY MANTLE & JIMMY PIERSALL"... which basically describes Father and son relationships going wrong. "YAZ & THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM"... the author's favorite childhood player and his TRIPLE CROWN season leading the Red Sox to the 1967 World Series. "JACKIE ROBINSON & BRANCH RICKEY"... the integration of baseball... and it's interesting to note that Jackie was my all-time idol... and the author attempts to cover his entire lifetime in a restricted space. In my opinion this is fine if the reader is a pedestrian fan... rather than the type of fanatical fan that the author himself and I both claim to be. "NOLAN RYAN"... detailing his record breaking career. "BART GIAMATTI"... the former Commissioner Of Baseball who was famous for loving baseball with the eloquence of a great poet... who was forced to suspend Pete Rose for tarnishing the game that we all love... and the fact that Rose's transgressions were anything but poetic... is probably what killed the Commissioner. "COOPERSTOWN & THE HALL OF FAME"... this shrine to baseball and young boy's dreams... seen through a boy's heart... that still resides inside of all "BABY-BOOMER" boys that just happen to be over fifty-years-old. "ROGER MARIS"... the man who despite threats of asterisks... and the ghost of "THE BABE"... and eight extra games... hit the magical *SIXTY-ONE-HOMERUNS*... and I was absolutely thrilled... and shouting in unison with the author... as he derogatorily ... and resolutely... attacked the shameful steroid era... that mocks the entire history of baseball and its holiest of holy records... records that should remain on the highest peaks of Mount Olympus on hallowed ground... engulfed with rarefied air... so that future generations of boys and men with dreams... will never doubt that they were earned without illegal and artificial enhancements. "FRIENDS IN THE GAME"... the author's personal experiences with John Grisham... Dr. Bobby Brown... Lou Brock... and Bobby Bragan. "FIRST PERSON PERSPECTIVE"... tying it all together with the Author's family and son.

This is an enjoyable book that drips with the loving emotion of a lifetime baseball fan. I feel that the way this book is laid out with nine short stories that its biggest potential impact will be with a reader who is looking for an overview on multiple subjects... rather than the reader who wants intricate detail that would be provided in a biography.

Only a game?
Baseball; love it, hate it, or just tolerate it, has certainly made its impact on out culture. Mr. Boston takes a few of the game's stars and one commissioner, exposes their exploits and Achilles heels in a way that makes them seem like the "guy next door." For someone like me that loves the game of baseball it is inspiring to see how a man like Nolan Ryan can be hit in the mouth in the first inning of a game (later would require eight stitches to close the gash) with a bouncing ball off the bat of Bo Jackson, yet pitch into the eighth inning with blood streaming down his uniform giving up only three hits.These stories are about courage, determination, focus, failure, and overcoming failure; the things that make America great! It is a quick read and I could not put it down.

Non-fiction page-turner
I cannot remember finishing such a good book so quickly.A non-fiction page-turner. Captivating!Well researched and written, original choices of subject matter, palpable passion. ... Read more

Product Description
An admirer of Pirate president Barney Dreyfuss, prolific baseball writer Frederick G. Lieb consorted with the club’s biggest stars, christened the legendary Dreyfuss "the first-division man," and produced The Pittsburgh Pirates, one of the fifteen celebrated histories of major league teams commissioned by G. P. Putnam’s Sons in the 1940s and 1950s. Originally published in 1948, Lieb’s history ranges from the ball club’s earliest professional days in the late nineteenth century as the Pittsburgh Alleghenies to its spring training session in preparation for the 1948 season, a span that included six National League pennants and two World Series championships, as well as a loss to the Boston Red Sox, then the Pilgrims, at the inaugural World Series a century ago.

"This reprint of Fred Lieb’s The Pittsburgh Pirates is an invitation for baseball readers to enjoy Lieb’s wonderful stories of the great Pirate teams of the first half of the twentieth century," writes Richard "Pete" Peterson in the new foreword to this edition. "Lieb’s book is rich with accounts of World Series triumphs and disappointments, of epic encounters on the playing field, like that between Wagner and Cobb, of mutinies in the clubhouse, of courageous comebacks, and of devastating defeats, including the infamous ‘homer in the gloaming.’"

