Sports Books

This book is one to get for all ages.It lists all the brand motors of old. It gives the history of each motor which I found very interesting and helpful.It also gives a price guide of each motor and which I disagree with. The motor I have I would not sell for the price thats listed in the book. But it gives you the info on what you are looking for.

This is NOT a detailed repair manual, but rather a valuable history of outboards including many of the obscure makes such as the one you have leaning in the corner of the shed.

After reading the 2nd edition of Peter Hunn's The Old Outboard Book I couldn't wait to get the revised and expanded 3rd edition. I take the book with me when I go looking for old outboards and swap meets. No better reference exists in my opinion.

This book is stretched between a technical manual and a coffee table book way too tight. Hunn covers the larger manuf. with research that could be found on any historical website, and briefly touches on the rare and obscure in general descriptions. Do not rely on this book for technical information. Simply order specific parts lists for the motors you have. I would like to know if Hunn's other book was better as a picture book, as this one was too poorly written to be of any enjoyment.

This book has become the "Bible" for most outboard collectors. It has everything in one place. The big list of almost ALL known US outboard manufacturers, The price guide which is the only published guide of its kind, developed thru consultation with a good cross section of prominent and active collectors, Great Serial number guides, Spark plug charts, and much more. Peter's style is very readable, with a "story" connected to each brand. Hundreds of outboard collectors keep a copy in their car, while touring the country looking for additions to their collections. Most helpful to identify, and value that Garage sale or Outboard meet, find. HIGHLY recommended, especially for those new to the hobby.

I am new to scratch boat building and this is a basic book about it. It has many helpful hints that are very usefull. It is a beginners book. Easy to read and understand.

There are a lot of forums on the NET that describe in detail on how to scratch-build, but I was looking for something basic.

An excellent book.

I find the book a good introduction to the concepts, but a bit lite in detail.

I purchased this book several years past. This Amazon.com reviewer is an avid ship modeler. I use this book nearly constantly. I give this book five stars.

Now, this book was written in 1993. So, there are no web sites for reference nor is there a more recent write up. If a person is interested in making a scratch built ship they should surf onto the steelnavy.com web site. Steel Navy is known as one of the best web references for ship building. Museum quality ships from the world have pictures on that page. If you want American warship plans then surf to "Maryland Silver". They have nearly all of the ship plans of the modern Navy. Furthermore, they have plans for most of the pre-1880 (modern Navy) ships. Last, a fair source of ship plans is Ebay. One vendor on Ebay sells quite warships and Great Lakes vessels. If you are making a modern ship and need fittings the web sites to check out are H&R Products, Blue Jacket Ship Models, and The Scale Shipyard. All three web locations have lots of fittings for ships.

Now, back to this book.

This book covers all necessary steps for a ship modeler. The first chapter is on getting correct plans. If your plans are off then what is the point? The second chapter covers making the keel, ribs (frames), and then planking the ship. The rest of the chapters follow in logical progression. The chapters vary from rigging your model if you have a sailing ship to building a superstructure for a modern ship. Note, there are two complete sets of plans in the back of the book. One for a sailing ship and another for a simple cargo steamer. I didn't build either because this modeler makes battleships.

Speaking of battleships, the book gives quite a bit of information on constructing a South Carolina class battleship. The South Carolina class is semi-famous in model circles. The first ship of the class, BB-27, the USS Michigan, has extensive model construction articles written about it in this book. Now, the chapter on Cage Mast Construction is about the only major book that has been published that covers this topic. Cage Masts were found on every battleship made in the USA from about 1910 to 1920. Cage Masts are seen on many of the battleships, like the USS Tennessee, at Pearl Harbor. So, it's very good that a major book tells how to make a cage mast. Note, the chapter on Cage Mast construction will advise a builder to make a jig for the mast. Furthermore, it's advisable that no cage mast be made that is smaller than 1/144th scale.

The book also gives advise on the cutting of wood, plastics, and metal. Furthermore, there is suggestions by the author on what type of wood cutting machines to buy, such as a table saw, and what sort of finishing tool to purchase. The hobby of ship modelling is a lot easier if you have a Demel tool.

The book had lots of little helpful items. It give basic instructions for making a deadeye. Port holes, very necessary for a making a convincing ship, are covered in this book. If you don't want to follow the advise you can get fair portholes from either H & R Products or Blue Jacket.

The only thing that isn't really covered in this book is making a boat radio controlled. You'll have to get another book if you wish to RC your beloved museum quality ship.

