Monday, May 26, 2014

Giveaway of "Against the Grain"

Hoping that everyone is enjoying the Memorial Day holiday and takes a moment to remember why we celebrate the holiday.   One of the other Memorial Day traditions is to find a good bargain.  We have one for you right here at The Guy Who Reviews Sports Books.  The best bargain that can be found - something for FREE!

We are giving away three hardcover copies of "Against the Grain" by Bill Courtney.  This book was reviewed here on May 15 - here is the link:


It's an inspiring, well received book from an award winning coach whose team was the subject of an Oscar-winning documentary film.

To enter the contest, all you need to do is leave a comment either here or on the review and an email address or other means to contact you if you are selected as one of the winners.   This contest will be open until Sunday, June 1, when the winners will be chosen.   So, check out the review, feel free to leave a comment and enter for your chance to win the book.  Good luck!

Saturday, May 24, 2014

Review of "A Month at the Brickyard"

Just in time for the Indianapolis 500, here is my review of "A Month at the Brickyard."  The race is one of the biggest sporting events in the world held annually during Memorial Day weekend, and there a lot of work done during the month leading up to the race.  That is the topic of this book, which was an excellent read.  


Title/Author:
“A Month at the Brickyard: The Incredible Indy 500” by Sonny Kleinfield

Tags:
Auto Racing, Indianapolis 500, History

Publish date:
April 30, 2014 – re-release in electronic form.  Originally published in 1977

Length:
182 pages

Rating: 
4 ½ of 5 stars (excellent)

Review:
While many people are familiar with the Indianapolis 500 as one of the biggest auto races in the world, there is a lot more to the even than just the race itself and the qualifying runs.  The preparation by people of the track, the city of Indianapolis and the members of the race crews all play a part in making the race a huge event.  These stories and others are covered by this excellent book by Sonny Kleinfield.

The book covers the month of May leading up to the 1976 Indianapolis 500.  Johnny Parsons, a young up-and-coming driver whose father Johnnie won the race in 1950, is chronicled as he and his crew work to first qualify, then run well in the race itself.  Descriptions of the work done on the car, the engine and in the pits is just right – not too technical that would confuse casual race fans (or non-fans) but enough to keep the interest of those readers who are hard-core car enthusiasts. 

There are also many human interest stories in the book as well that make up the experience of the race track and the race. Fans that arrive and stay for most of the month, city officials who want to both promote the race and show the world that there is more to Indianapolis than the 500, and business owners who benefit from the thousands of extra customers in May are all portrayed in a fun and thoughtful manner.  The difference in the social mores of that time compared to today is also apparent.  When Janet Guthrie attempted to become the first woman to qualify for the race (she would do so the next year) the rampant sexism is apparent.  Many of the comments made by men on other crews would not be so funny or tolerated today.

The sport of racing itself is covered superbly, especially the description of the days of the time trials to qualify for the race. The struggles of the drivers and their crews in trying to determine when to run the car were in my favorite section of the book.  Parsons was covered in depth, of course, but other late qualifiers had entertaining stories to tell as well. 

The book concludes with the 1976 race, following Parsons and his crew as they have some highs and some troubles, especially with tire changes during pit stops. I will not give away any more information about the race here – the reader will enjoy finding out how the race evolves.

Overall, this is an excellent book on one of the greatest spectacles in sports – not just the event but the entire month that leads up to the race.  I recommend this for any auto racing fan.

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

Did I skim?
No

Pace of the book: 
Excellent. The various stories from different vantage points keep the reader engaged and entertained. 

Do I recommend? 
Yes, even if the reader is not a racing fan. Those readers will enjoy the human interest stories and some of the interviews with officials from the city of Indianapolis. Of course, race fans will soak up a lot of information about the entire Indianapolis 500 experience.   

Book Format Read:
E-book (Kindle)

Buying links:


http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-month-at-the-brickyard-sonny-kleinfield/1113636805?ean=9781480484658

Thursday, May 22, 2014

Review of "The Best Phillies Team Ever"

I always love to read books that list the best of something.  They will be sure to generate debate and this book is no exception.  Here is my review of "The Best Phillies Team Ever" by John Rust. 



