Sports Books

It was a very good quality book, very informative. It is NOT a full informative planing trip gide, but rather a good place to start planing your own trips.

This is a beautiful book, one that is smartly designed and packaged, pleasant to leaf through and to handle, but somewhat lacking in substance.

Here's an example of the kind of lapse that would have been caught had the book been written for hard core fisherpeople. We read, "The South Island of New Zealand is awash with beauty and teeming with trout". And then a few sentences later, "The South Island trouting experience is certainly one of quality rather than quantity. A majority of the rivers simply don't support large numbers of fish. Some of the most fishy-looking water you can imagine may not contain a single fish".

So is the South Island "teeming with trout" or is it not?

Ultimately it doesn't really matter. This isn't a book about information - it's a wonderful collection of vicarious fishing trips. I'd never flicked a fly rod when I got it, yet I was engrossed, transported, and in the end captivated.

The settings range from intimate, "Brown Trout on Letort Spring Run", to grand, "Steelhead on the Dean River". Along the way we encounter tarpon, bonefish, snook, pike, redfish, all manner of salmon and trout, and even something known as a giant trevally that lurks in the waters off Christmas Island.

And the photographs are stunning. I only wish there were one for every destination.

Recommended to wile away a winter's afternoon while waiting for the ice to break.

nice book, but i would like to see more pictures of the different species!! also some maps to locate some places would be great...I live in argentina and the 3 places chosen are great, although you must be a millionaire to fish rio grande!! Fortunately we still have a lot of places here to fish for free.
I would rather see a book where they tell where to fish and spent little money (as an example the book tells you that i f you want to fish rio traful, the only way to do it is going to arroyo verde lodge and thats no true!! you can do it for free if you want..there are accesses by foot or you can reach it by the lake, an there are other private places much more cheaper, but why they dont describe that??). Do not tell me where i can go spending $ 5000 a week because its obvious i could go everywhere with that money!!!!

A wonderful book for the fly fishing enthusiast. A keepsake for all fishermen. A must have for the coffe table!

There are a lot of places i realy wish i could go fly fishing. Unfortunatly, there are only a few select places that are affordable. and those that are doable just don't have much description convincing me to go. if there was only some background info or narrative this book would go be a much more useful guide.

I picked up this book after having read the fictional "Cosmic Banditos". It's the mind-boggling road diary of Weisbecker's trip off the grid. He sells off his life, grabs his dog and surfboards, and heads out with no real direction other than 'south'. His funny, relaxed writing evokes a storytelling session around a campfire on the beach.


This is the kind of audacious drop-out from society that most of us will only dream about. After cringing at some of Weisbecker's more harrowing adventures, some of us will be glad we never took the leap. The story takes an uncomfortable turn when Captain zero is finally found, a turn which may cement your commitment to staying safely on the grid.

Anyone who is nostalgic about surfing, the beach, women, friends and the passage of time should read this book. It is hard to believe how well written it is. There are many interesting, sad and funny stories in the book. The scene about the large wave hitting their small beach house in Hawaii actually had me, dare I say, laughing out loud. I'm now reading the book a second time after a one year hiatus, and enjoying it just as much (a good activity until I can get back to the beach!).

This book appealed on so many levels. Want a good surf adventure, you got it. Like a nice travelogue, it hits there too. Want an excellent character study, absolutely. If you want to shake your head while laughing out loud, you get that here also. It was a book that was fun and yet thought provoking, strongly recommended.

There's nothing like a surfing trip to Costa Rica with flashbacks to drug dealing days to make for a great literary achievement.

The book may be $10.00, but the chapter on "The Boat" is priceless! I've bought at least 10 copies to give to my friends to read. It is a true classic.

How this book has gone this long without being made into a movie is incomprehensible.

A very different kind of surfing story. For those that that are into surfing and travel it's pretty cool. It's a good adventure surfing story. I started reading it on an island in Panama durring a surf trip which gives me a different perspective. It definetly made me want to keep traveling/surfing. For the non surfing types, I have no idea how it would be recieved....

I have read over a dozen books on stretching, and own several that I ound useful. Though if I had found this book early on I woould have saved a lot of time. If you want results use this book.