In Lieb’s personable and anecdotal prose, honed over the course of his sustained sportswriting career, the book conveys "baseball drama of the highest order," including the pre-Dreyfuss days of Captain Kerr, Ned Hanlon, and Connie Mack; Dreyfuss’s dynasty in the early twentieth century; the dramatic World Series triumphs of 1909 and 1925; the end of the Dreyfuss era and the sale of the club to a syndicate headed by John Galbreath and Bing Crosby; and the purchase of Hank Greenberg and the emergence of slugger Ralph Kiner. Aided by twenty-five black-and-white photographs, this rare history revisits the glories and stories of "fabulous old Pirates" such as Honus Wagner, Tommy Leach, Fred Clarke, Babe Adams, Max Carey, Kiki Cuyler, Pie Traynor, Paul and Lloyd Waner, and Arky Vaughan. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Great walk down memory lane
A classic baseball book reprinted about the Pittsburgh Pirates.Fred Lieb gives a great account of the early history of the Pirates up to the late 1940's.With the election of Barney Dreyfuss to the Hall of Fame this year, this book is even more useful with it's in depth profile of the great owner.Each Pennant winning year is chronicled more fully.An extremely interesting read for any Pirate fan.

History of the Buccos up to 1947
First published in 1948 as part of Putnam's baseball team history series, Fred Lieb's book is a good summary account of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Pittsburgh fielded professional baseball clubs as early as the 1880s, and became part of what became the National League in 1887. In 1891 they took on the name Pirates after being called "piratical" by the American Association after Pittsburgh signed a non-reserve player from the AA. Lieb's emphasis is on the early years of the organization: the first half of the book brings the team's history only up to 1910, with the second half breezing through the remaining 37 years. Honus Wagner and Fred Clarke receive much attention, as does early owner Barney Dreyfuss. One might wish for more anecdotal information on various players or in-depth coverage, but space limitations hamper such things in a summary history such as this. Regardless, it's a good account of the team and its star players and should delight old-time Bucs fans and baseball enthusiasts alike.
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Product Description

When Bill James published his original Historical Baseball Abstract in 1985, he produced an immediate classic, hailed by the Chicago Tribune as the "holy book of baseball." Now, baseball's beloved "Sultan of Stats" (The Boston Globe) is back with a fully revised and updated edition for the new millennium.

Like the original, The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract is really several books in one. The Game provides a century's worth of American baseball history, told one decade at a time, with energetic facts and figures about How, Where, and by Whom the game was played. In The Players, you'll find listings of the top 100 players at each position in the major leagues, along with James's signature stats-based ratings method called "Win Shares," a way of quantifying individual performance and calculating the offensive and defensive contributions of catchers, pitchers, infielders, and outfielders. And there's more: the Reference section covers Win Shares for each season and each player, and even offers a Win Share team comparison. A must-have for baseball fans and historians alike, The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract is as essential, entertaining, and enlightening as the sport itself. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (91)

Classic x 2
After I moved, I was saddened because I couldn't find my copy of this classic.I searched for the book in basement boxes and finally fixed the situation and bought another copy.And I'm not disappointed!

This is truly a classic, and any baseball fan -- especially a sabermetrics fan -- will love reading this book; or flipping to some interesting section at anytime.Bill James is truly a pioneer and I love how he puts his spin as extra analysis to what his numbers prove.Good stuff...

Great perspective from THE MAN himself.
I really enjoyed this book.I am a die-hard Bill James fan and this was a great read with plenty of in-depth analysis and research! Great for the true MLB fan.

Excellent gift for a baseball fan; 1,000+ pages is a great value
Having read an earlier version of Bill James' classic historical abstract, I purchased this as updated version as a gift for a friend who works as a baseball announcer for the local American Legion team.

I recommend this book as a gift for baseball aficionados; more than a book or a reference, it is a treasury that will be not be found tucked away on a bookshelf but readily available, pages marked up and dog-eared, and enjoyed for many years.

