It's National Read a Book Day! To honor it, I figured I'd show off some cards related to books...
#1: 1999 Greats of the Game Autographs #NNO
Bouton's Ball Four is one of the most famous baseball books out there. I haven't read it, but it's waiting for me on my Kindle (which hasn't been turned on in ages).
#2: 1956 Topps #125 & 1962 Topps #153
I've been collecting the cards featured in The Great American Baseball Card Flipping, Trading, and Bubble Gum Book and I discovered two more cards sitting in my collection.
This brings me up to eight different cards from the book out of a possible 241.
#3: 1978 Topps #36
Eddie Murray's rookie card was featured in Josh Wilker's Cardboard Gods:
This is my favorite book involving baseball cards. Wilker writes about his life while tying in baseball cards from his childhood collection. In one of the chapters, he talks about Murray winning the 1977 AL Rookie of the Year Award and mentions that Mitchell Page was robbed.
1978 O-Pee-Chee #75
I'm sure some of you are scratching your heads... wondering if Wilker is crazy. But according to this article, it was a closer race than you might think. In fact The Sporting News even named Page their AL Rookie of the Year.
#4: 1975 Osato Mini Card #NNO
This card is featured in SumoMenkoMan's book, Sumo Menko & Card Checklist (Fourth Edition):
If you're a sumo wrestling fan or a sumo card collector, you should think about purchasing a copy for your bookshelf. It contains hundreds of colored photographs of vintage and modern sumo cards, along with detailed descriptions about each of the sets.
The next card wasn't featured in a book, but it's a trading card of one of my favorite authors...
1994 Authorcards #NNO
I've read a few of her books, but The Giver and Number the Stars are my favorites.
And in honor of National Read a Book Day, here's the book I read today:
Barbed Wired Baseball is a children's picture book about the life of Kenichi Zenimura, who is often referred to as the Father of Japanese-American Baseball.
This is the first book I've read in months. As a teacher, I'm not proud of this. The sad fact is I'd rather read card blogs than books. But I do have an ever-growing stack of books piling up on my nightstand. One of these days I'll start chipping away at them.
What's the last book you read?
Do you have a favorite book? Sports book? Trading card book?
Hope all of you are enjoying a safe Labor Day weekend. Happy Monday and sayonara!
Great post!
ReplyDelete1. "Ball Four" was terrific, make sure to check it out
2. Did you read the "Giver" trilogy? I loved it
3. I'm almost finished with Ta-Nehisi Coates' "The Water Dancer" and it's amazing
My reading has been terrible lately but I did buy a hook on holiday in June and finished it also month. It's called The Gospel of Loki by Joanne Harris.
ReplyDeleteIt's not about baseball.
Wonderful cards and post. The last book I read was The Tempest by William Shakespeare (& that concluded reading all his plays straight through). Favorite book is The Bell Jar by Plath. I've enjoyed most of the sports books I've read but none stick out at the moment to qualify as a favorite. Enjoy your day.
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed this post. There are not enough posts about books.
ReplyDeleteLast Book I Read- Love That Dog (the dog dies)
Favorite Book- So many choices. Not sure I could narrow it down just one book. Depends on the day and my mood.
Short list: Slaughterhouse 5, Catch 22, The Stranger, Huck Finn, To Kill A Mockingbird, and House of Leaves. Can I do kids books from work too? Tiger Rising, Frindle, We All Can't Be Rattlesnakes, The Rise and Fall of Mount Majestic, True Story of the Three Little Pigs, Math Curse, Dear Mrs. LaRue, and Lucia the Luchadora.
Sports Book- October 1964
Trading Card Book- ???
Just finished "The Bad Guys Won" by Jeff Pearlman, book about the '86 Mets. There's a 2 night ESPN documentary coming out in a couple of weeks and wanted to refresh my memory about that team of colorful characters, who were not amongst the most law abiding citizens to ever play.
ReplyDeleteGreat topic for a post. Just finished Son of Havana about Luis Tiant. Enjoyed it, especially the chapters after his MLB career.
ReplyDeleteI've read a few trading cards books. Remember enjoying Mint Condition. Hard for me to name an all time favorite book. Hmm...
I love books and reading
ReplyDeleteLast book I read was ‘far from the madding crowd” by Thomas hardy
Favorite book is “to kill a mockingbird” by Harper Lee. In fact I have a card from a set (donruss americana?) for that book in my meaningful and just because collection
Favorite sports book is probably ‘the image of their greatness” that my uncle gave to me in 1979
Favorite card book is probably the topps flagship anthology that came out in 1985. My dad gave it to me for Christmas that year.
