My job occasionally takes me on road trips that can mean about 2 hours in the car. While not enough to finish books, that is sufficient time to listen to audio books while traveling instead of fiddling for radio stations to pick up. This is one book that I listened to on this type of travel.
Title/Author:
“Cape Dreams: A Season with the Brewster Whitecaps” by Mark Epstein, narrated by Austin Barach and Max Gifford
Rating:
3 of 5 stars (good)
Review:
The Cape Cod summer baseball league is a showcase of some of the best college baseball players where 10 teams play a 40-game schedule. One of the major changes the players get from their college games is that only wooden bats are allowed in these games. Major league scouts are plentiful during this season looking for new prospects. This book by Mark Epstien followed one of the teams, the Brewster Whitecaps, during their 2024 season.
The book was what one would expect when recapping a sports team’s season. It was complete with profiles of people important to the team, a recap of the action on the diamond and stories about the players and others off the field. One of the more interesting personalities was that of Jane Sullivan, whose life revolved around the Whitecaps year-round, not just during the two months of the season. While her story was one to make the listener or reader feel good, it, along with many others, seemed a little over the top with its sweetness.
The description of the games also felt a little too generous, especially considering that the Whitecaps didn’t make the playoffs. Still, that aspect of the book was good and the reader/listener will feel like they are part of the action. The narration overall is also fine, although there were points where a clicking sound could be heard. It isn’t clear whether this was missed in the final editing or an issue with the recording, but it was a distraction. Fortunately, that wasn’t an issue throughout the entire book.
For readers/listeners who want to learn more about the Cape Cod League and what it feels like to follow a team, this is a good book to pick up. Overall, a decent story that will take one back in time when baseball felt like a much simpler game.
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