Amazon lists this book for less than $20. With more than 1,000 pages, The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract is an outstanding value; rating: Five stars.

fantastic
this book is amazing. all the information here is incredible. james does a wonderful job of writing and putting together his thoughts. its interesting and a good read. every baseball fan should own this book.

How Baseball Can Improve Your SAT Scores ...
... in both Math and Reading! Baseball is more than a sport; it's a literary tradition, a portal into American social history, and the finest set of exercises available in personnel management. My baseball-loving son, now only months from high school graduation, improved his SAT math score from junior to senior year by 85 points, not be taking the Princeton Review course but by studying the Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract.

You'll find this weighty volume full of the quirks and foibles that elevate Our National Pastime from mere gladiatorial combat to a blend of ballet, psychodrama, and interpersonal bonding. I gave a copy of this great compendium of stats to my son for his birthday five years ago; now he's planning to carry that copy away with him toward adulthood, so he thoughtfully gave me a new copy of my own for Christmas this year. ... Read more

Product Description

In a world without wood, we might not be here at all. We wouldn't have had the fire, heat, and shelter that allowed us to expand into the planet's colder regions. If civilization somehow did develop, our daily lives would be vastly different: there would be no violins, baseball bats, chopsticks, or wine corks. The book you are now holding wouldn't exist.

Customer Reviews (31)

"grow more trees and use more wood"
For the first 98% of this book, Spike Carlsen takes a relatively unbiased (sometimes even humorous) approach to recounting the many, *many* uses of wood. Some are unbelievable: wood piping under the city of London lasting for over 400 years... and still working; wooden pilings under Venice, the Empire State building, the Brooklyn Bridge, and JFK airport.
But the ultimate message of the book is clear: using wood is *good* for us. Wood use prevents other, significantly less friendly materials (plastics, concrete, steel) from being consumed (and produced). Wood is more renewable than any of these, and a lot of used wood can be reclaimed for other purposes.

After reading this book, all those modern structures of steel and concrete -- perhaps sitting atop wooden pilings -- may be taller and more fireproof, but they don't look so futuristic to me anymore. Structures that seem to use an inordinate amount of wood (roller coasters, barns, and train trestles) now seem like the way to go.

If I played golf, I'd be one of those people trying to get an actual *wood* wood for my club bag.

Splintered History of Wood
I was amazed at how well he covered the subject matter.I have been working with wood all my adult life and never imagined how many uses there are for wood and how wood has really affected our lifestyle.It is literally used everywhere!Let me take you on a stroll through the book and just hit some highlights.

He starts with a chapter titled "Extraordinary Woods" and proceeds to describe the exquisite grain patterns in a piece of 50,000 year old kauri wood that "dances like a hologram" taken from the bogs in New Zealand.Then consider that this piece of wood is 20 feet long, 5 1/2 feet wide and 4 1/2 inches thick!He also talks about how you can get a piece of it too.Now that sounds interesting.

On to "The Wacky World of Woodworkers" covers the range from chainsaw artists to ex-presidents to blind woodworkers to wood collectors.And I do mean collectors.They collect different species of wood and have samples of up to thirty-five hundred different identified wood samples.One collection has eighty-two different samples that begin with the letter "A".Then there is a museum that has cataloged fourteen thousand different species of wood.They have two-hundred and twenty-two different species of oak!

"Wood in the World of Music" really struck a chord.From Stradivarius Violins to Steinway Pianos to drums and guitars . . . Wow!Did you know that it takes twelve thousand pieces of wood to make a Steinway?There are fifty-eight components for each of the 88 keys!Now imagine how many interactions there are to play a complicated piece like Igor Stravinsky's "The Rite of Spring" played with four hands.The cumulative twenty-five thousand key strokes produce a million and a half intricate interactions with not one slip, stick, twang or tick!It makes you really appreciate what a fantastic instrument it is.

