Review of "The Phenomenon"

As I was somewhat familiar with the story of Rick Ankiel, I have been interested his memoir since it was published in April.  I was able to obtain the audio version and I believe that it made a good story even better.  Some of the reviews of this book that I read were somewhat critical of the writing and the narration, but I felt that those were secondary to the story which is one that is inspiring.  Here is my review of "The Phenomenon"

Title/Author:

“The Phenomenon: Pressure, the Yips and the Pitch that Changed My Life” written by Rick Ankiel and Tim Brown, narrated by Rick Ankiel

Tags:

Baseball, Professional, memoir, autobiography, Cardinals, Braves

Publish date:

April 18, 2017

Length:

304 pages

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (outstanding)

 

Review:

In October 2000, Rick Ankiel felt like he was on the top of the baseball world.  He was considered one of the best young pitchers in the game and was on the mound for a post-season game against the team he cheered for as a boy, the Atlanta Braves.  In the third inning, a seemingly innocent wild pitch led to even more of them and he had to soon thereafter be removed from the game. That led to even more wildness and Ankiel was in the fight for his baseball career.  But that fight was an internal one and how he handled that is chronicled in his recently published memoir.

When I saw that Ankiel was the narrator of the audio version, I decided to listen as I always believe that hearing the author tell his or her story lends an air of credibility to the book if he or she sounds honest.  That was certainly the case here as Ankiel comes across in both words and voice as completely honest.  While he had a difficult childhood by seeing his father treat his mother badly, he doesn’t blame that or any other external reason for his sudden loss of the ability to throw a baseball where he wanted.

When Ankiel subsequently underwent surgery on his throwing arm and still did not have success, the reader or listener will be surprised at how he decided to change from being a pitcher to an outfielder.  Even though I knew the story behind his decision to change and his subsequent work to learn a new position, I believed this was the most inspiring part of his story.  Late in his career, he played in another post-season game, this time for the Braves and he hit a game-winning home run against the San Francisco Giants.

He also spoke honestly about his name appearing on the Mitchell Report, the report written by former senator George Mitchell on his investigation in the use of performance enhancing drugs in baseball.  Ankiel states that he took human growth hormone while recovering from his surgery and at the time, he checked if it was a banned substance in the game.  He stated that it was not at the time (not until 2005) and therefore he decided to use it.  There was no defiance, no bitterness at being listed on the report – just stated as a matter of fact. 

This statement is in line with the rest of his book – narrated as just what happened without a lot of emotions, regrets or anger.  It was an audiobook that I enjoyed listening to and would recommend this book, either print or audio, to baseball fans who enjoy memoirs or a good comeback story.

Book Format Read:

Audiobook

 

Review of "Electric October"

When I saw the description of this book, I immediately thought of Kevin Bacon and his "six degrees of separation" theory.  The way the six men who are the subject of this book on the 1947 World Series didn't take six degrees of separation, but instead seven terrific baseball games in order to draw the men to one commonality.  Here is my review of the terrific book "Electric October."

Title/Author:

“Electric October: Seven World Series Games, Six Lives, Five Minutes of Fame That Lasted Forever” by Kevin Cook

Tags:

Baseball, Professional, History, Yankees, Dodgers

Publish date:

August 15, 2017

Length:

304 pages

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (outstanding)

Review:

1947 was a very memorable year in baseball as not only did Jackie Robinson become the first African-American player, but the New York Yankees and Robinson’s team, the Brooklyn Dodgers, played a very exciting seven game World Series in which the Yankees prevailed.  With those two teams, one expects the stars to play big roles. That wasn’t the case in the 1947 World Series, and this excellent book by Kevin Cook sheds light on some of these forgotten players and also the two managers.

Both managers, Burt Shotton of the Dodgers and Bucky Harris of the Yankees, were unlikely choices to lead these teams. Shotton was considered a temporary manager for the Dodgers until Leo Durocher completed serving his one year suspension.  Harris, who had been considered the “boy wonder” when he managed the Washington Senators to the World Series championship in 1924 and nearly repeated the feat in 1925, had little success since then and had been bouncing from team to team.  The stories for each man on how he led his team to the World Series made for excellent reading.