Title/Author:
“The Best Phiilies Team Ever” By John J. Rust

Tags:
Baseball, professional, Phillies, list

Published:
January 11, 2014

Length:
157 pages

Rating: 
4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review:
While the Philadelphia Phillies are not my favorite baseball team, I am always intrigued by books like this that list the all-time greatest in some category.  It can be music, movies or sports.  A book like this will be sure to generate some debate as to who would be the best choices to include and how much of a travesty that someone was left off.  John Rust’s book that names the best Phillies team ever will do just that.

This is more than just a listing of the best Phillies players at each position.  Rust does list them, but he does so by naming them as the everyday lineup. There are players who played in all eras included – from the 19th century to current Phillie players.  No, I will not name any names and create the ultimate spoiler – but I will say that Rust develops a true baseball team of great Phillies players by not only including the starting eight position players but also names a starting rotation, bullpen, and bench players. 

What I like about this concept is that the players who are on this team are not necessarily all who have the best statistics , but how well they would perform in the role they have on Rust’s team is how the team is structured.  To prove how good a team this would be, he creates simulated games against various all-star teams and replays the 1950 World Series between the Phillies and the New York Yankees.  Again, no spoilers but these game recreations are entertaining as well.

This book is one that Phillies fans will certainly want to read to see if their favorite players made the team and have some great sports bar debates on who should and should not be included.   Even if the reader follows another team, this book will be an entertaining read for any baseball fan.   

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

Did I skim?
No. 

Pace of the book: 
Very good.  Each chapter is an easy read, not too long and tells the complete story of the player named on the list.

Do I recommend? 
If you are a hard core fan of the Phillies, you will certainly enjoy this book that will certainly be the subject of a few debates.  Baseball fans, even those who like other teams, will also enjoy the book as well.  

Book Format Read:
E-Book (Kindle)

Buying Links:

http://www.amazon.com/Best-Phillies-Team-Ever-ebook/dp/B00HTOKN8E/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1400807896&sr=1-1

Saturday, May 17, 2014

Review of "Against the Grain"

I had the pleasure of receiving this book by a high school football coach whose team was the subject of an award-winning documentary film.   While the topics may be ones that many have written about, this particular book addresses them in a unique way that only a football coach can do.   Here is my review of "Against the Grain."  


Title/Author:
“Against the Grain: A Coach’s Wisdom on Character, Faith, Family and Love” by Bill Courtney with Michael Arkush

Tags:
Football, high school, motivational, family, faith

Published:
May 13, 2014

Length:
206 pages

Rating: 
4 1/2 of 5 stars (excellent)

Review:
Bill Courtney gained fame and recognition as the assistant coach in the Oscar-winning documentary “Undefeated” about a Memphis high school football team that became a winning program through hard work, faith and the teachings of a volunteer part-time coach.  That coach was Courtney who also turned an abandoned piece of property into a thriving business.  These successes helped Courtney decide to write this book in order to “coach” even more people on his vies of character, faith and family.

In the book, Courtney shares his values and reasons for his success in small doses.  He shares many stories about his players at Manassas, his employees, his family and himself on many topics that other books of this nature will cover: hard work, keeping one’s word, service to others, dreams, responsibility and other similar topics. While reading the book, the reader will be caught up in the moment and feel the joy of success or the occasional heartbreak of failure as Courtney’s subject will either learn a valuable lesson or at times even make Courtney stop and think that maybe he could learn from the player or employee.

My favorite story in the book is an example of Courtney pausing for a moment and thinking about these values he is trying to teach his players.  I believe that makes the message that he is trying to deliver even more powerful, as it shows we all have room for growth in these areas. 

In the chapter about service, Courtney was having trouble connecting with his players and speaks privately to one of the seniors on the team, asking what he needs to do in order to get the team to listen to him. The player simply said to keep doing what he was doing.  Pressing for details, the player eventually told the coach that the team was trying to figure out if he was a “turkey person.”   The player went on to explain that he and his teammates would often see
“folks who look just like you” drop off turkeys and other gifts and then leave, never to be seen again.   Courtney’s players were trying to figure out if he was a turkey person, according to this player. It made Courtney reassess how he was coming across to his team and as a result, the team responded by playing some of its best football. 

Stories like that make this book a terrific read for anyone looking for a little positive news, for some uplifting and helpful advice or just some nice stories on football and life.  The four and a half star rating I gave the book is rounded to five for Amazon and Goodreads that do not have half-stars for their ratings.