He goes on to talk about "Wood in the World of Sports."Baseball, golf, tennis, pool, telephone pole tossing, and lumber jacks all use wood.And talk about precision, he talks about a shipment of baseball bats that was rejected because they didn't "feel" right.Further measurements found that the handle was just 0.005" undersize.Golf and tennis both have an interesting history of using wood but both seem to be getting away from it presently.Then you find that you could spend $20,000 for a Balabushka pool cue, but is it worth it?

We probably don't think too much about our dwellings being made of wood, but in "Wood as Shelter" we find that pattern repeated around the world.Tree houses range from houses built in trees to houses carved from a tree.It can make a nice vacation spot.Our own history starts with log cabins and develops into the construction lumber we use today.

Consider how we use "Wood in Day-today Life."From a time when wood was everything and everything was wood.When this country was younger, we used trees for shelter, boats, wagons, barrels, bridges, fuel, boxes, dyes, food, weapons, wine, toothpicks, cosmetics, linoleum, pencils, and don't forget paper.Each of the six billion people walking this earth consume an average of 3 1/2 pounds of wood each day!That means nearly 4 billion tons of wood must be harvested annually.

"Wood, Weapons, and War" explain how even our disagreements are settled with wood.Have you ever thought about how complicated a catapult really is.The stresses are enormous!And wood is the only thing that could accomplish the feat.Great warships were built and the bow and arrow developed to advance the technology of war.Often the strength of a country was measured by its wood reserves.

"Wood by Land, Air and Sea" talks about making vehicles of wood that fly, float and ride.In the earlier days, the train cars, the wheels and even the train tracks were made of wood.And don't forget the Spruce Goose and Noah's Ark.

"Wood in Unusual Uses and Peculiar Places" mentions using wood as propeller shaft bushings on submarines and battleships.The Chinese Space Agency used wood to construct heat shields for their single use re-entry vehicles.

This should give you just a glimpse of what is covered in this book.I really only scratched the surface of what Spike covered in this book.I was truly amazed at the varied uses of wood and how it interacts with our daily lives.You owe it to yourself to read this book.It is amazing!

Splintered History has something for everyone
If you like wood, then you'll find something to enjoy in Spike Carlsen's "eclectic" book on the history of wood, as it has something for everyone.From the 50,000 year old wood description and explanation to the wacky world of woodworkers, you'll find something you didn't know about this most abundant resource.

I call it an eclectic book because it's not written to flow from beginning to end like a novel, but as a treatise on the myriad uses and love of one of the most abundant resources on earth.There's the section on tools that work the wood including not only the serious use of wood lathes but also the non-serious use of belt sander racing.Can you imagine spending over $1,000 and 125 hours building a custom belt sander that can sand a 2X10" board completely in two in seconds, just so you can make it go fast down a 40 foot track?

There is literally something for everyone with just some of the topics in the book listed as follows: how trees make wood, chainsaw artistry, wood carving with a master who makes Ferraris, wood collecting, Stradivarius Violins from wood, making of a Steinway D piano using 12,000 pieces, wood in sports, wood as shelter, solving mysteries through the use of wood forensics, wood in war, wood in the use of transportation including wooden rails and gondolas, and much more.My favorite was learning how wood pilings played a major role (and still does) in the creation of Venice.Pilings were used to stabilize the foundations of the buildings on which the water city is built.

As a long time woodworker I found it thoroughly enjoying and highly recommend it.

Put this on your bookshelf
This review was written by Dan Dapra for the Central Ohio Woodturner's newsletter.

