Scoring from Second: Writers on Baseball

edited by Philip F. Deaver.

“The pieces, often memoirs-in-brief, show the hold that baseball retains upon such writers as Rick Bass, Michael Chabon, Andre Dubus, and (thank you!) four women. Another winner from the Univ. of Nebraska Press.”—Library Journal

“Baseball fans who yearn for the days of Ring Lardner will find in this collection ample evidence that gifted writers still celebrate America’s national pastime. Readers will recognize the satisfying fusion of literature and sport when, for instance, itinerant storyteller William Least Heat-Moon reflects on the resonant vocabulary of bygone sports commentators. There are numerous other double-play delights here, as when novelist Lee Martin recalls how his crippled father once hit fly balls to him in the lengthening shadows of twilight and when poet Earl Braggs transforms a set of cherished baseball cards into a metaphor for the redemptive power of remembered love.  Predictably, some contributors betray passions for a favorite team-Yankees or Red Sox, Cardinals or Cubs. But the heavy hitters hit the ball over all these partisan fences, reminding readers that a great game unites us all. Fans will treasure this book.” -Booklist

“[T]hese pieces by such noted writers as Christopher Buckley, Andre Dubus, and Chris Mazza address not just a sport but a sport’s place in the fabric of our lives. . . . The writing is polished, and the sentiments will touch a chord.”—Library Journal Xpress