I wish to thank the publisher for providing an advance review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Did I skim?
No. 

Pace of the book: 
Because the stories are fairly short, consistent throughout the book and are varied in topic, the reader will fly through the book.  While I didn’t read it at one sitting due to other commitments, the total time to read all 206 pages was not very long at all.
 
Book Format Read:
Paperback

Buying Links:



Friday, May 16, 2014

Short review of "When Chicago Ruled Baseball"

I just completed a book by Bernard Weisberger about the 1906 World Series between the Cubs and White Sox that was quite entertaining.  I wasn't going to post a review of it here because I am working on other books as well.  However I decided to post a short review here and on Goodreads since I highly recommend this book to baseball fans.  I don't have my form template available so here is a short review of the book.  Enjoy!

Title:
"When Chicago Ruled Baseball: The Cubs-White Sox World Series of 1906" by Bernard Weisberger"



Rating:
4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review:

This was a good account of not only the games and results of the 1906 World Series (the only one in which Chicago's two teams have faced each other) but also of the times in which those games were played.  The reader will feel the differences between the small bandbox parks in which the games were played compared to today's stadiums.  The games themselves were different as well with better pitching to offset weaker hitting and fielding than what we have today.  Finally the reader will read about the players attempting to form unions, the owners trying to hold salaries down and some general labor unrest.  Now THAT is similar to many of the off field issues we hear about today.  An enjoyable read for any baseball fan.

Monday, May 12, 2014

Review of "The Yankee Way"

Willie Randolph's baseball career was a very good one - World Series titles, all-star teams at second base, becoming the first African American manager in New York with the Mets.  In a book released today, he writes about his time with Yankees and in baseball.  He shares some very entertaining stories and it is a book that Yankee fans will enjoy reading.  Here is my review of "The Yankee Way." 


Title/Author:
“The Yankee Way: Playing, Coaching and My Life in Baseball” by Willie Randolph

Tags:
Baseball, autobiography, Yankees, Mets

Published:
May 13, 2014

Length:
288 pages

Rating: 
4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review:
Growing up in Brooklyn, Willie Randolph loved baseball and often dreamed of being able to play in the major leagues, like millions of other boys. He realized that dream in 1975 when he was called up by the Pittsburgh Pirates. That began a long journey that took him back to his hometown where he had many good seasons with the New York Yankees, including the Yankees teams of the late 1970’s that won three consecutive American League pennants and two World Series. When his playing days ended, he became a coach for the team during the next great Yankee run when led by the Core Four; they won four World Series titles between 1996 and 2000. Then later he became first African-American manager in New York when he was named manager of the Mets in 2005.  Randolph shares stories about all these chapters in his career and life in this autobiography.

What struck me most about the book was the conversational style in which it was written. There isn’t a true structure to the book as it is not in strict chronological order, nor does Randolph talk exclusively about certain times in his life in each chapter. Randolph’s writing makes the reader fell like he or she is sitting next to Willie, just passing the time by sharing baseball stories.   Much of the book is just that – baseball stories. There isn’t a lot of reflection on his early childhood family life or his family life that isn’t impacted some way by the game.  Yes, he does talk lovingly about his wife and children when they are mentioned, but even some of those are directly related to what is happening in his baseball life.

The stories are mostly funny and entertaining. One of my favorites was when Willie went on a hunting trip with Goose Gossage and a few other Yankee teammates.  Having never hunted before, it turned into a very good story of not only bagging a deer but also of the camaraderie that teammates often share with each other.  The story of he and his wife Gretchen moving into a trailer park during his minor league playing days was also a nice story, both entertaining and heartwarming by the end.  Of course, the baseball ones are great as well.  The best ones are about those about the Yankees of the late 70’s and early 80’s with Reggie Jackson, Thurman Munson, Billy Martin and such.  They won, they fought, they grabbed headlines but in the end, they were the type of characters that made for excellent tales. 

There are times where the dialogue will veer off the topic and go on a tangent that is related to the topic being discussed.  This may distract a reader, but I thought it added to the conversational tone of the book.  Just like when two people are talking and one will go off on a tangent, this book does the same thing at times.  It doesn’t stay that way for long, and the story gets back on track. This is an enjoyable read for any baseball fan, especially Yankee fans and those who like to read about those aforementioned Yankee teams.  