My turned wooden hat is off to Spike Carlsen and A Splintered History of Wood. No dry-as-sawdust treatise on ecology or stultifying recitation of scientific minutiae, this engaging book immediately plunges the reader into a chapter aboutextraordinary woods (including the largest single piece of lumber that was for sale in the United States when the book was published) and, a few chapters later, vicariously flings him over the wall of a Scottish castle with a fourteenth-century wooden catapult.
Along the way, Carlsen rolls out a wondrous exposition of mankind's ingenious wooden products, the people who create them, and the serious and lighthearted aspects of wood-related endeavors. Foremost, perhaps, among the sublimely ingenious creations are the violin, the Venetian gondola, the piano, and the "stairway to Heaven". Carlsen gives equal time to more commonplace delights such as wooden kites, chainsaw carvings, belt-sander races, wooden roller coasters, cork bottle stoppers, toothpick cities, and the common pencil.
I especially appreciated Carlsen's essays about blind woodworkers, since I have known a couple, and about wood collectors and classifiers. I found his article about Arthur Koehler, the wood technologist whose brilliant detective work solved the Lindbergh kidnapping case, absolutely fascinating. Other noteworthy woodworkers include pool cue maker Arnot Wadsworth and Livio de Marchi, whose vast repertoire of wooden objects deserves a book of its own.
Carlsen's book suffers somewhat from poor editing (violations of the subject-verb agreement rule, misused and overused words, inappropriate slang, and faulty Italian) and lack of fact-checking. He states that the kerf left by kidnapper Bruno Hauptmann's hand saw was "0.0035-inch-wide", which beggars belief, and he refers to the "six vertical strips" on the metal bow piece of a Venetian gondola. There are actually seven strips (representing Giudecca and the six neighborhoods of Venice), and they are distinctly horizontal. And isn't it Talarico (not Talerico) and Hearne Hardwoods whom Carlsen mentions in the article about Nakashima? Finally, who is Sam Krenov?
I'd like to encourage every woodworker to buy and read A Splintered History of Wood. It's ideal reading for anyone who appreciates trees, wood, and woodworking, and it's a thoroughly enjoyable examination of the crucial role that wood plays in our lives.

Polished woodwork
Well written.Somewhat simplistic since it covers a broad expanse.If you know anything about wood, this will be fascinating ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (19)

The Joy of Keeping Score - delighful!
As others have noted this is a small book - it is a fast read. As others have noted it is not a "How to" book. On the other hand, it is an absolutely delightful look at keeping score at a baseball game - why people do it, how some people do it.

It contains reproductions of legendary baseball games; it is worth the price of the book just to see those.

Other than a brief history of scorekeepking and some alternate systems, the main take-aways from this book are that baseball is just about the only game where the fans keep score, that by keeping score fans form a live connection to the game unfolding in front of them (you're not just a spectator), that your scorecard does not have to match the official socrecard (scoreing is subjective - think hits vs. errors), and, finally, keeping score leaves you with a permanent momento of a game you attended. At this point, you can skip buying the book. But, if you are a real baseball fan (even one that doesn't keep score) you will miss an wonderful tale about one of the many facets of the game we call baseball. This is a book you can pick up every few years to re-read and have just as much fun the 2nd or 3rd time.

Great book!
I really like it.It's more historical and nostalgic than a practical guide.It's also a lot shorter than I thought.A real quick read.But I'm also using it as a scoring guide, the abbreviations anyways.

Entertaining book with the basics of scorekeeping
We've become avid baseball fans in the last few years, and felt the need to know at least the basics of keeping score. If nothing else, it meant that we'd have a better idea what the announcers were talking about when they'd say, "That's a 4-6-1."

This book, while far from extensive, suits our needs very well. The "how to" is really only a chapter or two long, but you'll find plenty of other anecdotes, such as the reasons why a strikeout is recorded as a K (it's a debatable point), and discussion of L.L.Bean's "simplified baseball scorebook" (yeah, *that* L.L.Bean). Lots of black-and-white photos, too.

It's a short book, about 100 pages, but a fun read. Nothing deep or "meaningful" here, but it'd make a dandy gift for any baseball fan. Including yourself.

Informative and fun, a easy read gem you must have
I found this book while looking for an informative reference on how to score the game.I looked at two other titles and chose this one because it contained the information I was seeking and loads of extra "fun facts" regarding the history of the game.It is a fun read and I think you will find this a "gem" of a book.This would make a great present to any youngsters who start an interest in baseball.

Interesting and Fun Book
I would recommend this book for those wanting to learn MORE about scoring, not how to score.After reading, we went to a Major League Baseball game and kept score...lots of fun. ... Read more

Product Description
Highlights the key personalities and memorable games in the history of the team that began major league play in 1876 under the name White Stockings. ... Read more