I had never seen this before. A classic novel made into a graphic novel? I immediately logged onto Amazon and picked up my very own copy:
It arrived on Saturday and I'm excited to sit down and read it. Hmmm... maybe that's what I'll do this afternoon.
How does this book relate to baseball cards? It doesn't. But I'll do my best to connect the two.
2003 Fall Classic All-American Autograph #AAA-BM
To Kill A Mockingbird was originally published back in 1960. That's the year that Bill Mazeroski hit the only Game 7 walk off home run in World Series history against the mighty New York Yankees.
I wouldn't be born for another twelve years... and I didn't read the novel until my freshman year in high school. That was the year the New York Mets stunned the Boston Red Sox by coming back down 3 games to 2 with a 2-run deficit in the bottom of the 10th inning with two outs and nobody on in Game 6.
Then this happened:
Seeing Wilson's routine grounder roll under Buckner's glove is almost cringe-worthy... but it's a major moment in World Series history.
2015 Archives Signature Edition Buybacks 1984 Topps #465
And I consider reading To Kill A Mockingbird a major moment in my high school history, since it's one of the few novels I truly enjoyed reading while there. It's been over thirty years since I've read about Atticus, Jem, and Scout.
But like I said... that's about to change in the very near future.
Here is today's question of the day:
What's your favorite book that you read back in high school?
What's your favorite World Series memory?
My favorite book from high school would be Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck. I also really enjoyed Of Mice and Men.
Well that's it for today. Happy Monday and sayonara!
19 comments:
I remember reading TKAM back in school too. It was one of the few books that everyone else read too. There were several that it seemed everyone else was reading but me. And I was in high level classes and everything.
I also bought the graphic novel for Beowulf because I had no idea what the original text was talking about. Unfortunately, it wasn't helpful enough to pass the quizzes on it.
My 2 favorite novels in high school were Youngblood Hawke by Herman Wouk and Cannery Row by John Steinbeck. As for my favorite World Series memory, I’d have to say Kirk Gibson’s epic home run. What a great call by Vin Scully.
It's been so long since I have been in high school that I cannot remember what I read, but I do remember reading EarthSea by Ursula Le Guin in 11th grade English Class.
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My favorite WS memory is easier. It is Reggie Jackson hitting three home runs in Game 6 of the 1977 World Series. My parents were very strict and I was given the choice of staying up for Game 6 or 7, but not both. I guess I chose wisely.
Books: The Princess Bride, which is way better and more comical than the movie, Autobiography of a Brown Buffalo, Catch 22, Slaughterhouse Five, Grapes of Wrath, Titus, I could make a really long list.
World Series moment: 2011 World Series Game 6. The David Freese game tying triple and walk off home run.
Are those your ticket stubs from Game 3? I was there too—way up high under the concrete overhang in the upper deck.
Anyway. My favorite World Series Memory is calling my mom after the 2010 series ended. I'd long since given up any hope of seeing the Giants win it and, after going to a ton of games with my mom as a child it was nice to share a "it finally happened" moment.
Favorite book from High School? I've been a Lord of the Rings stan forever but it's weird to choose a book that I'd been rereading since like 6th grade. So I'll go with Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy here.
The Cat Who Saw Red was my favorite. I remember sitting in front of the fireplace in Wyoming while it was snowingwatching the World Series. Not even sure which teams, but late 80s. Great memories.
Truthfully, To Kill a Mockingbird was my favorite in high school, along with Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton and The Red Badge of Courage, by Stephen Crane.
My favorite WS memory is hands down the Cubs winning in extra innings of Game 7.
Grapes of Wrath was mine as well. It started me on Steinbeck and I've read all his stuff over the years.
I watched Maz' homer with my Mom when I got home from school that day in 1960 and I've never forgotten that. But my favorite memory is watching the '66 Orioles celebrate their sweep of the Dodgers.
I have mostly bad memories of high school (and college) English. I did get to read Slaughterhouse Five and became a lifelong Vonnegut fan. I've read just about everything he wrote. I became a much more voracious reader once I got out of school and didn't have to do "critical analysis". Not surprisingly my favorite World Series memories are of 2016.
Fave book I read in High School was Slaughterhouse Five, fave "required reading" was probably East of Eden by Steinbeck. House on Mango Street was a good one too.
I played Atticus Finch my Senior year in a high school production of TKAMB.
Favorite World Series memory? Well, my parents didn't want me to stay up so late, but they taped game 6 of the 1991 World Series and showed me the Puckett home run the next morning. " . . . and we'll see you tomorrow night!" was actually tonight. I negotiated my way into watching Game 7 just as Morris negotiated his way back onto the mound for the 10th inning.