After some nagging running injuries I purchased three books on stretching.

"Stretching scientifically" is not really a guide to injury prevention, or even flexibility training. It's more of a guide as to how to do splits. If you want to do splits, it might be worthwhile. If you're an athlete, trying to prevent injuries, or trying to increase performance, it's not much help at all. The inner cover is filled with13 pictures of readers who learned to do splits. The front cover is a picture of a split. So is the back cover.

Everything is the book ties into doing splits. There are many common and useful stretches missing. There is nothing for the calves, hips, nothing really for the quads, back (maybe a few of the split stretches will target some of these indirectly, but not as a primary goal.) When I'm injured, I research my injury on the web and try to figure out what stretches might have helped it. As a result, I've learned many interesting and useful stretches over the years - and NONE of them were in this book.

Plus, the book is loaded with techno speak. Even as an aerospace engineer trained in reading massive technical volumes my eyes still glazed over reading this book. A lot of technical references, but who cares (no way to read the cited articles, done just to impress)? There was a lot of information presented, some of which might be good, but it was hard to make sense of. I lacked a clear summary and goal set after reading the book. It's the authors job to know everything and present it in a clear, concise, organized, and usable form. What I got was a ton of raw data for me to organize.

There was nothing on which stretches prevent which injuries. Not much on how and when to stretch. Not anything on how to tell if you're overstretching. If you had a specific question it's even hard to find out what chapter to go to - the information is spread out all over. On the plus side, I liked the question and answer portion of the book at the end. I think he'd probably be an all right guy to deal with in person, one on one. However, the introduction to the chapter reads "Does this method really work?" At this point, I realized I couldn't summarize what his method really was.

I think this Mr. Kurz really does know what he's talking about - but is having a hard time communicating it in a simple and effective fashion. Again, it's for the kick boxer who wants to do splits - not for endurance athletes who want to minimize repetitive motion injuries.

At the same time I also purchased "Stretching Anatomy." A good solid book, lots of good stretches, some new to me, all my favorite stretches included. However, no tie in between the various stretches and different sport and injuries was made. I'd certainly want to know what stretches were good for a runner with Achilles problems, for example. You have to figure that out on your own. Still, there's lot of good general commentary on what each stretch achieves, and it's no big task to narrow it down to what could help you. Very visual, information is very easy to absorb and apply quickly, you can't be using it in 10 minutes, and isn't that what most of us want?

The last book I purchased was "Stretching" by Bob Anderson. Its is a pretty good book as well, equal but different from "Stretching Anatomy." The information was a little harder to digest, but still not bad. Perhaps a few more tidbits of information compared to "Stretching Anatomy." There's nice section showing a group of stretches that apply to a variety of sports, from running to bull riding! Also a section on massage tools. Lots of nice summaries, good organization, once I read it a few more times it might become my favorite stretching book.

So, overall, two yeas and one nay. Tossing "Stretching Scientifically," using "Stretching Anatomy" TODAY, going to re-read "Stretching" a few times. Still haven't found the perfect stretching book, but two are definitely worthwhile.

BUY!
Have been studying Martial Arts for a good 25 years+...(TKD, Judo, Hapkido, Tai Chi, Bagua, Hsing I, Jujitsu...)
Never could do the splits nor "high kicks" until reading this book, understanding the physiology (as explained by Kurz)and then developing my own system based on this book. There are no quick and easy solutions out there. So if youre expecting the book to do it all for you...well, sorry...it's not going to happen... Like anything in life...YOU must do the work. But I can honestly say (I'm 37 yrs old) that my overall flexibility, my side and front splits! are completely the result of Kurzs' scientific lessons on stretching...
Before, I would stretch and stretch for hours on end with steadily DIMINISHING results...Now I do my 8-minute dynamic stretching routine in the morning...and can kick to Max High within the hour and then for the rest of the day! It's an old book and the layout is kinda funky...(hence the lack of 5 stars)...But the results I've obtained merit 10 STARS.

As an amateur contortionist I thought I knew everything about stretching, but I borrowed a friend's copy of Stretching Scientifically and my ego took a blow because I had never even heard of isometric stretching. Once I started applying it I instantly gained more flexibility. East bloc training wins again. I am so glad I came across this book.

