Product Description
Squash offers your kid unparalleled benefit - opportunities to travel the world, top colleges, a sport that can be enjoyed no matter what the weather, and a game where you don't always need a partner for practice. Plus: friendship, character building, and a lifetime of health and optimum fitness. Whether you know squash or not; whether your kid is 2 or 18 and just starting out, or has a few years of squash experience, this book offers a complete roadmap to all the game has to offer. You'll find practical advice ranging from the best age to get your kid started in squash, to pursuing a career in professional squash, to finding ways squash players can give back to their communities. Gain insight into squash organizations. Have fun along the way at the best squash camps and vacations. A book for every squash family! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Excellent Primer for Squash
If your kid is getting serious about squash and you want to learn about the sport, this well-written book is a must read.It covers every topic you may want to know.Even parents who have been taking their kids to lots of squash tournaments will learn some things from this book.

I've read all the blurbs for this book, and I agree with every single one.

There is no other book like this on the market.
... Read more

Product Description

The first comprehensive history of squash in the United States, Squash incorporates every aspect of this increasingly popular sport: men's and women's play, juniors and intercollegiates, singles and doubles, hardball and softball, amateurs and professionals.

Invented by English schoolboys in the 1850s, squash first came to the United States in 1884 when St. Paul's School in New Hampshire built four open-air courts. The game took hold in Philadelphia, where players founded the U.S. Squash Racquets Association in 1904, and became one of the primary pastimes of the nation's elite. Squash launched a U.S. Open in 1954, but its present boom started in the 1970s when commercial squash clubs took the sport public. In the 1980s a pro tour sprung up to offer tournaments on portable glass courts in dramatic locales such as the Winter Garden at the World Trade Center.

James Zug, with access to private archives and interviews with hundreds of players, describes the riveting moments and sweeping historical trends that have shaped the game. He focuses on the biographies of legendary squash personalities: Eleo Sears, the Boston Brahmin who swam in the cold Atlantic before matches; Hashim Khan, the impish founder of the Khan dynasty; Victor Niederhoffer, the son of a Brooklyn cop; and Mark Talbott, a Grateful Dead groupie who traveled the pro circuit sleeping in the back of his pickup. A gripping cultural history, Squash is the book for which all aficionados of this fast-paced, exciting game have been waiting. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Squash History
Thoroughly enjoyed reading the background on the creation and evolution of the best sport in the world.Escapes me why it hasn't made it into the Olympics at this point (editorial comment on the state of sport in the world)!!!

Calling all squash junkies!
When I asked the squash pro at my club if he'd read Zug's book, he turned up his nose. He found much of the material self-indulgent. As for me- a person who took up the sport at a time when many others my age have retired their rackets - I admired the quality of Zug's writing and the way he unraveled the story of the game's evolution. I dug those historical tidbits (did you know the Titanic had a squash court?) and the tales of some of the sport's more eccentric players.Yeah, sure, there were some parts of SQUASH which "hit the nick and died" for me, but no big deal. I'd recommend this book to anyone who has been bitten by the SQUASH bug.

A Great Read

"Squash: A History of the Game" was a very interesting read, and I especially recommend it for all players of Squash. Although dense at points, this book really gives a great history of how squash came to be. James Zug takes us through the transformation from a game named fives, first played against a kitchen chimeny wall, to raquets made from bamboo sticks, to the regulation size courts and oversized hyper titanium raquets we know today. It even explained why "Squash" is called squash, the mysterious question that nobody on my team seems to know the answer to. Im not going to tell you however, you'll have to read it on your own. Like I said before, I belive this book is more enjoyable for squash players. This is just my opinion however, so if you don't play squash I still suggest you try reading this book.

Well anyway thats my 2 cents. Altogether I think this book is definitly a great read, and definitly very useful as a reference if you are writing an essay on the history of squash. Four star material.

-Jalper

North Am Squash
The title of the book is misleading - it is purely about North American squash history.

I was expecting write ups on recognized international greats and found nothing.

Instant Classic of a Mine Unworked
This book, as the forward by the late George Plimpton indicates, is the first comprehensive history of American squash, and it is a hard act to follow.As such it is pretty much assured "instant classic" status.

Problems with the book:1) The title does not indicate that it is a history of squash in America.Except for the very early history of squash in England, do not expect to find much outside the U.S. and Canada.2) It is written for the squash player, and will be difficult to read for outsiders--except perhaps as a reference.

Good things about the book:Everything else. ... Read more

Product Description
Learn the fundamentals and enjoy competing in this fast-paced tactical game. Whether you already play squash or are just starting out, Squash: Steps to Success will teach you the skills and strategies you need in order to play and win.

With 13 progressive instructional steps, you'll learn all aspects of the game. Detailed descriptions, illustrations, and photo sequences demonstrate essential on-the-court movement, volleys, serves, returns, and drop shots. Then practice and improve techniques with 93 drills, each featuring a personal scoring system to gauge and accelerate your progress.

After you master the individual skills, Squash: Steps to Success will show you how to apply them in match situations. From disguise and deception to attacking and defensive strategies, you'll learn to maximize your strengths and dominate the court.

