Summer reading

[M.Fillmore]

Now that the long wait until FB lies ahead, how about submitting your list of favorite books for summer reading?

Here are a list of some of my favorite sports books. Pardon any misspellings as I'm doing this off the top of my head.

Baseball:
The Glory of their Times by Larry Ritter (considered by many to be the greatest baseball book ever)
Teammates by David Halberstam (1940-1950s Red Sox)
Summer of 49 by Halberstam (Yankees-Red Sox pennant race)
The Pitch that Killed by Mike Sowell on the Ray Chapman death by beaning and the 1920 season
Cobb by Al Stump

Football
When Pride Still Mattered by David Marannis Bio of Vince Lombardi
Fatso by Art Donavon Perhaps the funniest book I have ever read and great insight into 1950s NFL
They Played the Game by Myron Cope (Glory of their Times format for football)
Leahy's Lads by George Connor on Notre Dame football of the 1940s
A Civil War by John Fienstein A fabulous read

Basketball
Loose Balls by Terry Pluto an oral history of the ABA
Tall Tales an oral history of the early NBA
Let me tell you a story by John Fienstein a bio of Red Auerbach

Other:
Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand

I could list another 20 books on baseball, a fewer number on football. I haven't found that many great books on hoops. I'd love to find a good book on the early days of the National Hockey League.

[missouridawg]

For baseball reading, Ball Four by Jim Bouton is great. An oldie, but a classic.

I just read Dan Brown's new book, Inferno. It's pretty much the same book as his others, but his others were pretty good, so I enjoyed it.

[Pollodawg]

For baseball reading, Ball Four by Jim Bouton is great. An oldie, but a classic.

I just read Dan Brown's new book, Inferno. It's pretty much the same book as his others, but his others were pretty good, so I enjoyed it.

I'm not a huge Dan Brown man. It has nothing to do with the subject matter. I'm not offended by it. It was just that, after all of the The Da Vinci Code hype, I was let down a little. lol If I had to pick a favorite author, I don't think I could. I read a lot of historical non fiction and bio.

[War Machine Dawg]

If you like Game of Thrones, start the books. Soooo much better. If you like easy, relatively brainless summer reading I'd recommend Ted Bell's Alex Hawke series.

[Bo Darville]

You mention Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand. She also wrote Unbroken which is an incredible story.

[Will James]

Moneyball

[Coach34]

Some recents by me:

The Bad Guys Won- Jeff Pearlman (on the 86 Mets)
Stonewall- Burke Davis (Stonewall Jackson)
Dean and Me- Jerry Lewis
The Last Boy and the end of America's Childhood- Jane Leavy (book on Mickey Mantle)

[M.Fillmore]

Here are a couple more sports books that I should have included.
A Whole Different Ball Game by Marvin Miller (better than Moneyball as far as learning about the business side of baseball)
Veeck as in Wreck (makes most lists of best baseball books ever)

Will James should love these next two
Dynasties by Rob Neyer and Eddie Epstein (a statistical look at the best baseball teams ever. I've read this one 15+ times)
Dominance by Eddie Epstein (same as Dynasties only for the NFL)

[Pollodawg]

Some recents by me:

The Bad Guys Won- Jeff Pearlman (on the 86 Mets)
Stonewall- Burke Davis (Stonewall Jackson)
Dean and Me- Jerry Lewis
The Last Boy and the end of America's Childhood- Jane Leavy (book on Mickey Mantle)


If you're interested in Stone Wall Jackson, there is a great book out--it's a little dated now, tho--by a man named Bud Robertson. It's called: Jackson: The Man, The Solider, The Legend if I am not mistaken. I would label it the definitive bio on Jackson, if you want one former history major's opinion.

[Coach34]

thanks Pollo

[biscuit]

Get any James Lee Burke book and you will be happy

[hailmari]

I second Unbroken. It was a great read.

[Sandman14]

wow

[hometowndawg]

"The art of Bunting" by Will James

"The Great city of Starkville" by Sandman14

[FISHDAWG]

Death in The Long Grass - by Peter Hathaway Capstick (actually it's a re-read )