As the title implies, this is a scientific and somewhat technical book on stretching. It is also insightful, helpful, and fascinating. It will show you how to learn to stretch physically, and it may stretch your mind as well. This is not a book that shows a series of activity or sport specific stretches for say running, tennis, or golf. It explores what is known about stretching, what is good and bad about stretching.

My son and the neighbors boys have not stopped looking up the
value of their precious collectibles. It is easy to use. Some of their cards are worth 7 cents and some several hundred dollars. They are having a blast with it. My husband is enjoying it too. He is now lamenting losing one of his old Mickey Mantle cards.
I highly recommend it for your baseball card collectors, young or old.

I collected baseball cards in the late 1960s and early 1970s as a kid, mostly Topps. I re-opened my card collection in March 2008 after 35 years in the attic. The book doesn't doesn't have any logic or organization to it, and makes no sense. For example, if you're looking to price your Topps cards (as I suspect most people are), 1973, for example, you have to look under "1951 Topps Blue Backs" in the table of contents - bizarre. And good luck finding the table of contents sandwiched between more than 10 pages of advertisements. in the "How to Use this Book" section it starts "isn't this great" then continues, "every year this book gets better." Almost nothing on how to use the book.

This is a good product for the collector or dealer that that is interested in mainstream issues and the more widely known limited distribution sets.However if your interests are more ecclectic and you like the more obscure and less traded or sold products....forget it. For those people I suggest Sports Collectors Digest Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards.This is equally true of Becketts Price Guides for Football and Basketball.In short if you stick with Topps and the other nationally distributed sets Beckett is OK.If you are looking for regional or otherwise limited production products your wasting your time; SCD is MY choice.

I have bought Becket Guides before and this has information that you get for free. There is no pricing for Classic, Collectors or another words 1/2 the companies out there. Then in the companies that they show 1/2 the subset are missing A GREAT BIG RIP OFF!!!!!!!!!!!

This book essentially is a Beckett PLUS (which comes out every 2 months) with more details (such as every card in each set is listed). There aren't really any oddball sets priced, which I guess is what the Beckett Baseball Almanac is for. Overall the book is very useful since it gives complete checklists and some extra details about each set. I just wish more oddball sets were listed so I wouldn't have to buy the Almanac book as well.

"Cover-up" is one the most fantastic books that John Feinstein has written. The book is about Steve Thomas and Susan Carol who are reporters for USTV( United States Television). The kids have been to almost all of the major sport events. When Steve Thomas is fired from the television reporting squad, his co-host Susan Carol is not happy. When the TV station is replacing him with a dumb headed singer who, steve learns has no knowledge of even how to write a report he isn't happy either. But when he is hired by another TV station,the wars for who get Steve are on.

Reading this book helped me realized that even though you might think that the whole world has come to an end because of something bad that has happened to you ,you can still prevail.

I would recommend this book to audiences between the ages of 10 -100. This book has sports action, romance, and just plain sweetness. I think we should read this book in our English class. It was an extremely good book.

- Nate Seidner

Our grandson read the book and said it was awesome. He loved the way it was written. In fact, it was hard for him to put down and do something else he was so in to it. After finishing this one, he couldn't wait to start on another mystery by the same author.

Hey all you sports fans or mystery readers! Cover-Up is the perfect story for you! Stevie Thomas and Susan Carol Anderson are 14 years old and are the hosts on a sports update show, but Stevie got fired. Many people thought that it was cruel to fire a 14-year-old boy. Stevie is jealous of Susan Carol because she gets to go to the Super bowl. To satisfy his need for sports Stevie is hired for a week with the Washington Herald. Later, he is hired by CBS. Why did USTV ever fire him? Susan Carol is angry that they always get caught up in scandals. Soon Stevie and Susan Carol are stuck again at a major sporting event trying to solve a mystery. Will the dynamic duo save the Super bowl? Will the cheaters get caught or will they get away with it?
This is an exciting book, which you won't want to put down. This book is for teens that don't like to read. John Feinstein wrote three amazing books. This is his third amazing book.