I hope you enjoy this book as much as I have. This book should be studies by any body who wishes to make their first scratch built model. Note, there are no large scale commercial models of Great Lakes steamers or Pre-WWII battleships. So, if you want to build a nice model battleship of the USS Florida you'll have to get the plans from Maryland Silver, the fitting from H & R Products, and read this book to learn the knowledge necessary for making that model.

Best wishes, fellow ship builder, on reading this book. You'll enjoy your purchase. I look forward to hearing about your question on steelnavy.com .

This book is worth all five stars.

If you have ever read any of Travis Pastrana's articles written in the old Racer X column he had, you would know of his ability to make you feel as though you are right in the heart of the story being told. The same holds true with this book. He brings you right in with vivid descriptions and details that are easily understood by the average everyday person and yet belies an attention the to english language that is quite comprehensive. I thoroughly enjoyed this book as well as my husband, his riding buddies and racing buddies and the kids in our family as well. I would definitly give it to anyone considering riding/racing or any other adventure. It's not about the sport/adventure it about taking the chance!!

I sat down and read the book cover to cover. It's a great read for every age.

I purchased this for my son who is a freestyler, and not one to read books, but he enjoyed (and read) the book cover to cover. Great photography, interesting text, and a fantastic insight into Travis Pastrana.

This book was amazing, very well written and i didnt put it down after i picked it up! I read the entire thing in a night, it was a very good read, but i felt like there werer parts when he was braggin about himself. But all in all i strongly recommend this book to anyone who likes motocross or xtreme sports.

This book is written very much in Pastrana's own voice, which leads it to be not only personal at times, but also hilarious. Actually some of my favorite parts of the book were the little notes on the side either from Travis himself or his friends/colleagues/parents. It gives readers a view of what its like living his life, something I certainly don't envy.

He covers everything from his beginnings in racing, his schooling, his injuries, the many wild stunts he has done and more. If you are a fan its a must read, even if you're not its entertainment value makes it worthwhile.

A PGA master professional told me that my greatest problem was rhythm and tempo. He introduced me to a few aspects of "quantum golf" and I suddenly hit my 3-iron longer than I previously hit my driver.

Back in Europe I still focused on my rhythm and tempo but after several months the length of my shots decreased and I went back to classical golf.

Only after reading the book "quantum golf" I saw that I was missing one essential part of quantum golf - the Q-position. I went back to quantum golf and my results are amazing: my length and precision off the tee improved a lot.

I have found most "self improvement" golf books to be difficult to grasp without great photographic portrayal of the techniques being taught. Video would make them all that much better. This book, however, deals with easy to grasp concepts and exercises that are practical and efficient. What a great thought process the super fluid concept is! This is just the book needed for those who need to take a break from the physical grind of improving their golf game and get into the mental end of the spectrum.

A fascinating novella, where a Mr. Smith learns about himself as he explores golf with a mystical teacher in the middle of Iowa. Great reading for tennis players or golfers who want to learn a "superfluid" swing, but also for the golf/tennis metaphors that apply to life. Delightful

I'm a pretty good golfer, and I knew that my game was plateauing. I was stuck at about 79-83, and I knew that spending time beating balls at the driving range was getting me no where. I bought this book based on the reviews I saw here, and I have to admit I am SHOCKED. The book is that good. It's a story, that reveals the secrets of golf within it, primarily teaching you better rhythm, and how to "dance with the club", I feel the difference already, and I have owned the book for only 3 days. Its a great read, and very helpful, I would recommend to all level of players.

This one, little book is the most amazing golf improvement tool I've ever seen. It served as an inspiration for my own instructional video, Tao of Golf. (Which is available through Amazon.com) It is also listed in the suggested reading section of my book of the same title. This book brought my game to the next level almost ten years ago and I have never looked at my golf game the same ever since. If you are stuck in a rut, this book will get you out of it-and fast. If you have good, solid mechanics and are looking for a way to further improve, this is the way. If you think that you've maxed out your skills, you're wrong! This book will move you beyond what you think is your best. When it comes down to it, it's all mental. I have recommended this book to hundreds of my students and customers. It's worth every penny times ten. I read this book a minimum of twice a year. You should too. I cannot offer a stronger recommendation. If I could give this book ten stars, I would!

If you have a son or daughter that's into football, this book is a neverending treat. Stats, NFL records, team info... my stepson never goes on a roadtrip or plane ride without the 2006 edition. Santa will be delivering the 2007 edition... why not? He's getting A's in math... so these stats must be helping!

