Showing posts with label baseball fiction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label baseball fiction. Show all posts

The Pitch: The Adventures of Luther Woundup and His Magical Orange Ball Review

The Pitch: The Adventures of Luther Woundup and His Magical Orange Ball
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The Pitch: The Adventures of Luther Woundup and His Magical Orange Ball ReviewAs a native Sacramentan and avid science fiction fan, this book piqued my curiosity. The unusual, colorful cover grabbed my attention as I was browsing around Tower Books on Broadway. I bought it on a whim, and only put it down once before I was finished.
The book takes place in the near future in Sacramento, CA, in the familiar territory of downtown, on the Sacramento River, and at Raley Field (called Riders Field in the novel). Our protagonist (or is he? we're not quite sure) is Luther Woundup, a fiery redheaded sprite of a youth, who just happens to hearken from a planet called Spalding (the novel is not without its requisite sci-fi puns - but thankfully, Cabral humors us with a plausible explanation). If nothing else, this kid wants to play baseball, and bad. We soon learn that he's on a mission to collect energy from people to deliver back to his home planet - and where better to collect it than from 13,000 upbeat baseball fans? (Well, Arco Arena - but Spaldingians are apparently not into basketball.)
Luther's mission leads him to some interesting characters - Bo Wandele, a good-natured river rat with a bum leg and a homeless lisp; Susan "Mink" Minkin, a PR career woman for the baseball team whose only flaw is determination in the face of almost certain humiliation; and, believe it or not, a shockingly accurate Rush Limbaugh - who becomes more central to the story than one would ever think possible.
It's a really great book. Well written, funny, with lively characters and dialogue. We really LIKE Luther, and Bo, and Mink - and we're really rooting for them throughout the story. The plot is also very sophisticated for a "sci fi" piece. (I strongly hesitate to use that label, by the way - this novel would be enjoyed by anyone who just likes a good story.) It was interesting: After I finished the book, I felt like I was waking up from a vivid dream - I guess I was that committed to what I was reading.
I'm very much a supporter of local writers, arts and entertainment, and I think this book is just as good as anything else out there. I gave it four stars instead of five just because it felt a little rough around the edges in places, but it was truly worth reading. I wholeheartedly recommend this book - especially if you're a Sacramentan, a baseball nut, or a Rush Limbaugh fan/enemy (trust me, the character will appeal to both conservatives AND the "bleeding-hearts!")The Pitch: The Adventures of Luther Woundup and His Magical Orange Ball OverviewTo contact the author, please send e-mail to RAC@ThePitchBook.comFrom the moment Luther Woundup launches the orange baseball over the wall at Riders Field, Sacramento fans are introduced to the most intriguing mascot the game has ever seen. Luther bursts onto the field and into their hearts with the most ingenious, magical displays. But like a modern day Trojan Horse, the display serves as a ruse to collect human brain waves with an innocent-looking device invented by Luther's father, the reigning scientist on Spalding. The mission: convert the contents into cortesium, which is needed to save his people. At least, that's what Luther is told. Eventually, he learns the true purpose of his mission, pitting father against son in The Pitch

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World Series (Odyssey) Review

World Series (Odyssey)
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World Series (Odyssey) ReviewI first read this book as an eleven year old and it made a strong impression on my young mind. Now, as a 44 year old, I thought I would reread this book to take a stroll down memory lane. I wasn't disappointed. This story of the Brooklyn Dodgers in the late 1930's is the sequel to The Kid from Tomkinsvile. The "Kid" chonicles the season that leads up to the World Series and this book disects the seven game classic against the Indians. At eleven, I cheered and cried for the heroes in the story; and at 44 I did the same. This is a wonderful book, and a great look back into time, for any young boy or girl.World Series (Odyssey) OverviewRoy Tucker and his Brooklyn Dodgers teammates summon every ounce of their collective skill to fight for the greatest title in baseball--World Series champs.

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Fielder's Choice: An Anthology Of Baseball Fiction Review

Fielder's Choice: An Anthology Of Baseball Fiction
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Fielder's Choice: An Anthology Of Baseball Fiction ReviewSportswriter Jerome Holtzman (1926-2008) compiled this remarkable collection of baseball fiction by such notables as James Thurber, Ring Lardner, Bernard Malamud, etc. This entertaining book contains both short stories and excerpts from novels, and should be of interest for both baseball aficionados and fans of good fiction.I particularly liked "Alibi Ike," about a ballplayer who mouthed excuses for every occurrence, and "You Could Look It Up," a humorous piece by James Thurber about a pinch-hitting midget written years before Bill Veeck sent up midgit Eddie Gaedel in a real-life 1951 game in St. Louis. There are other humorous and interesting pieces here as well, most of which were written decades ago. Fans of baseball and of good fiction should enjoy this entertaining book.
Note: Holtzman was the sports writer who came up with the Save as a baseball statistic.Fielder's Choice: An Anthology Of Baseball Fiction OverviewBaseball: no other sport can claim its drama, its rhythms-or as many writers among its fans. These twenty-seven selections are by authors ranging from Lardner to Malamud.

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No Cheering in the Press Box Review

No Cheering in the Press Box
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No Cheering in the Press Box ReviewIn the early 1970s, Jerome Holtzman interviewed 44 fellow sportswriters from the previous generation. He asked each to talk about his experiences covering sports. 18 of those reminiscences were published as NCITPB in 1973. Holtzman published a new edition, with 6 additional interviews, in 1995. The interviews were oral (ala Lawrence Ritter's The Glory of Their Times); reading them is akin to sitting in on the conversations. Like Ritter's book, we hope the original tapes become an audio version.
Dan Daniel remembers covering the Dodgers in 1909. Marshall Hunt shares some Babe Ruth anecdotes. Al Laney speaks about Bernard Darwin, his primary influence as a writer. Shirley Povich relates how he was named sports editor of The Washington Post at 21; he still worked there at age 90.
Some of these writers concentrated on sports for their entire careers (Fred Lieb, Red Smith); others branched out. John Kieran studied and wrote about the natural world. Paul Gallico left sports to write fiction, and made Hemingway jealous. Povich and Jimmy Cannon served as war correspondents during WWII.
Holtzman does not intrude. He elicits observations and stories that are informative, humorous, and fascinating. In our instant access Internet age, Holtzman reminds us of the not-so-distant past when most news was delivered via newspapers or radio. His book is a wonderful look back at a bygone era with some of its primary recorders. This title is out of print but well worth finding, especially for fans of sports journalism.
No Cheering in the Press Box OverviewPaul Gallico, Shirley Povich, Ford Frick, Red Smith, Jimmy Cannon and 20 other sportwriters who were active in what the author refers to as the Golden Age of Sports--the time between the two world wars--give readers their reminiscences and opinions in this "earthy, gossipy, often hilarious" (New York Times) collection.

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