Stevie Thomas and Susan Carol Anderson are not your typical fourteen-year-olds. After solving mysteries at the Final Four and the U.S. Open in two previous books in this series, the duo is at it again, this time at the Super Bowl.

After solving the U.S. Open mystery, Stevie and Susan Carol are offered a job on a USTV show called Kid Sports. The show is aimed at teenage viewers, and both Stevie and Susan Carol are excited when they learn that they will be headed to the Super Bowl to cover the game on their show. Just before they are ready to go, Stevie learns that he is going to be replaced on the show by rock star Jamie Whitsitt. Whitsitt knows nothing about sports, but USTV hopes that his popularity and good looks will help give their ratings a boost. Susan Carol is devastated and wants to quit as soon as she hears the news, but her contract won't allow her to. Susan Carol couldn't imagine the Super Bowl without Stevie, but as it turns out Stevie will be at the Super Bowl anyway after a friend of his gets him a job with the Washington Herald.

Susan Carol is at a party a few days before the game when she hears some incredible news. A drunken team doctor for the California Dreams, not realizing who he is talking to, tells Susan Carol that the whole starting offensive line has failed their drug tests and shouldn't even be playing. On top of that, he says, the owner of the Dreams, Don Meeker, knows about the results and is covering it up. Will Meeker get away with the cover-up or will Susan Carol and Stevie find a way to convict him? Read the book to find out.

Although it's pretty unrealistic that two teens would uncover three huge sports mysteries like Stevie and Susan Carol do in this series, this story still feels very real and is suspenseful right up until the very end. The author, John Feinstein, has experience as a sports journalist at the Washington Post and really knows from experience how crazy and exciting Super Bowl week can be. The inside details used makes this book feel absolutely real. It is the nonfiction-like details combined with mystery and likeable characters that make this book hard to put down until you are finished.

This was a really great book i think all of jhon feinstein's fiction books. Cover Up was the graetest yet though it has some character for the readers that like that type of book yet thier is a lot of action for readers that like that.All in all it was one of the best books I have ever read

As a high school golf coach, I've used the Golf Rules Illustrated to help the students learn the rules of the game. I really like the anecdotes provided at the end of a chapter on a specific rule, where stories of Phil Mickelson being penalized or Tiger Woods benefitting from the Rules of Golf make the rule a lot more relevant to the students. The Rules also contain helpful pictures/diagrams about the application of the rules in different instances. Great intermediate level tool to teach the Rules of Golf.

I ordered this book as a gift for my boss, who is a HUGE Cubs fan. He said it was an awesome read. He was very happy with his gift.

Glenn Stout and Richard A. Johnson "misaccustomed" their readers yet... Their fabulous baseball books set a new standard of quality and "The Cubs" is no exception to that rule.

I have just about all "Cubs history" books, this is the best. Real depth, not just BS and "oh why can't we win". This gives REASONS and reality plus great history and unique pictures. Well worth the cost and time reading. You won't be so quick to chew Wrigley gum either as a lot of the blame goes to P.K. that we just can't seem to shake off! Anyway, its 99 years and counting and NEXT year has to be our year, we deserve one every 100 years!

I have more than 125 books on the Cubs, and this certainly ranks among the top three or four. Not only is it an informative and detailed history, but it's readable as well. The pictures alone are just fascinating to browse through and pore over, and it's obvious that a skilled editor oversaw the entire project. A must-have book for any Cubs fan.

If you are looking for a great gift for a Sports Fan and better yet Cubs Fan then this is the best book! I bought this for my boyfriend and he loved it! The book contains great history and facts that even I didn't mind reading. The book also looks great on a coffee table and was way cheaper than at Barnes and Noble!

The book has a lot of advise and while much of it may be known to experienced sailors the starters to sailing will probably appreciate everything in the book. I feel that even experienced sailors will find something new or at least be reminded of something useful.

