Tag: S.A. Crosby

The Book Shelf: Part 3

Here we go with the third and final part of this year’s Book Shelf. I hope you have enjoyed it and perhaps found an idea for a Christmas gift or two for yourself. Go ahead . . . treat yourself!

One Good Deed — Having never read anything by author David Baldacci, I chose to begin with this one. Upon finishing it, I immediately went back for more. This is the first of three books (so far) chronicling in true Mickey Spillane fashion the experiences of Aloysius Archer, who is fresh out of a federal penitentiary when he finds himself in the middle of a handful of bodies and a number of suspects. I have always felt that for this type of book to be successful it needs a likeable lead character; Baldacci has created one with Archer. . . . The second book in the Archer series is A Gambling Man, and I enjoyed it every bit as much as I did One Good Deed. Fun stuff! . . . And the third one is Dream Town, with Archer doing some work in Los Angeles. Mickey Spillane would be proud.

Paper Trails: From the Backwoods to the Front Page, a Life in Stories — Roy MacGregor, one of Canada’s best-ever columnists/essayists, was a magazine/newspaper writer when the owners had money and didn’t mind spending it. So he got to see the country and, indeed, the world, and he has stories — oh, does he! — about politicians and hockey players and just plain Canadians. But he also writes about his life, his family and a whole lot more. It’s a book full of, as he calls it, MacGregor luck. This was one of 2023’s most-enjoyable reads.

Path Lit By Lightning: The Life of Jim Thorpe — This is the thoroughly engrossing story of Jim Thorpe, a member of the Sac and Fox Nation in Oklahoma who came out of the Carlisle, Penn., Indian School to earn recognition as the world’s best all-around athlete, especially after winning gold in the pentathlon and decathlon at the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm. His medals later were taken away after it came to light that he had played minor professional baseball for two summers. His life became something of a roller-coaster after that, even though he would go on to play big league baseball and pro football. Author David Maraniss has given us a meticulously researched look at Thorpe’s life . . . warts and all. You really don’t want to miss this one.

The Powers That Be — This is the late David Halberstam’s amazingly well-researched look at four American media giants — Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, CBS-TV and Time magazine — as they navigated through the arrival of television, the Vietnam War and Watergate. Give it a read and gain a real understanding of the power of the press. Be prepared, though, because this is a long read.

Razorblade Tears — If you love crackling writing, and don’t mind violence and blue language, author S.A. Crosby has another winner for your perusal. This one follows two fathers who are seeking vengeance following the murders of their sons, who also happened to be husband and wife. Oh my, there are a lot of life lessons among the great writing here. Crosby also wrote Blacktop Wasteland, another winner.

Rez Rules: My Indictment of Canada’s and America’s Systemic Racism Against Indigenous Peoples — Chief Clarence Louis was first elected by the Osoyoos Indian Band in 1984. Under his leadership, that Rez has become known as The Miracle in the Desert. This is his story and it really should be mandatory reading for all Canadians. It really is an amazing and startling read.

Sports Guy: In Search of Corkball, Warroad Hockey, Hooters Golf, Tiger Woods, and the Big, Big Game — These days, Charles P. Pierce waxes cynically, sarcastically and wonderfully on politics for Esquire. But it wasn’t that long ago when the focus of his writing was almost entirely on the sporting world. And he was masterful, as evidenced by the 30 essays that appear on this book’s pages. Published in 2001, it more than holds its own more than 20 years later. Excellent! 

Summer of ’49 — Oh boy, do I ever love this book! Written by the prolific and award-winning David Halberstam, it’s the story of the 1949 American League pennant race between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox. Originally published in May 1989, the tension of the run to the World Series comes through on every page. There are all kinds of anecdotes involving the likes of Joe DiMaggio, Tommy Henrich, Ted Williams, Bobby Doerr et al.

The Switch — Joseph Finder, who also wrote The Fixer that was mentioned earlier in this series, strikes again, this time with a neat story involving switched briefcases. One belongs to a U.S. senator who foolishly downloaded a top secret file on to it. The other is the property of Michael Tanner, a coffee wholesaler who is fighting to keep his business afloat. Lots of neat twists and turns in this one. And, yes, the secret file being where it shouldn’t be is rather appropriate in these times.