However, the best stories are for the four players who were not stars, but played important roles in the Series. There is Bill Bevens, a journeyman pitcher who came within one out of pitching the first no-hitter in World Series history in game four. The Dodger who broke up that no-hitter, Cookie Lavagetto, not only hit a double with two out in the bottom of the ninth, but drove in two runs as two base runners who previously both walked scored on the first Brooklyn hit of the game.  Then there is Snuffy Stirnweiss, a solid player who won the American League batting title in 1945 but received little respect for the feat since the game was depleted of its stars who were serving in World War II.  Finally, there is Al Gionfriddo, whose catch of a Joe DiMaggio fly ball is well known from the famous reaction by the Yankee Clipper when he kicked dirt after rounding first, realizing the ball was caught.

These six men has their lives changed by these moments that would bring them temporary fame that was soon forgotten. What they went through before, during and after that World Series is captured in great story writing by Cook. He not only tells of the men’s careers and life after baseball, but he tells the readers little known details about each player that will make a reader pay a little more attention each time.

Here is an example of these little-known tidbits. Bucky Harris’s marriage was not holding up to his baseball life very well, and Ty Cobb offered to take the Harris children out to dinner so that Bucky and his wife Betty could get a break and have a night alone. While it never happened, the offer made a big impression on Harris that he never forgot. 

One last area the book covers that I found interesting is when Cook writes about the place in history that both managers are and where Bill James, the father of advanced statistics, believe they should be.  James feels that both Harris and Shotten are not given their proper credit for the managing jobs they did in 1947 and his reasoning is simple yet not well known. 

“Electric October” gets its title from what the World Series was called by television executives that year as it was the first one that was shown nationwide on that medium. The title could very well be used to describe the connection of these six men in that one glorious seven game series as well.  An outstanding collection of stories about men, about life and about one glorious World Series, it is one that all baseball readers should add to their libraries.  

I wish to thank Henry Holt and Company for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Book Format Read:

E-book (Kinidle)

Buying Links:

https://www.amazon.com/Electric-October-Minutes-Lasted-Forever-ebook/dp/B01NH9I6XO/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/electric-october-kevin-cook/1125426637;jsessionid=BE0D89E278C12E6B47A8E7B7564DE9DE.prodny_store01-atgap07?ean=9781250116567&st=AFF&2sid=Goodreads,%20Inc_2227948_NA&sourceId=AFFGoodreads,%20IncM000004

Review of "Tall Tales and Short Shorts"

Happy Independence Day aka July 4th to all of my fellow American readers.  On this all-American holiday, what game is more appropriate to read about than the sport that was invented in the United States?  Of course, I am talking about basketball and I first followed the game in the 1970's.  This book is a very good account of the sport during that decade.  Here is my review of "Tall Tales and Short Shorts."

Title/Author:

“Tall Tales and Short Shorts: Dr. J, Pistol Pete & the Birth of the Modern NBA” by Adam J. Criblez

Tags:

Basketball, Professional, History

Publish date:

June 9, 2017

Length:

311 pages

Rating: 

4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review:

The state of professional basketball was shaky in the 1970’s. Former NBA Commissioner David Stern called the decade the “darkest times” for the league.  The number of African-American players was increasing, there was increased drug use among the players, the game was felt to be too violent and the television ratings were so bad, there were playoff games that were not shown live, but on delay during late night hours 

However, there are some who credit this decade as the stepping stone to the global success the NBA is currently enjoying through the merger of the two professional leagues, the birth of free agency and the exciting play of many talented players.  This is the approach taken by author Adam J. Criblez in this very interesting book on the NBA of the 1970’s.

