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Play Ball
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I have a severe case of Yankee fever. I am firm in my conviction that The New York
Yankees are the greatest thing to ever happen to me. This disconcerting devotion was
passed on to me by an ex-boyfriend. Although useless in pretty much every other way, he
came from a family that had ties to the sporting world and a box at Yankee Stadium. One of
our first dates was there, and I immediately was in love --- with the team and the game,
though, not him. How could I not fall for the Yankees there, with their home field
advantage? And what a home it is. There is nothing better than spending a Sunday afternoon
at The House That Ruth Built, eating very gross snacks and getting sunburnt only on the
one arm that is outside of the shadows of the upper tiers. The baseball loving boy was
summarily dumped by me, but my obsession lives on and gets worse every year.
I am absolutely enraptured by my boys in The Bronx. Everything they do is magic to me. How
do I show them my affection? I can't really send a bunch of men I have never met bouquets
of flowers. Instead, I giddily scream myself hoarse, both at the homes of my friends (who
become very disturbed by my rantings) or in person at the Stadium, when that is monetarily
possible. I argue with big hairy men on the subway who dare to like the other New York
team. I embarrass my girls by asking complete strangers if they know the score when I am
away from my house and in need. I wear my lucky #2 tee shirt every day there is an
important game. I can unabashedly recite statistics, which always strikes my Mom as
hilarious since I was the girl who tried to fake her way out of gym every week.
You might not know why I am telling you all this. For those in the dark, April is the beginning of the baseball season. You might not have any interest in the game; that's
probably better for you in the long run, mental health wise. But give a try out to some of
the books I have listed below. The fiction ones are particularly good pieces of writing
that just happen to be based around the sport. They may get you started on the road to
fandom --- and a whole new wardrobe of navy blue and white pinstripes.
| HALL
OF FAME... |
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SHOELESS JOE
by W. P. Kinsella
Mariner Books
ISBN: 0395957737
265 pages |
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THE NATURAL
by Bernard Malamud
Avon
ISBN: 0380506092
262 pages |
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BANG THE DRUM SLOWLY
by Mark Harris
University of Nebraska Press
ISBN: 0803272219
243 pages |
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| AT
BAT... |
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THE LIFE YOU IMAGINE: Life Lessons for Achieving Your Dreams
by Derek Jeter with Jack Curry
Crown
ISBN: 0609607863
279 pages |
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SOSA: An Autobiography
by Sammy Sosa with Marcos Breton
Warner Books
ISBN: 0446527351
256 pages |
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QUEEN OF THE NEGRO LEAGUES: Effa Manley and the Newark Eagles
by James Overmyer
Scarecrown Press (Trade)
ISBN: 1578860016
298 pages |
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| ROOKIES... |
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COLUMBUS SLAUGHTERS BRAVES
by Mark Friedman
Houghton Mifflin Co. (Trade)
ISBN: 0618025200
224 pages |
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HOW ALL THIS STARTED
by Pete Fromm
Picador USA
ISBN: 0312209339
305 pages |
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HAVANA HEAT: A Novel
by Darryl Brock
Plume
ISBN: 0452282330
304 pages |
---
Lucy Burns
© Copyright 2003, Teenreads.com. All rights reserved.
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