This book is awesome. I keep it by my side during all NFL games and I am able to identify players - find out where they went to school and how long they have been in the league. It has lots of info, but not overwhelming. Judy - SD

As a British fan of NFL, I found this a treasure-trove of information, with informative items and guides, in addition to statistical data on teams and players, plus games schedules. For me and my wife this is a 'must have'

Every two years I buy the latest edition of the NFL Record and Fact Book so I purchased a copy and went through the 2007 edition rather thoroughly in anticipation of the upcoming season. It is an outstanding resource for statistics, facts, history, and team summaries for the avid NFL fan.

The best part of the book to me is the extensive coverage of NFL records and details of every Super Bowl and Super Bowl record you can imagine. I've won many a debate using this resource.

Another excellent part of the book is the details and mini-histories of every single NFL team with many of the most important team records recorded.

There is also a lot of information I refer to only when needed, like the scheduling formulas, abbreviated rules, and similar information that one may like to review on occasion.

Also useful is the detailed review of the previous season and all the stats both NFL wide and per team (in the team reviews). This could be a reason one would want to buy the book every year.

Overall the Record and Fact Book is well organized, it's easy to find what you want, and a great resource when you want to know where the third string quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles went to college, or who holds the record for most passing yards in a game. It's all here!

A reasonably recent copy is a must for serious NFL fans.

Very Informative,settles all arguments about NFL records,stats,etc...would definately recommend this book to all serious minded NFL fans,sportswriters,sportscasters,etc....very good NFL manual.

Well I'm am 90% finished with this book for my upper division linguistics course, and I honestly have to say it is probably one of the most dull books I have ever read. I don't think the subject is that boring, but the book certainly is repetitious. Some of the words that are "highlighted" are self explanatory to the point where you really do not need them to be christened darker to make the student notice them. Furthermore, it goes into too much detail. Do we really need two full pages at 8pt font talking about the high amplitude sucking technique? This can be explained in one-non wordy sentence. I think that the arguments between the various theorists are amusing, but it gets way out of hand the more you read. Why not just have a big list at the end of the book, rather than spreading it out over 250 pages? Some of the sentences are rather long as well, and this makes it more dull. Students aren't so dumb that we need 18 word sentences to explain something.

Also its highly overpriced- the book is worth about probably what they are paying the author, my guess is somewhere around $40.00. Not $120.00 My college requires around 87 students to buy this book per semester. However, my teachers lectures cover all the information in this book in a much more concise way. I suggest using something else.

Also it focuses so much on first language acquisition it becomes annoying to those that find FIRST language acquisition NOT what they are interested in. This book pretty much overlooks L2 and L3 acquisition, and only devotes one meager chapter to it! Not all of us care about babies cooing and if it means something culturally or cognitively.

This text book is clearly written and covers its subject in detail. The bias of this book is that it considers actual experimentation by published studies to support its points. It is not a book that refers to the authority of past 'experts'.

It is current with contemporary issues.

Works well in courses (such as mine in Reed College, Portland, OR) that use current studies as the basis of curriculum. In other words, this book fills the gaps.

The book gave me some excellent hints, and it will be easy to pack, so I can refer to it....as I go.
The authors gave so many good ideas , litterally every step of the way.....Else Von Schopp

This books offers a good first hand account on preparing for a climb on Kilimanjaro. It puts on a personal touch that other books usually do not have. Although short, it is worth reading.

The book provides an exceptional insight into climbing the mountain. Lots of information, practical tips and experiences. Written in an easy to read style. Invaluable to anyone like me who is intending to climb the mountain.

Wouldn't recommend it except to fill out your background reading of a fairly obsessive couple preparing to and then climbing. Much better books available such as "Kilimanjaro: A Guide to Climbing Africa's Highest Mountain, Includes City Guides to Arusha, Moshi, Marangu, Nairobi and Dar Es Salaam" by Henry Stedman.

I've often thought about writing a book about a trip as a way to deduct the expense from my taxes, but I've refrained for fear that the result would end up like this book. Poorly written with very limited content, this book is of little interest and very limited use to anyone actually planning to climb Kilimanjaro. It's chief value is as personal account of the authors' climb, but you can find many similar accounts for free on personal websites everywhere.

One of hundreds who gathered at the foot of Everest during the ill-fated climbing season of spring 1996 which claimed the lives of 12 (eight during the famous storm described by Jon Krakauer in "Into Thin Air"), British adventure filmmaker Matt Dickinson had no intention of summitting. He had never been higher than 20,000 feet and had summitted only twice - a Himalayan trekking peak and an Ecuadorian volcano.