The format of the book is straightforward – each chapter is an account of each season through the decade, starting with the legendary 1970 championship season for the New York Knicks to the unlikely championship claimed by the Seattle SuperSonics in 1979. The material is not extremely detailed or in depth, but each season is covered well, as well as many of the great players from that time such as George Gervin, Bill Walton, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and John Havlicek. 

One facet of the book that I like is that each team, whether the champion, a playoff team or an also-ran is mentioned each year. Unlike many books that cover certain seasons, the star players from losing teams are credited with their fine play and there are even paragraphs about these losing teams that explains why they were in the poor shape they were in.

The season-by-season recap is interrupted three times for chapters on other topics.  Two of these chapters are about two of the biggest names in the sport during that decade – Julius “Dr. J” Erving and “Pistol” Pete Maravich.  Being a fan of both of these players during that time brought back some great memories and also a little bit of trivia that I had never heard before.  When Dr. J was trying to play in the NBA before the ABA and NBA merged in 1976, he signed a contract with the Atlanta Hawks, who already had Maravich on the roster.  While the matter was in the court system, the Hawks played three exhibition game with both players.  The contact was voided in court and Dr. J had to return to the New York Nets of the ABA.  It would have been very interesting to see those two legends play on the same team. 

Speaking of the merger, the third chapter that was not a recap of a season was about that topic when the two professional leagues stopped fighting each other on and off the court and became a stronger league.  One of my favorite passages from that chapter is about the final all-star game in the ABA when Dr. J performed his legendary foul-line dunk.

While the book does not shed a lot of new light nor goes into great details into any particular topic, it is a very entertaining and fun read for any basketball fan who watched the game in that decade. These fantastic teams and players may not get the same love as Larry Bird, Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan did for “saving” the game in the 1980’s – but this book gives that decade some much-deserved recognition for providing the first step to that revival.

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

Book Format Read:

Hardcover

Buying Links:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/144227767X/ref=x_gr_w_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=144227767X&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2

Review of "Home Ice"

Here's to wishing a happy Canada Day to all of our Canadian friends celebrating the 150th anniversary of their independence.  While it worked out to be a nice coincidence, the book reviewed on this holiday is a book on hockey.  This is a terrific memoir of a big Chicago Blackhawks fan.  Here is my review of "Home Ice."

Title/Author:

“Home Ice :Confessions of a Blackhawks Fan” by Kevin Cunningham

Tags:

Ice Hockey, Professional, Blackhawks, memoir

Publish date:

August 15, 2017

Length:

190 pages

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (outstanding)

Review:

Most sports fans will follow a team or teams beginning in their childhood.  That was the case for author Kevin Cunningham as he began to follow the Chicago Blackhawks when he was eight years old. His subsequent obsession with the team is chronicled in this entertaining memoir about his love for the team and the game.

The humor that is plentiful throughout the pages is what sets this memoir apart from most sports memoirs.  No matter what stage of life Cunningham is writing about and no matter how well or poorly the Blackhawks are playing, he never fails to drop in something humorous, even if the actual events are melancholy. A good example is the chapter on when he went to a Blackhawks game against Winnipeg on a first date with a woman who later became a girlfriend.  The way he talks about the ticket stub he kept from that game for many years made me laugh several times. That is just one of the many passages that will leave a reader laughing.

Hockey fans, even those who are not Blackhawk fans, will enjoy all of Cunningham’s recollection of important games and rivalries from the 1980’s to the Stanley Cup championships of the current decade.  Being a fan of the Minnesota North Stars before the team relocated to Dallas, I was especially enjoying the writing about the great rivalry between the North Stars and Blackhawks – even if Cunningham had a strong dislike for Dino Ciccarelli.  While I may have been on the “wrong” side of that rivalry according to him, his memes about it brought back some great memories.

Fellow Blackhawk fans will especially enjoy this explanation of an obsession with a hockey team since that is their team.  But for fans of the game, this book is recommended for them as well as it just may provide a little insight into the loyalty and passion any fan has for his or her team. 