Become a complete player on the court. As part of the popular Steps to Success Sports Series--with more than 1.5 million copies sold worldwide--Squash: Steps to Success will elevate your performance to new heights in all facets of the sport. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

Grounds up approach to improvement
Steps to success is a comprehensive guide to the mechanics of squash. I really enjoyed the detailed drill diagrams and frame by frame pictures of the shots. The chapter on movement is especially helpful since it shows the difference between the traditional and more modern dynamic movement. One mistake I have is I don't bend enough into my shots. So the pictures helped emphasize that point. There are good drills for both solo practice as well as partner practice. Whenever I go on court I typically just do straight drives to myself. But the book has opened up quite a lot other drills I should be doing that are more challenging and interesting.

Overall the book is not something you can finish in a couple of weeks. You have to work on each specific shot for some time before moving on to other shots. There is a score sheet for each drill that tells you when you're ready to move onto the next step. If you are serious about improving your game from a grounds up approach, this is definitely the book for you.

Fantastic Squash
It is a complete training guide for any squash player and is very useful to serve as a reminder to prevent bad habits in squash.

squashbug
The book is well written. Provides a basic understanding of the game for beginners and intermediate players. excellent drills......

amazing book give knoldge that a coach has
amazing book give knoldge that a coach has so u know whats right and whats wrong

Fantastic reference
Both beginners and more advanced players should be able to get a lot out of this quality reference work as it offers detailed (yet practical) text, illustrationa and diagrams covering all aspects of the game. The book is considered by most experts in the sport to be among the top two or three instructionals ever published on Squash. It won't make you a championship quality player, but it should help your game no matter what skill level you are currently at. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

This is the best squash book i have ever read
Well done Ian McKenzie. This is a grat book. I send my best personal regards ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

Caution,
Look at the cover page. The instructor is a LEFT handed person. All pictures in this book may confuse you at the beginning. It is not worth to spend time convert your mind, just buy a book from right handed instructor. ... Read more

Product Description
The Ultimate Guide to Weight Training for Racquetball and Squash is the most comprehensive and up-to-date racquetball and squash-specific training guide in the world today. It contains descriptions and photographs of nearly 100 of the most effective weight training, flexibility, and abdominal exercises used by athletes worldwide.  This book features year-round racquetball and squash-specific weight-training programs guaranteed to improve your performance and get you results.

No other racquetball or squash book to date has been so well designed, so easy to use, and so committed to weight training.  This book will have you increasing strength, quickness, agility, and endurance, which will lead to more powerful and precise backhands, forehands, and serves.  Following this program will allow you to compete with all of your energy from the opening serve until the final point.

Both beginners and advanced athletes and weight trainers can follow this book and utilize its programs.  From recreational to professional, thousands of athletes all over the world are already benefiting from this book and its techniques, and now you can too!

As an added bonus, this book also contains links to free record keeping charts which normally sell separately for $20. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

fundamentals of squash
A squash classic for all truestudents of the game.. Best book for hardball game.Well illustrated and immaculate in its attention to correct racquet work.Very clear in its descriptive approach to study and practice.

Boaring
The book covers a lot of squash but is boaring to me ... Read more

Product Description
Two athletes willingly shut themselves inside a large, white box. Armed with what look like large flyswatters, they chase a dead rubber ball, banging it against a wall until they are half-dead with exhaustion -- and then they do it again.

In Keep Eye on Ball, Is Most Important One Thing I Tell You, editor Chris Widney combines the teachings of squash legend Hashim Khan with the drawings of artist Richard Pitts in order to unravel some of the mystery behind this game that no one can seem to explain or stop playing.

The result is a book that will leave squash fanatics laughing all the way to the court, and may even help them win a point or two when they get there. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

This books hits the "tin", just as a bad squash stroke would
I read the book hoping I would gain some insight into the game I have been playing at a competitive level for over 8 years.I was disappointed to find out that despite having been written by one of squash's legends,Hashim Khan, it fails, on every account, to provide any useable informationfor either begginers or advanced players.Nor are the illustrations withinthe pages of the book inspiring.I do not recommend this book for anyonelooking to gain or deepen their wisdom of this fascinating sport.If Iwere a squash referee, I'd call a "let point" against this book.

Fun book. Not good for learning the game
I bought the book hoping to learn squash, being a beginner. I was disappointed to find that it wasn't written for that purpose. It has nuggets of wisdom from one of the greats, so I suspect it could be more interesting for an advanced player of for a squash aficionado, but not for someone looking to learn the game from the ground up. ... Read more

Product Description
Part of the "Learn-in-a-Weekend" series ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

i finally got to play real squash
other players got amazed when they saw my technics during playing,i havegot it allfrom this amazing book! ... Read more

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Product Description
High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Squash is a racquet sport played by two players (or four players for doubles) in a four-walled court with a small, hollow rubber ball. Squash is recognized by the IOC and remains in contention for incorporation in a future Olympic program. The game was formerly called squash racquets, a reference to the "squashable" soft ball used in the game (compared with the harder ball used in its parent game Racquets (or rackets; see below)). ... Read more

Product Description
Aimed at ambitious club and county players, this book contains original thinking on stroke technique, tactics and mental and physical preparation. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Unsurpassed for up to top club players
For my 10 year squash career to top club level, I had a lot of fancy books. None of them really made any difference accept this relatively straight forward work of Jonah Barringtons - and this one made ALL the difference. Even though its shorter and a lot less fancy, it tells you more of what you really need to know and feel,and in a clearer way than any other squash book I have every seen.Target your next superior player,put in a few hours practicing the principals and thoughts in this little work of classic squash genious, and enjoy the sporting experience of a life time.

Jonah did a wonderful job.
I learned how to play squash by reading this book. Very helpful book ... Read more