For Dad's day, a list of best-ever baseball books

It's Father's Day, and baseball season is in full swing. While kids may be thinking "gee, my dad always can use another tie," Dad may enjoy a good book while the kids are splashing in the pool (and before he has to fire up the barbeque). From Levi Asher's Literary Kicks website, here's a selection of baseball books for Dad that teens may like, too. Look for these on Amazon and World Catalog by using the search boxes here on BookBag -- and maybe give Dad a break from the grill today.

Bang the Drum Slowly, by Mark Harris: The story of a smart pitcher and his dumb, ill-fated catcher, this novel will draw tears from even the hardest-hearted Yankees fans. Any of Harris’s baseball novels are worth reading -- The Southpaw, Ticket for a Steamstitch -- but this one will make you cry. The closing pages of Bang the Drum Slowly rank right up there with The Great Gatsby in my personal literary ballpark. "From here on in, I rag nobody.” It’s one of the few great baseball books made into a good movie, starring Robert DeNiro and Michael Moriarty.

Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings by Bill Brashler: Though fiction, this novel accurately depicts life on the Negro League barnstorming circuit during the bleakest days of segregated baseball. The book is dedicated to Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige, and Cool Papa Bell, three of the best players in history, who also appear in the story. John Badham actually made a pretty decent movie out of this, starring James Earl Jones and Richard Pryor, in 1976. It’s probably the most truthful portrait of a barnstorming team in the days of segregated baseball.

The Universal Baseball Association, Inc., J. Henry Waugh, Prop. by Robert Coover: A proto-Rotisserie League set in Dante’s Inferno, Coover’s book is disturbing in all the right ways. Henry Waugh is a paunchy Everyman whose real life is falling asunder, so each night he retreats into a fantasy baseball game he’d originally invented to kill some time. As he begins to invest his emotions upon every outcome, the game takes over his life like a psychological kudzu and, well, you can guess the rest.

A False Spring by Pat Jordan: A minor league pitcher confronts the weighty issues of existence and gets the hell beat out of him by Elrod Hendricks in the bargain. Jordan bases this remarkable novel on his own experience as a promising pitcher in the Braves organization. The title refers to the collapse of that promise, as the cruel arm of fate tosses him some unhittable curveballs, all of this beneath the impossibly huge skies of McCook, Nebraska.

You Know Me, Al: A Busher’s Letters by Ring Lardner, Jr.: Until the Black Sox scandal, Lardner was baseball’s biggest, most perceptive fan. These fictional letters, first serialized in Chicago newspapers in the second decade of the 20th century have his patented ear and eye, among the greatest in literature. Written in the form of letters from rookie pitcher Jack Keefe to his pal Al back in Indiana, this novel is his finest. Keefe was an American original, noted critic Jonathan Yardley -- who wrote a superb biography of Lardner -- whose “expression of the vernacular ... had a lasting effect on the way American writers describe American talk.” Lardner published an entertaining sequel to this book called Alibi Ike.

The Natural by Bernard Malamud: Even though Malamud was swinging for the metaphysical fences with this novel -- attempting, as he did in all of his fiction, to pit good against evil -- he got enough of the idiom and the action right to have come damn close to the perfect morality play. A bat called Wonderboy carved from a tree cloven by a thunderbolt?

The Year the Yankees Lost the Pennant by Douglas Wallop: Inspiration for Broadway’s Damn Yankees, this old yarn hits all the right diehard fan buttons. Joe Hardy arrives out for nowhere, two years after Malamud’s Roy Hobbs did the same thing in The Natural. Only Wallop’s book has a happy ending. That is, Joe Hardy -- er, Boyd -- is reunited with his long-suffering wife, but more importantly, the damn Yankees lose the pennant to the pitiful Washington Senators.

Reading especially for boys, from BookDads

Books especially meant for boys to read are sometimes difficult to find. Here's a selection of books for different age groups, most reviewed by BookDads, a unique booksite online since 2008 featuring reviews of material for boys and their fathers. The site is currently going through a re-design at the moment but check back to see if they are up and running soon; for copies of these books use the WorldCatalog and Amazon search boxes here on BookBag.


Two-Minute Drill: Mike Lupica's Comeback Kids, by Mike Lupica (Philomel Books) Ages 9-12 Two Minute Drill is an appealing YA book about the importance of sportsmanship, determination, friendship, fatherhood, and reading. Chris Conlan is the coolest kid in sixth grade- the golden-armed quarterback of the football team, and the boy all the others look up to. Scott Parry is the new kid, the boy with the huge brain, but with feet that trip over themselves daily. These two boys may seem like an odd couple, but each has a secret that draws them together as friends, and proves that the will to succeed is even more important than raw talent.

The Very Best Daddy of All, by Marion Dane Bauer: illustrated by Leslie Wu (Simon & Schuster) Ages 4-8 The Very Best Daddy of All is a children’s book about thirteen different animal daddies, and one human daddy. Each two-page spread shows a different animal daddy and single child, along with a description of what each daddy does for his children. Fish daddies build houses, wolf daddies comfort crying pups, and fox daddies take care of mamas so they can care for kits. Admirably, all of the animals in this book are factual examples of good animal fathers and include lesser-known instances such as playful prairie dog fathers and fearless frog fathers. The soft illustrations have a sleepytime fell to them, and make this a good bedtime book. The Very Best Daddy ends with a human daddy and his son, since no one but a child’s own daddy is the very best of all.


Half for You, by Meyer Azaad; Illustrated by: Nahid Haqiqat (Carolrhoda Books) Ages 4-9. This original Persian folk tale is the story of a little bird who is learning from his father. Once the father has taught his son how to fly and taught him how to find grain, he sends him into the fields to find something useful. The little bird finds a strange plant that is prickly on the outside and soft on the inside. The father sends the little bird off to visit the spinner, who tells him that he has found a cotton boll, and spins it into yarn. He then visits the weaver, the dyer, and the dressmaker, giving each of them half of what they have crafted for him, until he has a beautiful scarf to show his father.

My Daddy and Me, by Jerry Spinelli; illustrated by Seymour Chwast Ages 4-8 A Newbery medalist writes a kid's book in praise of both the fun things and the practical things about daddies.

My Parents Are Divorced, My Elbows Have Nicknames, and Other Facts About Me, by Bill Cochran; illustrated by Steve Bjorkman (HarperCollins) Ages 4-8. Ted’s parents are divorced, but that doesn’t mean he’s weird. Instead, there are a lot of other reasons that he’s weird. Like the fact that his elbows are nicknamed Clyde and Carl, or that he sometimes answers the phone and pretends to be a chicken, or that he wears a cape a lot even when it’s not Halloween. Sometimes he makes soap Mohawks with his hair in the tub and then walks around the house like that. He’s done it at his mom’s house and at his dad’s house, and they both think it’s a little weird.

When the Whistle Blows, by Fran Slayton (Philomel Books) Ages 9-12. Jimmy Cannon lives in the little railroad town of Rowlesburg, West Virginia, and is a boy of his place and time. His world is Rail’s general store, and raising mischief with his pals, and going hunting, and playing on the high school football team. He grows up surrounded by the men of the town, from his troublesome older brothers Bill and Mike, to his Uncle Clarence the biology teacher, to the machinists of the railroad yard. Yet among all these men, the one man that Jimmy can never see eye-to-eye with is his father. Jimmy’s father doesn’t hunt, says that the railroad isn’t a worthwhile career for a man, and doesn’t believe that Jimmy’s football team can ever win the county championship. More alike than they know, Jimmy and his father share a orneriness that builds a wall between them. As Jimmy says, “I know I’ll never understand that man. Even if I live to another hundred All Hallows’ Eves.”

Soldiers, heroes, and dogs: Some books for boys

Getting boys to read isn't very hard, as long as the books are fast-paced and filled with adventure. From the Books for Boys website and Kidsreads boys booklist, here's a short selection of fiction and non-fiction titles that are exciting and worth reading -- and re-reading. Look for these books here on BookBag using the World Catalog and Amazon search boxes.

The King in the Window, by Adam Gopnik (Disney Children's Books), Ages 10-up. Transplanted American Oliver Parker is living in Paris with his parents when he sees that his reflection in the kitchen window is not quite the mirror image he expects it to be. The boy staring back at him, who calls Oliver "Your Majesty" and wears an old-fashioned doublet, leads him to the mysterious world through the looking glass. There, he becomes entangled in the battle between the Window Wraiths and the malevolent Mirror Master over control of the universe.

The Book of Time, by Guillaume Provost (Arthur A. Levine/Scholastic) In the first installment of Guillaume Prevost's trilogy, 14-year-old Sam Faulkner begins his quest to find his missing father, who left for a business trip and hasn't been heard from in more than a week. What Sam discovers in his dad's antique bookstore will change his life and test his courage. But will it help him find his father? Followed by The Gate of Days: The Book of Time II.

Mister Monday: Keys to the Kingdom series Book One, by Garth Nix (Scholastic), Ages 9-12. Seven days. Seven keys. Seven virtues. Seven sins. One mysterious house is the doorway to a very mysterious world --- where one boy is about to venture and unlock a number of fantastical secrets. Arthur Penhaligon is not supposed to be a hero. He is supposed to die an early death. But then his life is saved by a key shaped like the minute hand of a clock. The Keys to the Kingdom series consists of six books so far: Mister Monday, Grim Tuesday, Drowned Wednesday, Sir Thursday, Lady Friday and Superior Saturday.

Endurance, Alfred Lansing, 274 pages, Ages 14 and up. In December, 1914, Ernest Shackleton commanded an expedition of 27 men. The goal was to cross over the South Pole, on foot. The crew set sail on the Endurance, from Georgia island, about eight hundred miles from the Antarctic. The ship gets trapped by ice, and the men have to eventually abandon ship. Imagine trying to survive temperatures thirty five below zero -- ice cold winds. Sections of ice getting ready to crumble beneath your feet, tossing you into a frigid death! The men endure hardships such as near starvation and gangrene. Eventually they are forced to eat their beloved sled dogs to survive, and perform an amputation to save a man's life. The book contains 35 photographs from the actual Shackleton expedition.

The Boys From Brooklyn: The Great Robbery. Salvatore Tomasi. 148 pages. Ages 10-14. It's the summer of 1974. Nicky and his friends are typical young teenage boys growing up in Brooklyn, N.Y. The summertime living is easy and filled with fun and laughs until Tommy dares the boys to do something risky. Something that can screw them up for the rest of their lives. Themes such as friendship, competing, father-son relations, mom's guiding hand, ratting on your friends, and doing the right thing unfold in a real-life style. 


Ghost Soldiers, by Hampton Sides. 384 pages. Ages 14 and up. The time is January, 1945. American forces are starting to push the Japanese army back into Japan. As the Japanese army retreats, there are fears they will kill American POWs, held in Japanese camps in the Philippines. There are 513 POWs at the Cabanatuan Prison camp that may be massacred any day now -- prisoners of war that survived the Bataan Death March. The decision is made to launch a rescue mission, behind enemy lines, by the Army Rangers.

The Last Mission, by Harry Mazer. 188 pages. Ages 13 and up. An intense and gripping fictional drama about WW II. Jack Raab is a 15 year old boy, who hates what Hitler is doing to the Jewish people in Europe. His older looks, and a fake I.D., get him into the Air Force. He trains with a bombing crew in England, to prepare for their terrifying bombing missions over Germany. On their twenty fourth bombing mission, their plane is shot down, and the survivors, including Jack, are taken prisoner.

No More Dead Dogs, by Gordon Korman. Comedy. 180 pages. Ages 10-13. Wallace Wallace is the 8th grade football star and has one small problem -- he is totally honest. His English teacher asks for a report on the novel Old Shep, My Pal in which the dog dies at the end. Wallace tells the truth in his report, which is that the book is boring, predictable, and sad, and starts a mini-war between himself and the teacher. He gets detention, and the teacher makes him attend the rehearsals for a play on the same novel. Little by little, Wallace transforms the play from a boring version of the novel into a rock musical.