"To serious Himalayan mountaineers these were mere nodules, amusing warm-up molehills to be conquered before breakfast.
Climbing them had been extremely difficult."

He was there to document British actor Brian Blessed's third attempt at Everest. Now almost 60 and overweight, Blessed intended to follow the route up the North Face that his hero George Leigh Mallory and partner Andrew Irvine had disappeared from in 1924.

But neophyte Dickinson did summit. He and mountaineer Alan Hinkes, who had been hired to do the summit filming, were the only members of their expedition to do so and Dickinson's book, "The Other Side Of Everest" describes events on the North Face during that fateful season.

The book is a page-turner but it's hard to imagine a book about Everest that wouldn't be. Drawn by a challenge incomprehensible to most of us, all climbers risk death from cold, high winds, altitude sickness, dehydration, and sudden weather changes to say nothing of the forbidding terrain and chronic illnesses brought on by the inhospitable climate.

"The air is dry, adding to the draining effects of altitude. Throats become sore. Lips become cracked. Fingers split and get infected. Minds start to wander, thinking of home - thinking of anything but the terrifying mountain that sits above the valley.
I was excited to be at Everest Base Camp, but I can't say I liked it."

And this is only the beginning. Dickinson's persistent nausea, throbbing headaches and throat infections (during the 1924 expedition a climber nearly choked on the lining of his own larynx) only grow worse as they climb. Falling rocks, sinkholes and avalanches add themselves to the lengthening list of dangers, headed, as always, by altitude and dehydration which not only sap strength but cloud judgment.

Moving approximately one kilometer an hour, the team reaches an intermediate camp and chips ice for water. "I managed to get my gloves wet in the process of collecting the water and by the time I got back to the tent, the fabric had frozen as hard as iron. I had to prise my fingers apart with my other hand to remove them from the saucepan handle."

The water must then be boiled lengthily. Here, on Everest, water sources are badly polluted. Each new camp presents itself littered with food packets, discarded equipment, toilet paper and human waste. Years of it.

None of this sounds like any fun, to say the least. But though Dickinson doesn't say when it happens, probably doesn't know, his desire to summit takes hold. His team of five, including Blessed and Hinckes, reaches Advance Base Camp for their summit push May 9, the night before the killer storm.

Although the day dawns clear, the team leader nixes a summit try, citing unstable weather, much to Dickinson's frustration. This is not the last time he questions the judgment of those more experienced. But Dickinson honestly, disarmingly, describes his own obnoxious rashness - fuming as the day proceeds bright and sunny and the nearby Indian expedition's lead climbers head for the summit.

By 4 p.m. the weather had deteriorated. "Now I was extremely grateful that we were still at Camp Three." Three of the Indians returned, while three went on. And then the storm struck. Dickinson's description is full of drama and confusion - worry over the Indians, sporadic, fragmented radio reports and in the morning the astounding news from the South Face that 10 climbers were missing, including top guides Rob Hall and Scott Fischer.

As others have, Dickinson mulls over the motivations and actions of those who were on the mountain - the Japanese team that passed the dying Indians without helping, Hall breaking his own rules to help a client summit, Boukreev's descent from the summit. His conclusions, formed after his own summitting experience, are sympathetic and well reasoned.

But the crux of this book is Dickinson's obsession to summit despite the storm and after his team leader has aborted Blessed's attempt. The description of this nightmarish climb by a man who clearly had no real idea what he was getting into - yet would not stop - is mind boggling.

His summit drive begins with the death of an experienced climber in a tent beside him, crosses over the bodies of those who died years - and days - before, continues in the dark in winds strong enough to pluck a man off the sheer cliff edge, persists after the discovery of frozen water supplies signals inevitable dehydration and triumphs despite high altitude sickness.

It's riveting and completely alien. Dickinson's excitement is palpable. Every minute of this trip grows more gruelingly unpleasant and terrifying than the moment before. It's hard to imagine how anyone would not seize the chance to abort, given so many reasonable opportunities to do so.

Dickinson does not involve himself in the argument about neophytes on Everest (for obvious reasons) and he does not even have much to say about the piles of litter that so clearly disgust him. He concentrates on the challenge of Everest and the pull that makes some people risk their lives and health to climb it. While most of us will never quite comprehend their desire, the vicarious fascination of the climb is reward enough.

