The Thrill of the Grass


Book Description

From the author of Shoeless Joe—the basis for the film Field of Dreams—come baseball stories that capture the magic and wonder of the game. No one can write about baseball with the same brilliant combination of mysticism and realism as W. P. Kinsella. Lovers of the game and lovers of fine writing will thrill at the range and depth of the eleven stories that make up this collection. From the magical conspiracy of the title story, to the celestial prediction in “The Last Pennant Before Armageddon,” to the desolation of “The Baseball Spur,” Kinsella explores the world of baseball and makes it, miraculously, a microcosm of the human condition. Praise for W. P. Kinsella’s The Dixon Cornbelt League and Other Baseball Stories “[Kinsella] defines a world in which magic and reality combine to make us laugh and think about the perceptions we take for granted.” —The New York Times “His short stories about baseball are wistful things of beauty which serve to remind us how the game should feel—the innate glory of a diamond etched in the minds of Americans.” —Calgary Sun “[Kinsella] uses baseball . . . As a familiar starting place for exploring, with pinpoint control, the human psyche.” —Booklist “Stories that read like lightning and tantalize the reader with fascinating scenarios.” —Publishers Weekly




The Norton Book of Sports


Book Description

A collection of short stories and other writings centering around sports for each season.




A Study Guide for W. P. Kinsella's "The Thrill of Grass"


Book Description

A Study Guide for W. P. Kinsella's "The Thrill of Grass," excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Short Stories for Students. This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Short Stories for Students for all of your research needs.




Big Hair and Plastic Grass


Book Description

Epstein takes readers on a funky ride through baseball and America in the swinging '70s in this wild pop-culture history of baseball's most colorful and controversial decade. Includes 8-page photo insert.




Diamond Classics


Book Description

Each work, chosen with exquisite care by an expert, is analyzed and summarized. Its greatness as baseball literature, its place in the genre, its peculiarities, weaknesses, strengths, how the critics went for it--all are discussed in such a way, with quotations, that reading or browsing Shannon's book is equivalent to absorbing a rich history of the sport.




Miracle on Grass


Book Description

"The true story of how an unknown squad of American minor leaguers stunned the international baseball powerhouse from Cuba. Led by Hall-of-Fame manager Tommy Lasorda, the 2000 USA Olympic Baseball team pulled off one of the biggest upsets in Olympic history. This is a behind the scenes look at how the executives in charge went about selecting the players, how Lasorda persuaded management into giving him the opportunity to coach the team, and how capturing the gold medal in Sydney changed the lives of every player, coach and administrator involved."-- T.p. 4




The Cooperstown Symposium on Baseball and American Culture, 1999


Book Description

This is an anthology of 23 papers that were presented at the Eleventh Cooperstown Symposium on Baseball and American Culture, held June 9-11, 1999, and co-sponsored by the State University of New York at Oneonta and the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. The papers focus on the antecedents of baseball and the early history of America's national pastime and are divided into five parts: "Baseball and the American Imagination," "Baseball and American Culture," "Baseball and American Society," "Baseball and American Business" and "Baseball and the Fan." The preface is by series editor Alvin L. Hall, and an introduction is provided by the editor of the volume, Peter M. Rutkoff.




The Thrill Club


Book Description

Talia writes horror stories that everyone loves -until they start to come true.




Where the Grass Is Green and the Girls Are Pretty


Book Description

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • GOOD MORNING AMERICA BUZZ PICK • From the bestselling author of The Devil Wears Prada and When Life Gives You Lululemons comes a highly entertaining, sharply observed novel about sisters, their perfect lives . . . and their perfect lies. “Goes down like an ice-cold guilty pleasure on a hot beach-reading day.”—USA Today A seat at the anchor desk of the most-watched morning show. Recognized by millions across the country, thanks in part to her flawless blond highlights and Botox-smoothed skin. An adoring husband and a Princeton-bound daughter. Peyton is that woman. She has it all. Until . . . Skye, her sister, is a stay-at-home mom living in a glitzy suburb of New York. She has degrees from all the right schools and can helicopter-parent with the best of them. But Skye is different from the rest. She’s looking for something real and dreams of a life beyond the PTA and pickup. Until . . . Max, Peyton’s bright and quirky seventeen-year-old daughter, is poised to kiss her fancy private school goodbye and head off to pursue her dreams in film. She’s waited her entire life for this opportunity. Until . . . One little lie. That’s all it takes. For the illusions to crack. For resentments to surface. Suddenly the grass doesn’t look so green. And they’re left wondering: will they have what it takes to survive the truth?




The Arena: Inside the Tailgating, Ticket-Scalping, Mascot-Racing, Dubiously Funded, and Possibly Haunted Monuments of American Sport


Book Description

Finalist • PEN/ESPN Award for Literary Sports Writing “An inventive, fast-paced look at what have become our modern shrines in a sports-obsessed society.” —Tom Verducci In this “addictive” (Publishers Weekly) romp, intrepid sportswriter Rafi Kohan finagles access to our most beloved fields to find out just what makes them tick: from old-timer Wrigley, creakily adjusting to the twenty-first century, to the oversized monstrosity of Jerry’s World in Dallas. Investigating harrowing logistics and deeply ingrained traditions, Kohan employs his infectious “wit and style” (Christian Science Monitor) to expose the realities of building and maintaining these commercial cathedrals of sports worship. “Highly compelling” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), The Arena is a must-read for superfans, shameless bandwagoners, athletes, groundskeepers, culture junkies, and anyone who’s ever headed off eagerly to the ballpark to catch a game.