last seasons

Where the Game Matters Most: A Last Championship Season in Indiana High School Basketball Tag: In..
$22.95
From the moment this book tips off to the ring of the final buzzer this is a great read.

Gildea takes us on the court, in the locker room, and most importantly into the lives of young men who live for basketball in a state where basketball is sacred. Indiana is the perfect setting for this tale of one season and there is the dramatic aspect that this will be the last season where a "true" statewide high school basketball champion will be crowned because of the demise of the historical tournament format.

Not just for sports junkies! The author skillfully weaves these elements together into a compelling story that will make for a quick read for any fan of this type of book.

The Final Season: Fathers, Sons, and One Last Season in a Classic American Ballpark (Honoring a Detroit Legend)
$13.95
This is a moving look at Tiger Stadium (1912-1999) and the vital father-son-family ties of baseball fans. Attending every home game that final season, author Tom Stanton captures the feel of this venerable arena, introducing us to those that played, worked, or watched games there, including four generations of his baseball-loving family. Readers feel as if we are sitting in the close-by upper deck watching Babe Ruth, Hank Greenberg, and Bob Feller. It was here that a stricken Lou Gherig ended his playing streak in 1939, Ted Williams (1941) and Reggie Jackson (1971) hit famous All-Star game homers, Ernie Harwell called the action (1960-2002), and the Tigers four World Series (1935, 1945, 1968, 1984). Readers learn about Stanton's immigrant grandfather cheering on Ty Cobb from the grandstands, then father, author and son arrived to root for guys like Gehringer, Newhouser, Kaline, Freehan, Gibson, Trammel, and Whitaker. I'd have liked better photos and more attention on the economics (urban decline, no skyboxes) leading to the park's abandonment, but this remains an excellent narrative.

We traveled to Detroit to see this inspiring if imperfect ballpark, and found it similar but superior to our city's Comiskey Park (1910-1990). Sadly, they are now tearing it down except for a section of infield grandstands. At least we have this moving narrative as testament to baseball at the corner of Michigan and Trumbull.

The Last Season : A Team in Search of Its Soul
$15.00
This is a great book about the Lakers by Phil Jackson, their coach. It was sritten when he thought this would be the last year for that Laker team and the last year for him too. It has been very interesting.

The Last Season (P.S.)
$14.99
Would Randy Morgenson have approved of Eric Blehm's chronicle of his life and the portrait conveyed of him? Those who knew him personally and wrote reviews on this site can answer that much better than I, but somehow my intuition tells me he would. Blehm does a commendable job of piecing together the life of a complex man who lived according to his own ideals, the love/respect for nature being among the highest. Like anyone, Randy's life was not without its blemishes and complications, but in many ways he was a self-made man, educated by one of the grandest and most reliable and trustworthy of teachers--nature herself. Unfortunately, such a teacher is greatly undervalued, if it is even given any passing respect or credibility today. Randy knew this and he knew nature's teachings in an intimate way that others might only dream of.

It is sad and ironic that a man who harbored his own writing ambitions didn't live to tell his story, but I see Randy as one of those living artists whose canvass is reality itself. He carved out a deeply human story while living season after season in the grand Sierra mountain range. His life (while far, far from perfect) was a kind of high art whenever he put on his ranger uniform and followed his calling.

I liked one simple antecdote Blehm gave that captures much of Randy's philosophy that often put him at odds with greater society. He would let the front lawn of his home grow and grow, leave it to its natural state, while the neighbors would be up in arms about this "transgression." The lawn didn't get cut until Randy's wife finally did it. There are a great many things to explore and discover in this book!