I wish to thank the publisher for providing an advanced review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Did I skim?
No. 

Pace of the book: 
This book is best read at a leisurely pace, much like if the reader were sitting on a porch with Willie sharing stories. 

Do I recommend? 
Baseball fans that enjoy reading about the great Yankee teams of the late 1970’s or in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s will especially like this book.   More casual baseball fans should also enjoy hearing Willie’s tales of his playing, coaching and managing days.

Book Format Read:
Paperback

Buying Links:


Monday, May 5, 2014

Review of "Tom Landry and Bill Walsh"

My favorite era of professional football was during the 1970's and 1980s, and I am very grateful for John Lawson III for providing me a book about two legendary coaches from that era.  Here is my review of "Tom Landry and Bill Walsh."  


Title/Author:

Tom Landry and Bill Walsh: How two coaching legends took championship football from the Packer Sweep to Brady vs. Manning” by John Lawson III


Tags:
Football, professional, coach, Cowboys, 49ers

Published:
January 18, 2014

Length:
359 pages

Rating: 
4 1/2 of 5 stars (excellent)

Review:
Professional football is a game that has undergone many changes in the last few decades and two legendary coaches, Tom Landry of the Dallas Cowboys and Bill Walsh of the San Francisco 49ers, were responsible for several of those changes.  Fans of the game will know about the West Coast Offense, the 4-3 defense and the shotgun formation.  Landry and Walsh were ahead of their time bringing those innovations (or in the case of the shotgun, re-introducing) into their game plans.   John Lawson III takes a look at the two men by following through their successes and failures as football coaches and also gives a history of lesson by illustrating what the game was like during the 1970’s and 1980’s when Landry and then Walsh were the kings of the NFL.

This book doesn’t just focus on the two Hall of Fame coaches.  There are plenty of anecdotes about players from that era who helped shape the game as it was at that time.  Of course there are stories about great Dallas and San Francisco players, but other great players from that time are included as well, such as Franco Harris and other players from the Pittsburgh Steelers.   Lawson also does a terrific job of illustrating when there were shifts in the landscape of the league and one of Landry’s or Walsh’s innovations were given the ultimate compliment in the NFL – other teams copied them.

There are two games that Lawson used to do this which were excellent illustrations of this concept.  The first one was on December 28, 1975 when Dallas beat the Minnesota Vikings with a long pass that became known as the “Hail Mary” and is now commonly used for a last second pass.   On a personal note, as a lifetime Vikings fan, that game is a bad memory for me, but it was correct for Lawson to use this one on the journey Landry took to become an innovator to use his personnel to the best of their ability.

The second game is the NFC Championship game in January 1982 in which the 49ers defeated the Cowboys 28-27 with the play that will be forever known as “The Catch” when Dwight Clark leaped for a Joe Montana pass in the end zone in the last minute.   Something I really liked about this chapter is that Lawson debunked a myth that this game was when the torch of greatness was passed from Landry and the Cowboys to Walsh and the 49ers.  He explains this during this chapter and others as well with extensive research and well-written accounts of games, teams and seasons during this era.

I did feel that even though Lawson didn’t expressly write this, he seemed biased toward Walsh being a little better than Landry overall as a coach and an innovator.  This isn’t to say that he wrote a lot of critical items about Landry (if anything, he was more critical of the Cowboys organization as a whole) and he didn’t write about Walsh in overly glowing praise, but in the end, I felt that there was a bias toward Walsh shown.  Not that this is bad about the book – it just took me by surprise near the end as it was very balanced up to that point. 

Overall, I felt this was an excellent book that any football fan who enjoyed that era of the NFL will want to read.  The four-and-a-half star rating is moved to five for Amazon and Goodreads where half-stars are not counted.

I wish to thank Mr. Lawson for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Did I skim?
No. 

Pace of the book: 
Very good. The back and forth between the sagas of Landry and Walsh are well placed and keeps the reader moving through the book and therefore keeps both coaches fresh in his or her mind.

Do I recommend? 
Pro football fans will love this book, especially those who followed the game in the 1970’s and 1980s.

Book Format Read:
e-book (Kindle)

Buying Links: