Tricksters in the Madhouse: Lakers vs. Globetrotters, 1948
y John Christgau

"[A] fascinating look at a chapter of Chicago sports lore I am
embarrassed to say was not familiar to me: an incredible game at the
stadium between George Mikan’s Minneapolis Lakers and the Goose
Taum-Marques Haynes Globetrotters, deadly serious for once, for what
might have been the unofficial world championship back in the days
before pro basketball allowed black players in its ranks."—Ron
Rapoport, Chicago Tribune.

Blackout: The Untold Story of Jackie Robinson’s First Spring Training
By Chris Lamb

"Lamb’s detailed and annotated research provides an in-depth
examination of an important step in the integration of baseball, a step
that, up until now, has not received the coverage it deserves. Of
interest both to baseball fans and social historians."—Booklist

And the Walls Came Tumbling Down: The Basketball Game That Changed American Sports
By Frank Fitzpatrick

"Social change comes in unexpected increments—like the 1966 NCAA men’s
basketball tournament. The 72–65 victory by Texas Western over Kentucky
had tremendous social symbolism: Texas Western (today the University of
Texas, El Paso) started five black players—the first such occurrence in
an NCAA championship—and they thoroughly outplayed the all-white
Kentucky squad, coached by Adolph Rupp, collegiate sports’ intransigent
exemplar of white supremacy."—New York Times Book Review.


Maybe I’ll Pitch Forever
By LeRoy "Satchel" Paige and David Lipman

Satchel Paige was forty-two years old in 1948 when he became the first black pitcher in the American League.

"Lipman . . . has preserved the flavor and cadence of Paige’s
conversation and writes his story honestly, avoiding neither the
tragedies nor the escapades which mark his career."—Booklist