If baseball is America's national religion, then the Hall of Fame is its High Church. Being named among its 286 inductees makes you the closest thing our country has to an undisputed hero - even a secular saint. But the men in the Hall of Fame are no angels. Among their number are gamblers, drunks, race-baiters, at least one murderer, and perhaps the greatest collection of bona fide characters ever to be dignified by an honor of any kind. This is the book the Hall of Fame deserves. Along with the story of the institution comes a smart, irreverent discussion of some of the great barstool questions of all time (Why did Jim Bunning make the Hall but not Mickey Lolich? How much is it worth to a player's autograph-signing career to get in? Did Ty Cobb really kill somebody?) and a fresh look at some of the Hall's most and least admirable characters. Taken in all, it amounts to a shadow history of America's Game, shown through the prism of its most sacred spot. Written with a deep love of the game and a hardened skeptic's eye, this is a book to incite both passionate conversation and a fresh appreciation of baseball as a mirror and catalyst for our nation's culture. A shadow history of baseball and its most extraordinary and outrageous characters, told through the story of the Hall of Fame. Zev Chafets is the author of ten books, including A Match Made in Heaven, Members of the Tribe, and The Devil's Night. He is a frequent contributor to the New York Times Magazine, among many other periodicals, a former columnist for the New York Daily News, and the founding editor of Jerusalem Report. He lives in Westchester, New York, with his wife and children.
- Available now
- New kids additions
- New teen additions
- Try something different
- Toes in the Sand, eBook in Hand: Beach Reads
- Just a Myth?
- Get Crafty!
- Happy Reads!
- Reading is Timeless: Historical Fiction
- Fiction Meets Reality
- Christmas in July!
- "The Night is Dark and Full of Terrors..."
- Have You Been Naughty?
- See all
- Available now
- New audiobook additions
- New kids additions
- New teen additions
- Most popular
- Try something different
- Please Allow Me to Introduce Myself
- Fiction Meets Reality
- Humor is the Best Medicine
- Traffic: It's Better With Audio
- Listen & Feel Good This Summer
- Listen and Enjoy Together
- Popular Audio books
- See all