This is a great, easy-to-read book of sailors' "lessons learned," written by a man with much more experience at sea than most of us will ever have. It is not a book intended to teach you how to sail, but one with the intent of telling you how to avoid problems, both on and off the water. It is organized alphabetically, by subject, and the end of the book includes many useful tables, formulas, etc., that you might not easily find anywhere else. It covers various preventive techniques, ways to correct problems if they do occur, and things that merchants and repairmen might never tell you unless you know to ask. I also like that this book includes a fair amount of humor, and that the subjects covered are not all purely technical. Vigor goes so far as to address the phenomenon of "hearing voices" at sea, various superstitions, and even how to rename a boat in a way that doesn't cause it to become unlucky. This is a great little book and is well worth the price

This book would've been indispensable had it contained simple sketches and photos to illustrate author's point. It would've been nice for a novice to actually see an illustration of different keel designs or pictures of commonly used knots or sail types. As for tips and advice, they are indeed common sense. Will look forward for an updated / revised addition.

This is a fun book. The cover does it justice. If you've ever had the misfortune to get wrapped up in the expensive world of boating, this will bring both knowedge and laughter. John Vigor does an excellent job of conveying both his love of this pasttime, and the lessons he's learned over the years.

This book is such a complete hoot; also it's full of helpful insights into all the things I wanted to know but was too stupid to ask! It's such a fun to read book that I even read the sections about the stuff I (thought) I already knew - and I'll do it again too. Mr Vigor's writing style is just so friendly and understandable, that it's a pleasure to read and learn from.

In short, you won't regret having purchased this book - it's affordable and fun.

I bought this book as well as the Ultimate Guide to Weight Training for Golf. I think this book has a better program, particularly when used in conjunction with the Core Performance web site.

The illustrations of various strength and stretching movements are helpful, but when and how frequently to perform is quite confusing.
Too many categories: eg "Movement Prep, Prehab, etc. and too many options Par 3,4 etc make it problematic to create a specific program for an individual. A more straightforward "cookbook" approach would help..

I am a 24 year old former collegiate golfer, and this book is probably one of the best I have read for golf specific training. The exercises are described well and the workouts are easy to follow. There is also a nutrition section which talks about how to be healthier day to day as well as what to eat pre / during a round. For anyone looking to increase flexibility, strength, power, eat better, prevent injury, this book is a must.

Just a side note, but the movement prep sequence for the workouts / pre round are worth the price of this book itself. I will never workout or play golf again without completing the Movement Prep beforehand, it is the best stretching / warm up routine I have seen.

I highly recommend this book.

I loved this book almost as much as I loved the movie. For me it was one more step to tracking down the man, the legend. This is a wonderful book for anyone to read, from juveniles through senior citizens. The justice that eventually prevailed is of the feel good sort. It was such an incredible coming together of so many elements. I think that it should be included on recommended booklists in middle and elementary schools.

I have read both this and Rubin Carter's own The 16th Round. There are some things that I believe on both sides of the story. I do believe that Rubin did have a violent juvenile past, and was an angry man. Yet, if a person who is facing oppression on a daily basis i'm sure you would tend to have violent tendancies as well; it's easy to make statements about a man's life when we are in a prosperous 21st century and not in the 1940 - 1950's. I do agree that the film does cut out the large part of Rubin's transformation from a violent individual to a more spiritual one.

I am a young Australian who is not of the age to be around when Rubin Carter was set free. This case was so badly stuck together it provides a good look at the judicial system considering it kept an innocent man in jail for 19 years.

And one of the most insulting facts of the case was that when Rubin was set free from jail in 1985, he was set free because of the biased and racial case that was built before him. NOT because he didn't do the crime. Makes me aggrovated.

If you want a book that will open your mind and make you think independently, then buy this and the 16th Round straight away.

I read this book and then saw the movie. This is a familiar formula for disappointment. The book is much better and richer than the movie. The movie portrays Carter as some kind of saint, deeply-principled, who is railroaded by the justice system. As the book reveals, Carter was a deeply troubled individual during the 1960's. Carter was a very angry person who seemed to antagonize authority. He was also an alcoholic and had selfish, chauvanistic attitudes towards women. These traits are overlooked in the film. In fact, the movie shows Carter a suave, kind person. The filmmakers probably skipped these aspects of Carter because they wanted the viewers to like Carter and root for him. In reality, Carter didn't seem a likeable person.
HOWEVER, the fact that Carter was a troubled, angry person doesn't mean he's guilty of murder. Some people seem to invest their dislike of "hollywood justice" and the "cause celeb" aura surrounding this case, into convicting Carter for the murders. Don't confuse the issues. Carter was not a saint but he's still entitled to justice. Part of this book is the story of the unraveling of the prosecutor's case. As a federal district court found, the prosecutors withheld vital evidence from the defense - evidence which the defense was legally entitled to. The prosecutors also resorted to prejudice during the trial to persuade the jury of Carter's guilt. This is the so-called racial revenge theory advanced by the prosecution.
The other important and most fascinating part of the book is the transformation of the man. During his prison sentence, Carter transforms himself, with the help of others, from an angry, troubled individual to a much kinder and complete human being. The movie, by overlooking Carter's bad traits, robs the viewer of this incredible growth of one person.
My advice is to skip the movie and read this excellent book.