I enjoyed this book as much as "Into Thin Air". It was interesting to hear how the author, a fit, experienced trekking guide, learnt how to climb on this expedition. His descriptions of the expedition politics of the several groups there at the same time was nonjudgemental, and provided real insight to the difficult decisions that were made.

The other side of Everest is a pretty good book. It's a little bit shaky and confusing in the beginning but it gets better. The book is about this guy, Brian, who wants to climb Mt. Everest. This will be his third attempt to climb Everest, failing to do so in the times before. Brian asks a guy named Matt Dickenson, the writer of the book; to film him climbing. Matt has photographed and made many other movies about wild adventures before, but never something like Everest. He has climbed some other smaller mountains before also. Because he is away so much filming things his wife and him are having some problems. She says that if he goes he would be risking his life, and would be away from his kids and her for a long time. Matt decides that it would be good to be apart from his wife for a while, to let things cool down, so Matt gathers a team and a month or two later, they head off to Everest. During the weeks before he leaves he builds his body and prepares to climb. After arriving at the mountain they start to acclimate. They do that by climbing up to Advance Base camp and back down to Base camp. They do this a couple times then start off for the attempt at the summit. It is soon realized; by some of the experienced climbers on the team, that they are moving too slow and if they keep going at this pace, that they will most likely die. They have to make a choice; either to take a chance and keep going or turn back, with Brian failing once again. During the narrative, there are other little stories about the other teams that are climbing Everest. The author, Matt Dickenson, has a nice flow to his writing; although in some parts it gets kind of confusing. Also there are some black and white pictures that Matt took, which are interesting to look at. Matt uses lots of descriptive words that make great images in my mind. Will Brian and the team keep going? Will they make it to the summit? Read The Other Side of Everest to find out.

If you're obsessed with Everest like a lot of us, you must NOT miss this book. I am booked for a 19 day trek through Nepal to Everest Base Camp this October just to see this great mountain in the flesh. It will be a humbling experience to walk where the "star mountaineers" have come to climb and die.

I haven't read it for a few years and it is loaned out now, but when I get it back I'm reading it again.Dickinson is not a professional climber which makes it all the better to read. I believe he had not climbed a mountain higher than nearly sea level since he lives in the UK. I think his level of training to tackle this mountain was jogging or something to that affect.

His narrative of driving through the brown, lifeless Himalaya valleys was riviting ,especially his description of the lone monk walking across this frozen desert clad only in a worn-torn blanket and barefoot. He puts us in the valley literally with word pictures. Also the description of being on a sheer frozen miles-down cliff on the north side of Everest with only a few inches of shelf to put a tent and no sounds of life but the sharp call of a lone raven circling the cliffs. I could just SEE what he was telling us and I could smell and taste the cold.

The fact that he made the summit when the "experts" could not or got killed is amazing. I don't remember many pictures in this book if any, but it's a book that must be put in your Everest collection.

The south side of Everest gets most of the press, it would seem. Yet it's the north side that pioneers Mallory and Irvine nearly succeeded in scaling, in 1924; and the North Face had its full share of climbers during the now infamous spring 1996 season. Among those climbers was British film director Matt Dickinson.

From the expedition's start, this is a different adventure than the one so famously recounted by Jon Krakauer in Into Thin Air. Dickinson, pursuing an adventure filming project that has his wife delivering him to the airport in tears, takes his readers along through the lengthy trip that brings Western climbers to Base Camp on Everest's Tibet side. For this 30-something father of three young children, who has never before climbed above 20,000 feet, summiting Everest personally seems like a fool's project. He's there to make a film. Not to come down with a life-threatening case of "Summit Fever" - but that happens to him just the same, in the wake of the May 10 blizzard that catches so many expeditions unaware on both sides of the mountain.

What makes this tale different from other author/climbers' accounts of May 1996 on Everest isn't just the fact that it offers a first-hand narrative of what happened before, during and after the storm on the North Face, where lives were also lost. It becomes truly intriguing as Dickinson's expedition, and others on the North Face that spring, pick up the pieces of their storm-savaged tents and equipment after the disaster. As climbers' bodies fail them, when the weather finally allows the expedition to proceed, and one by one they fall back, Dickinson finds himself joining forces with the only other expedition member able to continue.

This is a grittier work in many ways than those written by more seasoned mountaineers, because so much of what those other authors find familiar - and only to be expected - is new to Dickinson. It's therefore a great read for those of us who love climbing books, but wouldn't dream of ascending a snow-clad peak ourselves. The one thing that annoyed me was the editors' insistence on converting metric measurements for American readers, every single time a measurement was mentioned. We Yanks aren't quite that dumb, I think, and it quickly became so irritating that it kept jolting me out of the story. That's my only real criticism of an otherwise first-class book.