My favorite book from High School was Of Mice and Men. I picked it because it was short but it ended up being a great novel.
My favorite World Series memory was the Giants winning it in 2010. I let my boys stay up and watch it and we went crazy. Call my dad and best friend and everyone was on Cloud 9. I had resigned myself that the Giants would never win in my lifetime. I still get chills when I see Buster and the Beard celebrate the final out (just watched it again and YouTube and yep still get the chills). A close 2nd would be attending Game 4 in SF during the 2002 WS.
Fuji, you would've loved my high school... The English department had a thing for Steinbeck, it seemed like we read Steinbeck every semester. Then again, we never read To Kill A Mockingbird, so maybe you wouldn't have liked it so much.
I don't know what my favorite book from High School would've been. I'll go with Isaac Asimov's "Foundation" trilogy, although "Ball Four" is certainly up there.
Wow I *wish* we'd read things like House on Mango Street in my high school.
Some of y'all have some really gross favorite World Series memories ...
Favorite book in high school, I can narrow it down to 4 because everything else I despised: To Kill a Mockingbird (I also read this freshman year, though the WS that year was the We Are Familee Pirates), Tale Of Two Cities, 1984 and Crime and Punishment.
Favorite World Series memory: Gibson's HR. Unlike you, I found the the following year's WS sad and depressing.
There's a lot of books I WISH we read in high school that I didn't discover until way later (Brave New World, 1984, Invisible Man, etc.) but I'd say my favorite HS read was Catcher in the Rye, with Great Gatsby a close second (though I later read Salinger's "Nine Stories" after college and liked it better than "Rye.")
Favorite World Series memory is easy: Game 7 of the 2016 Fall Classic. Cubs over Indians, 8-7 in 10.
A People's History of The United States of America by Howard Zinn & Stephen Kings' The Stand are tied for Top Tomes of my High school years.
1996 game 6 Charlie Hayes squeezes the final out while 14 year old me, along with my cousin and two uncles, ripped up our bleacher seats in a celebration that ended a long Championship drought for the Yanks and changed the way I viewed baseball going forward.
Nice Maz!
gca - i'm pretty sure all of the freshman english teachers at my high school used to kill a mockingbird. they had good taste. never read beowulf and probably never will.
baltmoss68 - ugh. the gibson home run crushed me.
carlsonjok - don't think i watched the 1977 series live, but i enjoy watching that particular highlight. even if reggie is a yankee.
snorting bull - i've been told to read the princess bride. maybe one day. slaughterhouse five was okay. that was truly an amazing game. kinda makes me want to go out and pick up a freese auto.
nick vossbrink - yeah. my stubs. but i didn't go to the game. found them at the flea market. i was getting ready to go to work when the earthquake hit. that's a cool memory with your mom. you guys had a little dynasty going there.
sumomenkoman - cat who saw red? never heard of it. it used to snow a lot earlier here in california. not sure if it was october, but my family would go skiing every thanksgiving. there have been a few times in recent years that the ski resorts were closed at christmas.
trevor p - always wanted to read the red badge of courage. my need to grab a copy on amazon. watching the cubs win was a really cool moment in baseball history. i was really pulling for them that season.
commishbob - i've read several of his books. bought as many as i could find in college, but never got around to reading them all. one day i suppose. orioles sweeping the dodgers sounds amazing :)
hackenbush - sometimes i wonder if the critical analysis part ruined reading for me. i loved reading as a kid.
brian - i so wanted to read east of eden, but it was too dang long. i still own my copy from college. maybe one day i'll give it a shot.
arpsmith - i love that it's so short. one of the few books that i've read multiple times as an adult. i think my favorite giants ws moment was watching mad bum come in game 7 of the 2014 series and pitch five innings of relief. it was a storybook ending.
the shlabotnik report - sounds amazing. my goal is to sit down one day and read all of steinbeck's books (even east of eden). i wish my teachers would have used ball four :)
night owl - oh yeah, 1984 was another great book from high school. always been a fan of dystopian books like farenheit 451 and the giver. as for your ws memory... it's definitely my worst.
nick - catcher in the rye was another solid book. i didn't like great gatsby though. although... after 30 years i couldn't tell you why. that cubs game sure has received a lot of votes.
xavier higgins - a people's history of the united states of america sounds interesting. although any yankees ws wins is low on my list ;)
sport card colllectors - thanks. shame it a sticker ;)
Didn't read too much back then bu I do love To Kill a Mockingbird. Favorite World Series memory is easy. 1986.
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