Currently reading “a farewell to arms” by Hemingway
Do Comic Books count? lol.
ReplyDeleteLast book I read was The Film that Changed My Life, edited by Robert Elder. Thirty directors on a film that had an impact on them.
ReplyDeleteSome of my favorites: On the Road, The Stranger, Mother Night, The Long Goodbye, Vox, Ten Men Dead, The Long Walk.
I used to read all kinds of books over the summer, now I just get bogged down in blogs, magazines, newspapers and comics.
ReplyDeleteThe last book I read was "The 26th Man" by Steve Fireovid and Mark Winegardner... it's an interesting diary of a pitcher (he was on some cards in the late 1980s) who is pitching in AAA and pondering how good his chances are of making it back to the Majors and how long he wants to pitch if he doesn't. Not the best baseball book I've read, but worth reading.
I should mention that Fireovid is the pitcher, Winegardner is the author who helped Fireovid
DeleteThe last book I read was High Fidelity, which was quite good.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what my all-time favorite is. Maybe Hamlet if that counts as a book as opposed to a play. I loved the original Ender's Game series, but I don't even want to mention it given the author's homophobic and racist statements (and, also, the more recent sequels which I've read are terrible).
Last book I read was "Slow Days, Fast Company" by Eve Babitz. Wonderful chronicle of '60s LA, and even includes a fantastic essay on attending a game at Dodger Stadium.
ReplyDeletePretty much impossible to pick a favorite book in general, but my favorite sports book has to be either "Ball Four" or "Cardboard Gods." "Mint Condition" is another great card-centric read.
(Every day should be National Read A Book Day!)
First, I am stunned you haven't read Ball Four yet.
ReplyDeleteIt takes me forever to read books now. I am always in the middle of one but I return to it like once a week. Right now it's Michael Leahy's "The Last Innocents" about the 1960s Dodgers.
I have so many favorite sports books, can't pinpoint just one. Roger Angell's collections alone are 4 of my favorites. I've had a post in mind for a few years to document some of my favorite sports books going back to my teenage years. Maybe this will spur me on.
Reading is my top pleasure hobby besides card collecting. I am always reading something, and i am currently reading "Out of the Pocket" by Kirk Herbstreit. Over the years, I have read numerous baseball books, and no topic is untouched in my reading adventures. I have read some books with a sports card theme including your forementioned Cardboard Gods.
ReplyDeleteI don't know the last book I've read. I have Full Count by David Cone on my night stand, but it's been there for a VERY LONG time. The last book I actually finished was about index funds, I think. Yikes. Sports book, it was probably The Wax Pack about a year ago.
ReplyDeleteI haven’t read a book in a while, but have been reading Lance Armstrong’s 2000 Autobiography. Thanks for giving sumo some love this week!
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorites is Loose Balls. It's about history of ABA told by multiple players, coaches, and front office management. The stories of their wild crazy 9 years on teams, memorable players, rivalry with NBA and how they one-up them.
ReplyDeleteAs for trading card books I vouch for both of books of Hockey Card Stories. I laughed so hard at Steve Larmar and Steve Ludzik not only the card mix story, but what's it like rooming together in the early years of their career.
I'm trying get a copy of Indy Split. There was so much bad blood between CART and then Indy CEO Tony George caused him to form Indy Racing League. Open racing went downhill throughout the U.S. and caused race fans shift their focus to NASCAR. The amount of people from drivers, owners, crews, announcers. and even reporters got stuck in the middle as they are forced to choose sides. It was ugly
Yeah I'm shocked at you not having read Ball Four yet either. I'd also recommend Halberstam/Oh's A Zen Way of Baseball to you.
ReplyDeleteWhat's the last book you read?
The first 2 Mysterious Benedict Society books (am reading them in parallel with my son)
Do you have a favorite book?
I usually reach for The Phantom Tollbooth here but Lord of the Rings, Watership Down, and The Annotated Alice all come to mind as well.
Sports book?
Ball Four and Fever Pitch are probably tied here. Have to mention El Fútbol a Sol y Sombra as well as Second Wind as well.
Trading card book?
I think the only ones of these I've read are a few of my sons' the Baseball Card Adventures books so I guess Jim and Me?
In the Middle of Reading American Kingpin by Nick Bolton a True Crime Thriller about The Silk Road & The Dread Pirate Robert.