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

Book Format Read:

E-book (Kindle)

Buying Links:

https://www.uipress.uiowa.edu/books/home-ice.htm

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1609384784/ref=x_gr_w_bb?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_w_bb-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1609384784&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2

Review of "The Fall of the House of FIFA"

With the World Cup just over a year away, Russia will be the next host of the prestigious tournament.  How they won this honor for 2018 and Qatar did so for 2022 has been the subject of investigations into the governing body of soccer, FIFA.  These investigations, as well as many other accusations of corruption within the organization, is the subject of this exhaustive book that is a good read.  Here is my review of "The Fall of the House of FIFA."

Title/Author:

“The Fall of the House of FIFA: The Multi-Million Dollar Corruption at the Heart of Global Soccer” by David Conn

Tags:

Soccer, Football (European), politics, international

Publish date:

June 6, 2017

Length:

336 pages

Rating: 

4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review:

Shock waves were sent through the soccer world when it was announced that the 2022 World Cup tournament would be held in Qatar during the summer months of the northern hemisphere. Many asked how this could happen and what was the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) thinking when they did this.  A subsequent investigation found that allegations of kickbacks, bribery, money laundering and tax evasion played a big role in this announcement and also the awarding of the 2018 World Cup to Russia.

These well-known incidents of corruption, as well as lesser known ones, some dating back to the 1970’s, are covered in this well-researched and through book on FIFA by award winning writer David Conn. He exposes so many incidents of bribery and other questionable actions by FIFA officials that one may get lost trying to keep them all straight. The old vendor cry that you can’t keep the players straight without a scorecard is applicable here, even though there is very little written about the actual games on the pitch.

Some of the specifics in the reports and interviews of the book will leave the reader shaking his or her head. One of these passages that did that for me was in the report of an investigation in bribery accusations, FIFA “believed bribery was a part of the routine facts of life in South America and Africa.”  This after the organization had denied any corruption in those areas after sending millions of dollars for development of the game and facilities in which to play.  If you are confused after reading that, then so was I. 

That was just one passage of many that highlight the extent of the corruption in the organization and Conn writes about them with the knowledge only a veteran writer of the sport and the organization can do. His interview with FIFA President Sepp Blatter was also must-read material.  This book is one that readers who are interested in the inner workings, good and bad (mostly the latter) of one of the biggest sports institutions in the world must add to their bookshelves.

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

Book Format Read:

E-book (Kindle)

Buying Links:

https://www.amazon.com/Fall-House-FIFA-Multimillion-Dollar-Corruption/dp/1568585969/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1498695592&sr=8-1&keywords=fall+of+the+house+of+fifa  

Review of "Hard to Grip"

Followers of my reviews know that I have reviewed many sport memoirs over the last four years.  However, this one was very different than the others I have read.  For one, this young man's career was over by the age of 23.  While that isn't rare, the reason why his career had to end was rare for someone his age.  He tells his story in this terrific memoir.  Here is my review of "Hard to Grip."

Title/Author:

“Hard to Grip: A Memoir of Youth, Baseball and Chronic Illness” by Emil DeAndreis

Tags:

Baseball, high school, college, memoir, Hawaii

Publish date:

April 1, 2017

Length:

326 pages

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (outstanding)

Review:

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic disease that cause swelling and eventually deterioration of the joints. The people who are most likely to suffer from this condition are elderly women. So imagine what it was like when a 23 year old young man who just completed a college baseball career in Hawaii and was about to sign a contract to play professional baseball in Belgium finds out he has this condition.  That is exactly what happened to Emil DeAndreis.  His memoir about this situation after dreaming of a baseball career is one that will tug at every emotion in a reader.

The stories he shares from his experiences are funny, sad, thoughtful and honest. It is clear while reading the book that DeAndreis is pulling no punches and fully describing his emotions when he finds out the news about important events in his life – not just the diagnosis of the disease.  His story about the offer of a Division I baseball scholarship from the University of Hawaii-Hilo was one in which I was pumping my fist to cheer for him. His subsequent description of some of the wacky happenings on the campus with his teammates, the struggles of the team as they compiled losing records in each of his four seasons, and the joy of earning a win against a major conference school (the University of Kansas) are fun to read and make the reader feel like he or she is living the college life with him.

