Book picks similar to
In Front of Fifty Thousand Screaming People by David A. Todd
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Stick a Fork in Me
Dan Jenkins - 2017
For 15 years, he has steadily and skillfully guided the school into the high society of major college sports. But now Pete, fed up with politically correct campus culture and babysitting fragile egos, is retiring from the "arms race." As he waits for the university's board of trustees to act on his early retirement package, he reflects on his career, the people he's come across, and what life will be like in retirement. Pete's story is told in Jenkins's unmistakable, raucous, old-school style, and it's full of colorful, absurd, and downright crazy characters--from clueless trustees and busybody protestors to prima donna football coaches and booster club pests. Stick a Fork in Me is a rollicking, no-holds-barred tour of the world of big-time college sports. Praise for the work of Dan Jenkins: ..".the best sportswriter in America." --Larry King "Dan Jenkins is the nearest thing to Ring Lardner this generation has ever seen. No one has captured the essential lunacy of the twentieth-century sports (and TV) scene as accurately and hilariously as this." --Los Angeles Times "Dan Jenkins is a comic genius." --Don Imus "Dan Jenkins has been among America's best and funniest sportswriters for more than six decades." --The New York Times "Jenkins is hilarious, providing more laughs per page than any other writer in the 'bidness.'" --People
The Comeback: How Larry Ellison's Team Won the America's Cup (Kindle Single)
G. Bruce Knecht - 2016
New Zealand needed just one more win. Oracle ultimately beat back the odds in what's been called the greatest comeback in sport. But was it? G. Bruce Knecht set out to investigate how Oracle turned things around and, most particularly, the source of extra horsepower that seemed to come from nowhere during the final races. What he discovered was that the team was using a sailing technique that was prohibited under the rules. The Comeback is a pulse-pounding account of Oracle's desperate stop-at-nothing campaign.G. Bruce Knecht, a former staff reporter and foreign correspondent for The Wall Street Journal, is the author of three books, including The Proving Ground: The Inside Story of the 1998 Sydney to Hobart Race. Larry Ellison was a major character in that book as well and it explains how his experience in the race led to his pursuit of the America's Cup. A sailor himself, Knecht raced across the Atlantic in 2005 on the yacht that broke the 100-year-old transatlantic race record.Cover design by Charles Rue Woods.
Arapaho Lance (Crow Killer #1)
Alfred Dennis - 2017
Great feats of the warlike Arapaho arise as Jedidiah Bracket faces obstacles and becomes the great Arapaho Warrior and Lance Bearer, Crow Killer. Eighteen hundred and forty nine, western Nebraska Territory, the crossing of the North Platte was rough. Jedidiah Bracket fell headfirst into the raging waters of the river and survived only to find himself surrounded by hostile Arapaho warriors. One warrior wanted to kill him, but after discovering the mark of the Arapaho Lance on his back, he was taken back to their village. Jed was treated with respect and taught the passage of manhood into the Arapaho Lance Bearers by the one warrior that hated him most, Walking Horse. Taught the language and nursed back to health by Walking Horse's woman, the beautiful Little Antelope, Jed had many trials to overcome.
Suarez (Classic Football Heroes) - Collect Them All! (Ultimate Football Heroes)
Matt Oldfield - 2017
Luis was too quick. Before they could move, he had pounced on the ball and fired a shot into the top corner.'
Suarez follows the Uruguayan's winding path from love-struck youngster to Liverpool hero to Barcelona star. Grabbing goals and headlines along the way, this is the inspiring story of how the world's deadliest striker made his mark.Ultimate Football Heroes is a series of biographies telling the life-stories of the biggest and best footballers in the world and their incredible journeys from childhood fan to super-star professional player. Written in fast-paced, action-packed style these books are perfect for all the family to collect and share.
DNA - Dad's Not Adopted
Shikha Kaul - 2016
Yet they remain anonymous to you like aliens from a different world. Their existence is non-extant. Yet they influence you without your knowledge. Sometimes they too are oblivious to the reality, like the railway tracks which run parallel to each other but never meet. The moment the tracks meet, there is bound to be a disaster.She is a simple girl from Thailand and he is one of the top business magnates of India. She claims to be his daughter and a year later she is found killed.A Managing Editor of a leading newspaper and a CBI Investigating Officer team up to unearth the truth. How far do they go to uncover the mystery?Delve into the timeless journey that promises to keep you hooked from the beginning to the end….without a blink!
