Review of “All the Way”

 It’s not often that I’ll be able to post reviews on consecutive days, but after finishing Magic in the Air, I started this one and not only was it a quick read, it was an excellent book. Here is my review of ”All the Way.”

Title/Author:

“All the Way: The Life of Baseball Trailblazer Maybelle Blair” by Kat D. Williams

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (excellent)

Review: 

“A League of Their Own”, the highly successful and popular 1992 movie about the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL), brought attention to women’s baseball and the effects of this movie have been felt ever since. Women are gaining more opportunities in the sport, both in competition against other women and for career opportunities in non-playing roles. There are women in MLB front offices, coaching boxes and manager offices. This is thanks to women like Maybelle Blair, whose life is chronicled in this book by Kat D. Williams. 

Williams is a talented writer on women's sports and this book is no exception. Most of the book is really Blair telling the story herself with Williams adding in items from research about people or stories shared by Blair. Blair played only one year in the AAGPBL, in 1948 with the Peoria Red Wings. It should be noted that was the best season for the Red Wings, their only season with a winning record. Leg issues forced Blair to not come back for the 1949 season. However, the book covers Blair’s love for the game, her many years playing softball as both an amateur and a professional, over much of her life. 

There aren’t a lot of stories from games on the field shared by Blair, but it’s clear that baseball was an important part of her life. Even though the stories concentrate on Blair’s life off the field, she has many baseball accomplishments in her life. Two of them she is rightly proud of doing is creating baseball and softball teams at Northrop Corporation where she enjoyed a long and successful career. The other, in partnership with longtime friend Shirley Burkovich and the author, opened the International Women’s Baseball Center in 2016 in Rockford, Illinois. The struggles they had in overcoming objections from many fronts showed the dedication Blair had for every aspect of her life.

This includes her personal life and sexuality as while she lived as a lesbian her entire life, she did not officially “come out” until she was 94 (she is now 98) and these stories are fun to read as well. For men’s baseball, there are plenty of stories about some of the shenanigans the men do when not playing - Blair shows that women can also have some fun. Blair shares many stories about her loves, her “episodes” as she call them but mostly about her family and friendships that are all connected in some manner with baseball.

It’s a fairly short book, but it feels just right as if there was much more it really would have been filler material and not about the wonderful life of Maybelle Blair. It’s a perfect blend of baseball and awareness for both women’s issues and those of the LBGTQ+ community. 

I wish to thank Rowman and Littlefield for providing a copy of the book. The opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own. 

Link: https://www.amazon.com/All-Way-Baseball-Trailblazer-Maybelle/dp/1538186365/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr= 

Review of "A Thing or Two About the Game"

Readers of this blog know that I am not a big reader of fictional books, but this novel about a man who reluctantly agrees to coach a softball team of 11-12 year old girls is a very enjoyable read that I recommend to anyone who wants to have something light on their TBR list.  Here is my review of "A Thing or Two About the Game."

Title/Author: “A Thing or Two About the Game” by Richard Paik

Rating: 4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review:  Coaching youth sports, no matter the sport or the gender of the players, is never easy and the rewards can be more than just the performances on the field of play.  This novel by Richard Paik illustrates this in a delightful and touching manner.

Brad is a man who is unemployed and not sure where his life is going. His ex-wife Stephanie contacts him and asks him to coach a girls’ softball team, the Marlins, when her boyfriend is unable to commit to doing so because of his job.  Brad accepts and wonders what exactly he signed up for – it turns out to be a lot more than he thought.

The best aspect of this novel, aside from its ease of reading, is the character development.  The reader will soon not only begin to connect with Brad, but with just about every other character in the book.  Every one of Brad’s players has some type of quirk or issue that is nothing unusual for 11–12-year-old girls.  They also are diverse for these traits – Jamie is an excellent athlete and is the Marlins’ best player.  Kacie, while not having the skills of Jamie, is determined to succeed and plays her heart out.  Those are just two small examples of how Paik develops each character in such a way that the reader will cheer for them.  There really is not a character who a reader will dislike or cheer against, even opponents (players and coaches) of the Marlins, as Paik makes sure to provide the reader a little insight into them as well.

In the meantime, there are all kinds of mini-stories that take place around the main focus of the book and that is the play of the Marlins, both in practices and during games. For the players, these can range from family matters to health issues.  For Brad, and his best friend Mike (who is a coach for another team, the Braves) these can include relationships (at least for Mike, as Brad is not seeing anyone during the book) and work-related issues.  There are times that a reader might wonder what Brad’s work in biotech research has to do with girls’ softball but as the book progresses, it is clear how these items, along with others, mesh together.

This book isn’t going to come with a nice neat ending, nor is the story one that is clear from beginning to end.  But that is what makes the book different – it reflects what will happen in life.  This is the case for both the girls and the adults in the book.  Put their stories together on the softball field and one gets a very enjoyable novel that is a treat for readers of many different tastes.

I wish to thank Atmosphere Press for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Links:   A Thing or Two About the Game - Kindle edition by Paik, Richard. Literature & Fiction Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

 

Review of "Lady Tigers of the Concrete Jungle"

While I have written a review of this book, words really can't describe the incredible uplifting feeling one will have when finishing this book.  A rag-tag team that eventually was honored at Yankee Stadium, the Mott Lady Tigers are a softball team that meant so much more than just the sport itself.  Here is my review of this book.

Title/Author:

“Lady Tigers in the Concrete Jungle: How Softball and Sisterhood Saved Lives in the South Bronx” by Dibs Baer

Tags:

Softball, high school, society

Publish date:

October 1, 2019

Length:

336 pages

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (outstanding)

Review:

It isn’t often that a team in any sport that goes 1-6 for its season will have a book written about it. However, the story of the very first girls’ softball team for Mott Middle School in the South Bronx is truly inspiring for not only the players, many of whom had incredible challenges in their lives but also for the coach who wanted to make a difference in the lives of these girls.  How the team was formed and their amazing journey is the subject of this wonderful book by magazine writer and editor Dibs Baer.

Mott is not just any middle school – it is one of the most violent, statistically underachieving schools in the nation.  The neighborhood is known for its gang activity and violence and the students who live in that environment bring it with them to school. Fights among all students are commonplace, with many staff members and teachers fearful for their safety. One particularly troubling tale involved a female teacher who was pushed down while eight months pregnant by another student who screamed at the teacher that she hoped that she would lose her baby.  Many stories like this are used to illustrate the atmosphere of the school.

Enter Chris Astacio. Having endured his own troubled past with the death of his older sister, he decided to enter the teaching profession to make a difference in the lives of young people. His first position was as a physical education teacher at Mott.  After seeing the atmosphere in which he was working, he decided to start a girls’ softball team. This despite the fact he had no financial backing from school administration, no equipment, no uniforms, and even no players.

The first day of tryouts was held in the gymnasium with only a Wiffle ball and bat. A few girls showed up, at first just because it was another way to avoid class or authority. Slowly but surely not only did more girls join the team, Coach Astacio was able to raise funds for equipment and uniforms. His players all had their own unique heartbreaking stories and they all had various issues, from failing grades to less than ideal home situations to violence (one player loved to fight anyone who dared look at her wrong) to sexual abuse.  While it was hard to read some of these stories during the book, it made their eventual journey all that more satisfying.

It should also be mentioned that no only did Astacio lose his sister, he was also a stomach cancer survivor. This made him even more determined to make this softball team a success and something that would provide a positive atmosphere and experience for the players who have endured so much. This dedication, and the strain it put on his marriage and home life, is told in rich detail by Baer.

“But what about the team?  How did they do?”  Well, as one might expect, they struggled on the field to start, losing badly in their first game.  As they played more, they got better but still did not win a game.  However, in their last game of their first season, they had to finish against another Lady Tigers team, this one more experienced and the one that gave them that big loss in the first game. No spoilers as I won’t give away the score, but it is safe to say that the Mott Lady Tigers team in that rematch was certainly more unified, more skilled and more ready to play even though the people were the same.

It is often said that sports can bring people together from a wide range of backgrounds.  This softball team is a great example of that concept coming true and the inspiration a reader will feel while navigating the pages of this team’s players and coach is truly remarkable. I was talking back to the book, in the same language (not always clean) that the players use and Baer’s use of that dialogue gives it a certain air of authenticity that this story is one of the more remarkable ones in sports.  The team and Coach Astacio have been honored in many ways, including by the New York Yankees, whose ballpark is in that area.  If a reader wants to be inspired, then pick up this book.

I wish to thank Pegasus Books for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. 

                                                                     

Book Format Read:

E-book (Kindle)                                                                                                                                

Buying Links:

https://www.amazon.com/Lady-Tigers-Concrete-Jungle-Sisterhood/dp/164313065X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=