DeAndreis, who studied writing in college, saves his best for his battle with RA. His internal thoughts of denial that he has the disease, the alternative treatments he tried before medication and the support of his then-girlfriend (now wife) Kendall makes for compelling reading. Between the description of what his body was going through, his wish to disassociate from anything associated with baseball because the memories are too painful, and his life afterward which included coaching the high school baseball team for which was a star pitcher, will inform and entertain the reader.

This book is not one in which is meant to draw pity or sympathy for the author, nor is it one that is written with a greater message or cause in mind.  It is simply an honest story of a young man who was diagnosed with a disease that caused him to give up his lifelong dream and adjust to living life with different goals.  It is one that readers of many different genres will like – one does not have to be a baseball fan to cheer for Emil in his road to life after baseball.

I wish to thank the author and Schaffner Press for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Book Format Read:

Paperback

Buying Links:

https://www.amazon.com/Hard-Grip-Baseball-Chronic-Illness/dp/194315614X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1498330552&sr=8-1&keywords=hard+to+grip

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hard-to-grip-emil-deandreis/1126040228?ean=9781943156146

Happy Father's Day! Review of "My First Coach"

Here's a wish for a Happy Father's Day to all of the fathers reading this, including women who are doing both mother and father duties.  On this day, it is only appropriate to review this upcoming book written by a talented sportswriter about the relationships between several NFL quarterbacks and their fathers.  Here is my review of "My First Coach."

Title/Author:

“My First Coach: Inspiring Stories of NFL Quarterbacks and Their Dads” by Gary Myers

Tags:

Football (American), professional, history, family

Publish date:

August 22, 2017

Length:

288 pages

Rating: 

5 of 5 stars (outstanding)

Review:

There are many stories of fathers playing catch with their sons with either a baseball and mitts or tossing a football back and forth. Many of those catches with a football are mixed with fantasies by the son (and sometimes the father) of that youngster becoming an NFL quarterback.  This excellent book by Gary Myers tells the stories of some of those youngsters whose dreams of becoming a professional quarterback and the experiences they had with their fathers.

The quarterbacks selected for this book are not all Super Bowl winners or even stars in the game. There are plenty of the former (Phil Simms, John Elway and Eli Manning just to name a few) but there are also quarterbacks who are early in their professional careers (Jameis Winston, Derek Carr) or journeymen (Ryan Fitzpatrick and Jim Harbaugh). No matter the level of success or experience obtained, the stories of their relationships with their fathers made for fascinating reading.  Myers is considered to be one of the best football writers in the country and the manner in which he captures the stories shows why.

While the majority of the tales shared do reveal many of the traits expected, such as the many sacrifices and moves made by the fathers to help their sons achieve gridiron success, there are some that took a different path. Simms recalls that his relationship with his father was not a close one during his youth.  Winston tells how his father stressed academics over football, and Harbaugh’s story goes well into his coaching days as well as his playing days.  All of the chapters reveal heartfelt reflections by both the fathers and the sons about their relationships.

There is one more twist to the type of story told and that is the one on the chapter about Joe Montana.  This is because that chapter talks about Montana as the father to his two sons who both played high school and college football but did not play professionally. The pressure they felt as the son of a legend was extraordinary, enough to the point that they put their mother’s maiden names on the backs of their jerseys so they did not have to try to live up to their famous father’s performance. This chapter was my favorite one in the book.

Football fans of all levels, from casual to die-hard, will enjoy reading these personal stories about the most visible players in professional football.  Myers has once again scored a touchdown with a book about quarterbacks and it is one the comes highly recommended.

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

Book Format Read:

E-book (Kindle)

Buying Links:

https://www.amazon.com/My-First-Coach-Inspiring-Quarterbacks/dp/1455598461/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1497791115&sr=1-1&keywords=my+first+coach