Flatline (The Bayou Secrets Saga #3)
Judy McDonough - 2015
A traumatic delivery sends her into a coma, stranding her in a realm between the living and the dead. The sinister spirit of George Callahan is waiting for her there, prepared to capture her soul and use it to finally fulfill his revenge in the generations-long feud between the Fontenots and Callahans.Cade Beauregard is heartbroken, but determined to save his wife from eternal enslavement, even if he must confront his own horrors and employ the despised dark arts of voodoo to set her free.Trevor Callahan knows his father is up to no good, and he’s certain it involves the woman he still loves. He resolves to do whatever it takes to protect Caroline from Kenneth Callahan’s schemes against her family. While New Orleans celebrates Mardi Gras, Caroline, Cade, and Trevor work together to stop the threats once and for all. But with George attacking from the spiritual realm, and vengeful kin with ties to the mafia plotting deadly retaliation in the physical, will rescuing Caroline’s soul be enough? Can they ever break free of the demons in their families’ pasts and find happiness together?
Two for Joy: The Uplifting True Story of One Courageous Family’s Life of Happiness With Severely Disabled Twins
James Melville-Ross - 2016
James Melville-Ross, their father, tells of how the twins not only survived—despite being given the last rites as babies—but also thrived. From the dramatic first few months of the twins’ lives—when Alice suffered a heart attack when only a day old, and Thomas’s lungs filled with blood, leaving him only 20 minutes away from death—Two for Joy reveals the path that James and his wife Georgie have followed as parents to two severely disabled children. After the initial anger came the sheer hard work: the sleepless nights; the hospital dashes; the curious stares and unwelcome comment from strangers. But slowly came acceptance and, eventually, celebration of the joy that the medical marvels Thomas and Alice—now happy and energetic ten year olds—have brought to their lives. Finally they understood that disability might have turned their world upside down, but that it has also provided rewards beyond anything they could have imagined. This story is for any parent experiencing the shock of having extremely premature babies or coming to terms with having a child diagnosed with a disability. More than that, this story will change people’s attitudes to disability, and show that love and true happiness can be found in even the most challenging of circumstances.
Ruck Me: (I’ve written another book)
James Haskell - 2021
His glittering international rugby career that took him from England to New Zealand and France – including 77 caps for England – is over. What will he do now? What is his purpose in life?In Ruck Me, James sets out on a voyage of self-discovery speaking to ex-colleagues, friends and family, reflecting on his career and diving into some of his most memorable personal anecdotes to date. But what started out as a search for understanding and meaning soon turns into a – let’s face it, sometimes warranted – chastisement opportunity with James directly in the firing line. Turns out he has a lot of work to do…As funny as it is outrageous, this brilliant book acts as a lesson on how (not) to retire gracefully and move forward. And ruck me – you won’t want to miss it.
The Meaning of Ichiro: The New Wave from Japan and the Transformation of Our National Pastime
Robert Whiting - 2004
Nomo... Sasaki... Ichiro... the so-called American "National Pastime" has developed a decidedly Japanese flair. Indeed, in this year's All-Star game, two of the starting American League outfielders were from Japan. And for the third straight year, Ichiro - the fleet-footed Seattle Mariner - received more votes for the All-Star game than any other player in the game today. Some 15 years ago, in the bestseller You Gotta Have Wa, Robert Whiting examined how former American major league ballplayers tried to cope with a different culture while playing pro ball in Japan. Now, Whiting reverses his field and reveals how select Japanese stars have come across the Pacific to play in the big leagues. Not only have they had to deal with the American way of life, but they have individually changed the game in dramatic fashion.
Confessions of a Baseball Purist: What's Right--And Wrong--With Baseball, as Seen from the Best Seat in the House
Jon Miller - 1998
The author offers his views on the state of basball today, and comments on his experiences as a sportscaster.
