Out West Books takes to the diamond for a triple play of great reads

Each week as part of SunLit — The Sun’s literature section — we feature staff recommendations from book stores across Colorado. This week, the staff from Out West Books in Grand Junction knocks it out of the park with titles that delve into our national pastime.

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From the publisher: Joe Posnanski is back with a masterful ode to the game: a countdown of 50 of the most memorable moments in baseball’s history, to make you fall in love with the sport all over again.

Posnanski writes of major moments that created legends, and of forgotten moments almost lost to time. It’s Willie Mays’s catch, Babe Ruth’s called shot, and Kirk Gibson’s limping home run; the slickest steals; the biggest bombs; and the most triumphant no-hitters. But these are also moments raw with the humanity of the game, the unheralded heroes, the mesmerizing mistakes drenched in pine tar, and every story, from the immortal to the obscure, is told from a unique perspective.

From Marya Johnston, owner: You can ask practically anyone and they’ll tell you their “Why I Love Baseball” story.  Was it the first time they walked up that ramp and saw the field?  For me, it was the one game the boys would allow me to play in the empty lot across the street ( I must have been a hitter!).  Whatever your reasons, this book will make you love the game even more. Joe Posnanski, former writer for the Kansas City Star, and as one customer puts it, “one of the most important philosophers of our time”, captures the allure and legend of the sport. From famous to obscure, these stories will have you wanting more. If you don’t love baseball, I dare you to read this book and not come away without at least a crush.

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From the publisher: Jim Thorpe rose to world fame as a mythic talent who excelled at every sport. Most famously, he won gold medals in the decathlon and pentathlon at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics. A member of the Sac and Fox Nation, he was an All-American football player at the Carlisle Indian School, the star of the first class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.  Even in a golden age of sports celebrities, he was one of a kind.

But despite his awesome talent, Thorpe’s life was a struggle against the odds. At Carlisle, he faced the racist assimilationist philosophy “Kill the Indian, Save the Man.”  His later life was troubled by alcohol, broken marriages, and financial distress. He roamed from state to state and took bit parts in Hollywood, but even the film of his own life failed to improve his fortunes. But for all his travails, Thorpe survived, determined to shape his own destiny, his perseverance becoming another mark of his mythic stature.

From Marya Johnston, owner:  What I knew about Jim Thorpe was minimal until I read this book. Always intrigued, I knew he was a famous football player, Olympic medalist, and Native American. I did not know that he was also a baseball player, playing not only in the minor leagues but also for the New York Giants. It was his minor league baseball career, played during the summers while at Carlisle Indian School, that unfairly cost Jim his two 1912 Olympic gold medals (in the decathlon and pentathlon).

Maraniss’ biography takes an in depth look at Jim Thorpe’s life through the lens of baseball, football and the Olympics with fascinating detail and a keen eye to the damning history of each. Incredibly, though it seems like the man himself could never catch a break, his legacy has endured. May his history, and the mistakes of our past, never be forgotten.

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From the publisher: Caroline Kline isn’t ready to strike out.

In New York City, newly single Caroline is stumbling her way through the recent implosion of her life. After a surprise breakup leaves her with no job, no apartment, and no backup plan, she’s unsure of what to do next. That is, until Caroline’s father, Leo, injures himself in a bad fall and asks her to move home to the Jersey Shore suburb she’d always been desperate to escape. But Leo doesn’t want his daughter to be his caretaker; he needs her to replace him as third baseman in his local men’s softball league. This isn’t just any season, Leo claims. This is the year they have a real shot at the World Series, the pride and joy of Glen Brook, New Jersey.

From Didi Herald, bookseller: Men’s fastpitch softball spells romance to me. While this is not a romance it does have a lovely relationship between two people with a past. Reading about Caroline’s challenges and triumphs while spending so much of her time at the ballpark kept me thinking about softball and its impact on my life. My first “real” date with my husband (who I one year watched play in three different fastpitch leagues at the same time) was to an exhibition softball game featuring Eddie Feigner, headliner for the King and His Court. And our honeymoon was at a men’s fastpitch tournament.

From Marya Johnston, owner: Subbing in for her dad on his men’s softball team for the summer sounds like Caroline Kline’s worst nightmare.  Who would have thought that returning home to live with her parents could be the turnaround she needed? Caroline Kline learns that you can go home again. Until I read this book, I was clueless about men’s fastpitch softball. The male characters on this team, gunning for the championship, are just that….characters!  This is just a great spring heartwarming read. 

Type of Story: Review

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