The life of Rubin Carter is certainly worth reading about regardless of what side of the debate you are on. Many people feel passionate about both his innocence and guilt. This book may help the reader decide for himself or herself, but it obviously has an innocent slant to it which the author makes known and makes no apologies.

The story as many of you know involved the conviction of Rubin Carter and John Artis for a triple murder that took place at a bar in Patterson, NJ. The men always maintained their innocence much to the chagrin of prosecutors. Whether Rubin did this crime or not is besides the question considering he got released from a Federal Court over a writ of habeas corpus issue. The court did not rule on whether he was guilty or innocent even though he had been convicted twice before for the triple murders. The Supreme Court judge that decided to overturn the convictions cited a "racial revenge" motive and prosecutorial withhlding of information as reasons to overturn the case. Therefore, after many intense struggles with personal demons and many years in prison Rubin Carter was released a free man. The book recounts his troubled life as a juvenile, his violent temper, his prize-fighting boxing days, and his many years spent in different prison institutions. Apparently while in prison Carter transformed these former attributes by personal study and reflection. He found some people from a Canadian commune to help go to battle for him and eventually won his freedom. It's a powerful story with a few problem areas. One problem area is that there are so many legal meanderings throughout the book that you begin to feel as if you are undertaking a tedious chore sorting through all of it. You lose the zest and earnest interest you first had when you started the book. The other problem area is it's obviously a very opinionated book meant to portray Carter as an innocent man wronged by the system. However, after reading about Carter's past, his media provoking of local authorities, and his temper, I came away feeling very ambivalent. Whereas, I expected to become totally convinced of his innocence I began to feel I wasn't for sure. Nevertheless, it's a compelling story if you can get past the legal "John Grisham" feel of the book.

Rubin Carter continues to fight to this day to overcome the hardness and emotional devastation he had thrust upon him while in prison. We learn that while he is thankful to be out he still has a long way to go to live the life he yearns for. To put to rest the demons bothering him (such as alcohol) and to be able to trust people is one of the great challenges he faces. One can only hope that justice was served in this instance and that he picks up what he has left of his life and makes the most of it.

Before I read this bio my only knowledge of the Hurricane case was from what other's had told me. Based on that I always felt the guy was probably framed. After reading this bio, I feel he was probably guilty.

By the first third of this book I found myself not liking Carter. It seemed obvious to me that this was a very angry and violent man who was also very dishonest. This book attempts to make a martyr of a man who seemed like trouble even before he was convicted of the alleged murder. It also attempts to explain away every bad thing this man did (and there were many) by trying to make him look like the victim.

The author nor Carter never once admit to any wrong doing on Carter's part regardless of what it may be. If just ONCE Carter had taken responsibility for some of his nasty behavior and poor dealings with other folk, I may have had a more open mind. But this is a blatant attempt at reaching for excuses for every thing that went wrong in his life. Carter and the author want everybody to believe that Carter was the victim of frame-ups, conspiracies, and racism at every turn in his life. I was not convinced.

The pattern that I found apparent in Carter's personality is that he only opened up to folks who could give him something he wanted and once he got it, he changed his personable and trusting come-on and threw them on the scrap heap. Often rationalizing his using of those who helped him by twisting it into some delusional offense against him. The best I can say for Carter is that he struck me as a very cunning con-man who ultimatley beat the system by using people for his own needs until he was portrayed in the main stream media as a martyr and a victim. I no longer buy into that portyrayel after reading this book.