ReplyDeleteThe Way of all Flesh - Samuel Butler
The Importance of Being Earnest - Oscar Wilde
The Sun also Rises - Earnest Hemingway
The Old Man & The Sea - E. Hemingway
On The Road - Jack Kerouac
Einsteins Dreams - Alan Lightman
A Calculus of Angels - Gregory Keyes
The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
The Stand - Steven King
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - Ken Kesey
Fear & Loathing in America - Hunter S. Thompson
The Peoples History of United States - Howard Zinn
These are the Books that come to mind
Don't feel bad, Mark. I've never read Ball Four either. Since it wasn't a Dodgers-centric book, I'd never felt compelled to read it. Instead I read "The Boys of Summer" by Roger Kahn and "Five O'Clock Comes Early: A Young Man's Battle With Alcolohism" by late Dodger's pitcher Bob Welch and George Vecsey. The latter book was a big influence on me to not become an alcohol enthusiast.
ReplyDeleteI may have mentioned this one before but there's a book called "Sayonara Slam" by Naomi Hirahara. It's a murder mystery that takes place at the 2009 World Baseball Classic. I've met the author a couple of times, mainly because the author is also a childhood friend of the gf.
I'll have to check out "Barbed Wired Baseball" and share it with the gf. The gf's mother was held there at Gila River War Relocation Center during WWII. Unfortunately the gf's mom passed away last summer.
And fwiw, Mitchell Page is an alumnus of the same university I attended (Cal Poly Pomona).
I just talked about the last book I read on the blog, Jeff's (Wax Pack Wonders) "Divorcees, Barmaids, and Cranks". I enjoyed it quite a bit.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read a lot of sports books, though some years ago I wrote some book reviews. Mint Condition was a good one as is Ball Four. Hope you enjoy it.
ReplyDeletewhoa. can't remember the last time I had back to back posts with 20+ comments. not complaining though. i love it. i'm just sorry it too me so long to respond.
ReplyDeletedennis - i read the giver and gathering blue. haven't read the third book. one day?
jongudmund - if the book is about the mcu loki, then you have my attention
peter k steinberg - you read all of shakespeare's plays? that is awesome! congratulations.
the snorting bull - kids books are indeed welcome. i read slaughterhouse 5 and to kill a mockingbird in high school. both were really good
mr haverkamp - can't wait to see that documentary. and can't wait to catch up and hear about your adventures at the national
jeff b - i own mint condition, but haven't read it yet. one day...
gcrl - you're the second to say "to kill a mockingbird". it's a great book. and i hope to one day add the topps flagship anthology to my collection one day
johnnys trading spot - sure. it has the word books in it.
elliptical man - i'm not familiar with any of the books you listed. are any of them light reading? something that has a good plot without too many characters? that's what my brain can handle these days
shlabotnik report - i recognize fireovid's name from his 87 topps card. i'm with you about being bogged down by blogs and magazines.
bret alan - is that the book the john cusack movie is based on? if so, i really liked that movie. i might have also watched "ender's game" too.
nick - i guess i need to read ball four now. possibly over thanksgiving break.
night owl - you shouldn't be. i don't read a lot of books. and when i do, they are usually young adult books that are popular among my students. but ball four might just be the next book i read. maybe your blog post will motivate me to read more books ;D
ohiotim - i wish reading books ranked as high on my list as card collecting. right now reading blogs takes up a lot of my free time.
the lost collector - thanks aj. your comment reminded me i needed to purchase the wax pack. looks like ball four will have to wait
sumomenkoman - haven't read a book in a while? that's probably why we get along so well.
rebel coyote - hadn't heard of hockey card stories. sounds interesting though. just added the 2nd book to my wishlist. figured i'd start with that one because i recognized more players. thanks for the suggestion. as for indy split, i don't know much about racing. but it sounds interesting
nick vossbrink - ball four has moved up on my reading list. maybe by next year i'll have read it. i looked for a copy of the oh book, but it's way too expensive. maybe i'll luck out and find a copy at the flea market. i haven't read the phantom tollbooth, but i've seen kids reading it before. maybe i'll give that book a shot as well.
xavier higgins - i watched a few of these books as movies. when i was in college i started reading on the road, but i don't think i finished it. or maybe i did and just forgot
bbcardz - we're definitely in the minority among bloggers. maybe we should race to see who reads ball four first. sayonara slam sounds very interesting. i'll keep that book in mind as well. btw... that's cool that you went to pomona. great school.
jon - the title definitely sounds interesting. i'll look into it.
steve at 1975baseballcards.com - i own both of those. looks like i'll be reading ball four before mint condition