When I was a kid, I couldn't get enough of the game of baseball . . . I
watched games on TV and went to them, and I also read everything
about the subject that I could.

For some reason, I lost interest in it sometime around my teenage
years . . . maybe it was when my mother threw out my collection
of baseball cards (including one signed by Sandy Koufax!) or perhaps
it's when I discovered that girls were frankly more interesting, but
I also forgot many of my childhood memories . . . that is, until I came
across BASEBALL: A HISTORY OF AMERICA'S FAVORITE GAME
by NEW YORK TIMES sports columnist George Vecsey.

What a joy it was to hear this book over the past several days as
I drove to and from work . . . it reminded me of the days when
I followed both the New York Yankees and Brooklyn Dodgers, but
it also gave me a mini-history lesson about the Black Sox 1919
scandal (and why it happened), along with an appreciation of
what it was like to have to play in the Negro Leagues.

I also liked hearing about how baseball became popular in the
United States . . . and learning that Abner Doubleday really had
little to do with the game's development.

It was fun hearing about Babe Ruth and Jackie Robinson, but
equally interesting to learn about the role of such executives
as Branch Rickey and my personal favorite, Bill Veeck.

And I got a kick learning why Ricky Henderson had so many
doubles in his career . . . it seems he could have stretched many
of them into triples, but held off on doing so in order to then
be able to steal third (and add to his all-time steals record).

I don't know if BASEBALL will get me to return to the ballpark
anytime in the near future . . . yet I'd still recommend
the book to any fan--past, present or future.

My only criticism is that the book is a bit choppy . . . it goes back
and forth in history, whereas my preference would have been for
a straight chronological approach.

a good book worth reading by any baseball fan. the author really knows his stuff. my only complaint is that it jumps around a little chronologically, making somewhat difficult to read at times. if you are thinking about buying it, do it. you probably won't be disappointed.

I am not an avid baseball fan, but I do enjoy going to a few games each year. I also enjoy a good read - and this was a good read. What I enjoyed most was learning about the early history of the game, which I had no clue about. I also found the chapters on the negro leagues, the Yankees, and the Curt Flood/free agency era, to be informative.

BASEBALL: A HISTORY OF AMERICA'S FAVORITE GAME by George Vecsey is not quite a comprehensive account of America's pastime. However, Vecsey pinpoints the major events and people who defined the game on and off the field, and clears the myths from the facts. He intermingles the Abner Doubleday myth with Columbus and Pocahontas, and specifically states that Albert Goodwill Spalding, a pitcher turned businessman, helped typify baseball to how it is recognized today. From Abner Doubleday to the scandalous fervor of 1919 and the Black Sox as well as the so-called Great Bambino curse that was finally broken one day in October 2004, the book places the game within a historical perspective.

Vecsey intertwines baseball with history. He embraces the game as a long-time fan as well as a sports columnist, but with a tinge of romanticism when he recounts his childhood memories of the game during baseball's "golden age" and Jackie Robinson and Stan Musial reigned. The book is a combination of the Ken Burns's documentary and HBO Sports', "When it was a Game." There are several historical references throughout the book, such as his discussion of the First and Second World Wars when team members heeded to the call of duty, and unfortunately, never to return. What is worth noting is that the game boosted morale during and after the war; in 1949 General MacArthur praised the game as a "piece of diplomacy," and decades later, Japanese Ambassador to the United States, Ryozo Kato, stated that the game "helped heal the memories of war" (115). In addition, with emergence of the Civil Rights Movement, baseball became integrated and progressed with the times.

Although BASEBALL is geared towards the general-reading public, this is by no means an introduction to the game. The book is rather a historical commentary that insights readers about this aspect of American culture that is as historic as it is ever changing. Vecsey's narrative is enlightening, and it is amazing to know that the game has existed for over two centuries and continues to draw new followers and spectators.

This book is strictly for casual fans or general readers. While smoothly written, the stories told are well-known and the historical insight negligible. For a serious academic history of the game, read Benjamin Rader, BASEBALL: A HISTORY OF AMERICA'S GAME (second edition) or Charles C. Alexander, OUR GAME: AN AMERICAN BASEBALL HISTORY (a little dated, since it was published in 1991). If you are really determined, try Harold Seymour's classic three-volume history.