For their 50th anniversary, Sports Illustrated collects 52 of their best and most memorable articles. Editor Rob Fleder delivers on what makes the magazine standout and fashionable: a mix of on-sport reporting (Mark Kram`s lyrical coverage of the third Ali-Frazier bout) and polished articles written with years of perspective (Dan Jenkins`s examination of the 1960 US Open, 18 years after the golf tournament). SI`s most well-know scribe, Frank Deford, bookends the collection with reflections on boxer Billy Conn and a lovely obit on hometown star Johnny Untias. There is a sweet array of noted authors including John Steinbeck, William Faulkner, Pete Dexter, Don DeLillo, and Garrison Keillor. Profiles are the bulk of the book, but like the magazine, we take off-beat trails: a rattlesnake derby, articles on broadcasters, and Wallace Stegner`s sobering "We Are Destroying Our National Parks" (written in 1955!). Since there has been other SI collections over the years (Yesterday in Sport one of note), fresher articles are more abundant (eight articles from the 21st Century). As with any survey book, one can be picky about the exclusions: no Olympic coverage; the only article on cars deals with the Autobahn; hockey is only represented through an ex-player`s murder case. The biggest caveat is a book without pictures from a magazine famous for them. Certainly a single shot of Roger Bannister breaking the four-minute mile or one of the blurry photos that originally accompanied George Plimpton`s ultimate April Fools` Day joke (pitching sensation Sidd Finch) would evoke the memory of those who read the articles upon their release. --Doug Thomas
Sports Illustrated 50 Years of Great Writing
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For their 50th anniversary, Sports Illustrated collects 52 of their best and most memorable articles. Editor Rob Fleder delivers on what makes the magazine standout and fashionable: a mix of on-sport reporting (Mark Kram's lyrical coverage of the third Ali-Frazier bout) and polished articles written with years of perspective (Dan Jenkins's examination of the 1960 US Open, 18 years after the golf tournament). SI's most well-know scribe, Frank Deford, bookends the collection with reflections on boxer Billy Conn and a lovely obit on hometown star Johnny Untias. There is a sweet array of noted authors including John Steinbeck, William Faulkner, Pete Dexter, Don DeLillo, and Garrison Keillor. Profiles are the bulk of the book, but like the magazine, we take off-beat trails: a rattlesnake derby, articles on broadcasters, and Wallace Stegner's sobering "We Are Destroying Our National Parks" (written in 1955!). Since there has been other SI collections over the years (Yesterday in Sport one of note), fresher articles are more abundant (eight articles from the 21st Century). As with any survey book, one can be picky about the exclusions: no Olympic coverage; the only article on cars deals with the Autobahn; hockey is only represented through an ex-player's murder case. The biggest caveat is a book without pictures from a magazine famous for them. Certainly a single shot of Roger Bannister breaking the four-minute mile or one of the blurry photos that originally accompanied George Plimpton's ultimate April Fools' Day joke (pitching sensation Sidd Finch) would evoke the memory of those who read the articles upon their release. --Doug Thomas
From Booklist
*Starred Review* Sports Illustrated set out to raise the bar for sports writing when it debuted in 1954. Longtime editor Andre Laguerre, who stepped down in 1976, pushed his writers to take their work beyond the cliches, statistics, and humdrum details of the daily sports pages. He also looked beyond his staff for the best writer for a subject. Among those who contributed to the magazine are Robert Frost, John F. Kennedy, William Faulkner, and A. J. Liebling. The selections included here run the gamut from the silly to the profound, but each in its way exemplifies the lofty ambitions to which the magazine aspires. Among the highlights are William Nack' s examination of former boxing champion Sonny Liston, 20 years after his death; an ode to Ted Williams by Leigh Montville; and Jeff MacGregor's account of an Oklahoma rattlesnake roundup, which will have readers' skin crawling even as they wipe tears of laughter from their eyes. One might quibble over a favorite piece that's been left out, but there's no argument that each selection included is a shimmering example of the best of sports journalism. Wes Lukowsky
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Customer Reviews
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By B. Viberg
Format:Hardcover
This spirited volume offers more than 50 of the finest selections from America's preeminent sports publication of the past half-century. Frank Deford makes three offerings, including a retrospective look at Billy Conn, who nearly took the heavyweight crown away from Joe Louis, and a tribute to the recently departed Johnny Unitas, "The Best There Ever Was." Among the sharpest essays is one of the magazine's first, Paul O'Neil's gripping look at the dueling sub-four-minute milers, Roger Bannister and John Landy. Also noteworthy are Robert Creamer's exploration of young southpaw Johnny Podres, whose seventh game shutout in the 1955 World Series enabled the Brooklyn Dodgers to best finally their interborough rivals, the New York Yankees. Dan Jenkins provides a captivating look back at the 1960 U.S. Open championship, when an aging Ben Hogan, younger Arnold Palmer, and a still-too-young Jack Nicklaus engaged in a riveting battle down the stretch. This collection also includes literary luminaries such as Schulberg, Liebling, Stegner, DeLillo, Steinbeck, and Faulkner. Leigh Montville delivers a moving farewell to Boston slugger Ted Williams, while George Plimpton presents his notorious article, "The Curious Case of Sid Finch," the story of the greatest major league prospect who never existed. For public libraries
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4.5 out of 5 stars
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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great gift idea
Mar 21 2008
By H. Landman
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I got this for my sports fanatic son. He read it cover to cover and quotes it all the time. What a nice gift for the sports fan.
5.0 out of 5 stars
SI rocks
Jan 28 2013
By Greg Fay
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
as usual ... SI put out a great collection of short stories / articles ... love the historical footnotes and references
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4.5 out of 5 stars
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