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5305. Baseball An Illustrated History, by Geoffrey C. Ward , based on a documentary filmscript by Geoffrey C. Ward and Ken Burns (read 25 Aug 2015) I watched the Ken Burns documentary when it was on TV but that is a while back and I found reading this book, which has material in it not shown in the film, eminently worthwhile and many of the accounts were extremely interesting. Especially revealing to me was the account of Jackie Robinson and the ordeal he went through when he arrived in the major league. I was appalled at the way he was treated, finding it hard to believe some ballplayers could be as mean and stupid as they apparently were. But there are accounts of many events in baseball history which I found eminently thrilling, even though I suppose I have heard of them all before, since when I 'discovered' major league baseball (in 1937 at age 9) I was thoroughly hooked and absorbed and lived and breathed the game for years--till the Cubs came seldom to be in contention, I suppose, {But now, 2016, the World Series was heaven to watch.) ( )

I cannot fully describe how much I love this book. I love history. I love baseball. Put history and baseball together and you have "Baseball: An Illustrated History". This book goes back to the beginnings of baseball in the late 19th century, all the way up to the steroid era of the 90's and 2000's. The book highlights plenty of teams, including dynasties such as my favorite franchise, the Oakland Athletics. What I enjoy most about this book is the fact that no matter how much baseball changes, the essence of the game seems to always stay the same. There are stories from the early 20th century, and when compared to the stories of the late 20th century, one comes to the realization that baseball seems timeless, and is truly America's past-time. I also loved the pictures. There were images in the book that left me staring. The one of a teenage Miguel Tejada wearing the green and gold Athletics jersey is among my favorites. Why is it my favorite? The rarity of it. I have never seen that picture. "Baseball" has plenty of rare images. The text does a great job providing insight and thoughtful thinking, but the images are truly aesthetically beautiful. I highly recommend this book to anyone who considers themselves a baseball fan. It has taken up a permanent spot on my night stand.

This is a great history of baseball. ( )

The book version of Ken Burns' excellent PBS series on the history of baseball. With a wide range of baseball writers covering every aspect of the game and its history, this is a book more interested in the humans behind the game than the statistics they produce. Chock-full of wonderful photos of baseball history, aimed at the interested fan, this is a sumptuous feast for the true friend of the game. ( )