Holy Toledo: Lessons From Bill King, Renaissance Man of the Mic
Ken Korach - 2013
Bill was also one of the most influential broadcasters of all time, an inspiration to legions of his fellow broadcasters who looked up to him. No less an authority than John Madden tells Ken Korach in this 80,000-word testament to Bill’s uniqueness that when he turned from coaching to broadcasting, no one was more of an influence on him than Bill. But this was true of Bill the man as well, not merely Bill the broadcaster. “We all wanted to live vicariously through Bill. The things that he did, we wished we could do,” Madden tells Ken Korach. Korach, longtime voice of the A’s and Bill’s partner for ten seasons until King’s death in 2005, is the perfect one to bring Bill to life on the page. A half-century ago, Ken Korach was a kid in Los Angeles, spinning the night dial to tune in Warriors basketball games from faraway San Francisco for one reason: He just had to hear Bill. Now, in Holy Toledo – Lessons from Bill King, Renaissance Man of the Mic, he tells the remarkable story of King the legendary baseball, basketball and football broadcaster. Bill was a student of Russian literature, a passionate sailor, a fan of eating anything and everything from gourmet to onions and peanut butter, a remarkable painter. Korach draws on a lifetime of listening to and learning from King – as well as extensive research, including more than fifty interviews with King’s family members, colleagues, friends and associates – to create this rich portrait, eagerly awaited by thousands of fans who have flocked to the Holy Toledo Facebook page and heard about the book through Ken’s media appearances.Holy Toledo features a moving foreword by Hall of Fame broadcaster Jon Miller, previously of ESPN, and a brilliant cover by Mark Ulriksen, internationally recognized for his New Yorker magazine covers, that captures King’s flair and personality.Billy Beane“The best part about Bill wasn’t just that he was so good at his job but that he was so interesting outside of his job. His mustache epitomized that. He looked eccentric and he was eccentric, in a good way.”Bob Welch“If I had a hitter I had trouble with, I’d ask Bill how I should pitch him. He always had a good answer.”Greg Papa“Bill King was the greatest radio broadcaster in the history of the United States.”Tom Meschery“Talking with Bill was like talking with an encyclopedia.… If you wanted to talk sports, literature – when Bill talked you listened, because he always had something interesting to talk about.”Al Attles“He didn’t sugarcoat it. Bill was a departure from the way it was. If a player from the Warriors made a mistake, Bill told it like it was.”Ed Rush“I’d put the radio out the window and keep turning it to certain angles and it would go in and go out. I’d listen to the Warriors and the Raiders. To do all three sports like he did, he was phenomenal. He was out of this world.”Tom Flores“Bill made some of the great plays in the history of the Raiders even greater with his description. Those moments were kept alive in his voice.”Jason Giambi“He was such an incredible man. I had so much fun with him and he would always ask how my family was doing and I have the fondest memories of him. We would talk about life and all the things he had seen. He made me well rounded.”Rick Barry“He had the ability to see a game, a basketball game, and express what was happening in eloquent terms, at times instantaneously. When he was saying something, it was happening.”
Ron Santo: A Perfect 10
Rich Wolfe - 2011
Never before told, behind the scenes stories mixed with humor and fascinating facts, plus a whopping 24 pages of great photos make this book a must read for Cubs fans. The remembrances are all here, told by an all-star team of people. It is like sitting around Wrigley Field listening to Ron's friends reminiscing about the man we all loved. Ron Santo Jr., contributed the Foreword.
Stories I Tell On Dates
Paul Shirley - 2017
Sometimes we tell these stories to make people laugh. Sometimes we tell them to make people think. Sometimes we tell them so we can increase the chances we'll see the other person naked.Paul Shirley's stories are about an adulthood spent all over the world: living in Spain, playing in the NBA, and having his heart (and spleen) broken. But they're also stories about growing up in small-town Kansas: triumphant spelling bees, catastrophic middle school dances, and a Sex Ed. class taught by his mother.They're funny stories. They're vulnerable stories. Most of all, they're universal stories, just as the stories we tell on dates should be.
All My Octobers: My Memories of Twelve World Series When the Yankees Ruled Baseball
Mickey Mantle - 1994
He also speaks candidly about overcoming his lifelong addiction to alcohol, and the friends, family and thousands of fans who helped him do it.
The Ringer
Bill Scheft - 2002
He thinks Mount Sinai Hospital is an exclusive golf course and his catheter is a gym bag. His only link to reality is his thirty-five-year-old nephew, who makes his living as a hired gun for thirteen softball teams and still goes by the name College Boy.But College Boy's body has begun to betray him -- almost as much as his lack of ambition. (His only legitimate paycheck comes from a gig as a laugher on a morning radio show.) Not only that, the Dirt King, a small-time gangster who controls all the replacement soil in Central Park, is after College Boy. As their lives collide, College Boy takes refuge in the arms of Sheila -- his uncle's cleaning woman and a part-time call girl.And then it gets weird.