The Tales of an Athletic Supporter — In cleaning out some bookshelves I came upon this gem from Trent Frayne. Published in 1990, this is a book written by one of the greats of Canadian sports journalism who was there for a whole lot of sporting history. For 300 pages, Frayne reminisces about his career, one that began at the Brandon Sun, took him to the Winnipeg Tribune and then to various Toronto-based outlets. And, oh, the places he went and the people he met and watched perform! And, yes, the man knew his way around a keyboard. If you can find a copy of this one you won’t be disappointed. 

True North: A Life Inside the Music Business — As a manager, promoter, producer and a lot of other things, Bernie Finkelstein had a front row seat as the Canadian music business grew into what it is today. This is his story, and the story of that business, and it’s an entertaining read.

Why We Love Baseball: A History in 50 Moments — Joe Posnanski, the author of the glorious The Baseball 100, is back with another wonderful baseballcentric book. This one features a series of anecdote-filled essays on 50 of the sports’ significant occurrences. There also are a number of other highlights scattered throughout.

Winter Is Coming: Why Vladimir Putin and the Enemies of the Free World Must Be Stopped — Former world chess champion Garry Kasparov, a Russian, now lives with his family in self-imposed exile in the U.S. This book was published in 2015 after Russia, under Vladimir Putin, invaded Ukraine in 2014. It is frightening how much of this book remains devastatingly pertinent as Putin is again waging war on Ukraine.

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My top 10 reads from 2023:

  1. Fire Weather: The Making of a Beast, by John Vaillant.

2. Paper Trails: From the Backwoods to the Front Page, a Life in Stories, by Roy MacGregor.

3. The Tales of an Athletic Supporter, by Trent Frayne.

4. Hometown Heroes: On the Road with Canada’s National Hockey Team, by Paul Quarrington.

5. Brave Face: Wild Tales of Hockey Goaltenders in the Era Before Masks, by Rob Vanstone

6. Path Lit By Lightning: The Life of Jim Thorpe, by David Maraniss.

7. Winter Is Coming: Why Vladimir Putin and the Enemies of the Free World Must Be Stopped, by Garry Kasparov.

8. Why We Love Baseball: A History in 50 Moments, by Joe Posnanski.

9. Lucky Man: A Memoir, by Michael J. Fox.

10. City of Dreams, by Don Winslow.

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(THIRD OF THREE PARTS)

The Book Shelf: Part 1 of 3

Having stepped away from writing on this site a few weeks ago, I hadn’t decided whether to post the annual Book Shelf feature here. As I finished reading books, I have been writing thumbnails, out of habit more than anything, I suppose. But I wasn’t sure what I would do with them.

However, the Book Shelf is back by popular demand. Well, I received one email asking for it and I know of at least one other person who has been hoping for its appearance.

So here it is . . .

As usual, it will appear in three parts over three days, and the last part will include my top 10 reads of 2023.

Note that I have been cleaning out bookshelves over the past months, so there are some books on this list that have been around for a while and then some.

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All the Sinners Bleed: A Novel — Oh my, S.A. Crosby can write! This time he has conjured a story centred on Titus Crown, a former FBI agent with a skeleton in his closet, who now is the first Black sheriff in the history of a small Virginia city. And now he finds himself chasing a serial killer. This one is bloody, but, oh my, Crosby can write. A taste: “The myth of Main Street in the South has always been a chaste puritanical fantasy. The reality is found on back roads and dirt lanes under a sky gone black. In the back seat of a rust-mottled Buick and the beds of ramshackle trucks.”

The Amateurs: The Story of Four Young Men and Their Quest for an Olympic Gold Medal — Rowing is an interesting sport if only because there isn’t a career lined with gold at the end of the day. But you can’t question the dedication of the athletes involved. In this book published in 1985, author David Halberstam writes about that and a whole lot more as he follows four Americans chasing 1984 Olympic gold. They are friends and they are competitors, which leads to some complicated relationships and an interesting read.

The Appeal — This book by the prolific John Grisham was published in 2008; I have no idea how I hadn’t already read it. Anyway, it was his 21st published book. It begins with a lawsuit involving a company being sued for having contaminated a small community’s drinking water. The jury rules in favour of the plaintiff and Grisham proceeds to put the American judicial and electoral systems on spits and roasts them.

Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead — John Coglin is with the NYPD and he’s one of the good guys. And then, through no fault of his own, it all goes wrong. Author Michael Ledwidge has given us a gritty read with all kinds of great characters, lots of twists and turns, and a crescendo that leads to a great ending. Highly recommend if you’re into this kind of fiction.

Black & White & Never Right: A Hockey Referee — I stumbled on this book while cleaning up some book shelves early in the year, so it was a re-read. Author Vern Buffey was one of the NHL’s top referees back in the day, before leaving to set up the WHA’s officiating department. This isn’t a long book but it’s full of anecdotes  involving lots of NHL names from the six-team era. He also writes about how the NHL office applied heat and discipline to its on-ice officials, at least it did back then.

Brave Face: Wild Tales of Hockey Goaltenders in the Era Before Masks — This is an entertaining read loaded with terrific anecdotes, great quotes and a whole lot of names from hockey’s past. Yes, it’s mostly about goaltenders — from the well-known like Jacques Plante, Terry Sawchuk and Glenn Hall to lesser-knowns like Gaye Cooley, Russ Gillow and Bob Perreault — and their love-hate relationship with masks. Truth be told, it’s the stories involving the lesser-knowns that are the highlights here. There’s also some neat stuff on retired NHL defenceman Craig Ludwig, a shot blocker extraordinaire, his famous shin pads and his aversion to new equipment. Oh, and don’t let the fierce looking cover scare you away. (Disclaimer: Author Rob Vanstone was part of the sports department during my stint as sports editor of the Regina Leader-Post back in the day.)

City of Dreams — This is the second book in author Don Winslow’s trilogy that chronicles the life and times of Danny Ryan, a Rhode Island gangster who is trying to become an ex-gangster — if that is even possible — somewhere in California or Las Vegas. This is a great writer spinning a terrific yarn with all kinds of characters and plot twists. The first book in the trilogy is City on Fire; the third will be City in Ruins.

Desert Star — Author Michael Connelly brings back Harry Bosch and Renée Ballard for another go-round, this time working a couple of cold murder cases. Ballard has returned to the LAPD and now is in charge of the cold-case unit; Bosch, retired from the LAPD, is working for her on a voluntary basis. . . . If you like the Bosch books, this one won’t disappoint. And there’s a twist at the end that may jar you.

Different Seasons — Is there a writer among us today with an imagination and the writing ability of Stephen King? For starters, his imagination is out of bounds. Seriously. In this book, the prolific King gives us four novellas, tales, as he puts it, “that were too long to be short and too short to be really long.” What they also are is really good and, yes, bordering on the macabre. And they will get inside you and twist your guts. Yes, they will.

Draft Day: How Hockey Teams Pick Winners or Get Left Behind — Doug MacLean, who has worn a lot of NHL hats, from president to general manager and coach and beyond, writes openly about the NHL draft and he does it from all angles, providing readers with all kinds of information and anecdotes. He does it with the help of former Toronto Sun hockey writer Scott Morrison; the two worked together at Sportsnet not that long ago.

Evolve or Die: Hard Won Lessons from A Hockey Life — Author John Shannon has had a whole lot to do with the way we view hockey on television today. As a long-time producer with Hockey Night in Canada, he shaped a whole lot about the telecasts — remember the Hot Stove? — and was one of the main planners when HNIC switched from one Saturday night game to the doubleheader format in play today. His employment history also includes Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment and the NHL, not to mention various American-based networks. This is his story, including the hirings and firings he endured along the way. There is a whole lot of interesting stuff between the covers, but it really could have used a few more anecdotes involving his relationships with NHL players, coaches, general managers and executives.

Finest Hour. Winston S. Churchill 1939-1941 — Author Martin Gilbert examines in microscopic detail the world of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill during the first years of the Second World War. It seems that anyone who had anything to do with government kept a diary back then, and Gilbert’s meticulous research allows for a tremendous book. Churchill also was the Minister of Defence at the time, and Gilbert really details how much effort he put into obtaining military help from the U.S. Remember that the Americans didn’t enter the Second World War until the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, which occurs in the final pages of this book.

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(FIRST OF THREE PARTS)