Biography & Autobiography : Sports

Motivational life lessons and observations from one of Australia's most respected cricketers. more...

Price: $19.95

After winning the Olympic Gold in 1976 at age 19, Dorothy Hamill was “America’s Sweetheart” and an idol to millions. She swept the nation with her signature haircut, “Hamill” camel spin, and sparkling smile. But this gifted and supremely talented figure skater lived a life off the ice encumbered with family and financial tribulations. She and her mother spent long months away from her father and siblings so she could properly train, and Dorothy often questioned whether the outcome was worth the sacrifice as she attempted to handle an emotionally unavailable mother, alcoholic father, and a financial toll on her entire family. Skating has always been Dorothy’s only means of escape, but an intense depression took over when Dorothy found that success did not wash away the constant stress of trying to please her parents and coaches. She married the love of her life, Dean Paul Martin, only to face devastation when he was tragically killed in a plane crash shortly after their marriage ended. Dorothy was plummeted into an even deeper depression and struggled to find fulfillment. When she was finally capable of opening her heart to love again, she remarried and gave birth to her daughter, only to be taken advantage of by her philandering second husband who stole her money. The burden of the strained relationship with her parents on top of her broken heart tested Dorothy’s strength—but she prevailed. more...

Price: $11.95

When legendary Negro League player Buck O'Neil asked Joe Posnanski how he fell in love with baseball, the renowned sports columnist was inspired by the question. He decided to spend the 2005 baseball season touring the country with the ninety-four-year-old O'Neil in hopes of rediscovering the love that first drew them to the game. The Soul of Baseball is as much the story of Buck O'Neil as it is the story of baseball. Driven by a relentless optimism and his two great passions—for America's pastime and for jazz, America's music—O'Neil played solely for love. In an era when greedy, steroid-enhanced athletes have come to characterize professional ball, Posnanski offers a salve for the damaged spirit: the uplifting life lessons of a truly extraordinary man who never missed an opportunity to enjoy and love life. more...

Price: $10.95

When Heather Byer moved to New York from the Midwest in the early 1990s, she was like thousands of newcomers before her: wholesome, overeducated, ready to jump head-first into the ruthless, exciting world of literature or film. She eventually built a successful career as a movie executive, only to realize that something was missing from her life. She was stuck -- stuck in a lifestyle of fancy lunches and high-powered temper tantrums, of working too hard for too little personal fulfillment. But instead of turning to therapy or yoga to relieve her angst, Heather found herself drawn to the dark and seductive world of pool. In Sweet, Byer recounts her first fumbling attempts to learn a game that beckoned to her for years. She describes the hypnotic pull that surrounds the sport of pool: the netherworld of bars that serve as dens for substance abuse; the troubled players who lose themselves in the game; the constant quest for the win. As her game improves, she finds her persona changing, becoming less verbal and analytical and more intuitive and physical as she meets a series of people who leave lasting impressions -- a lanky, country-boy pool instructor; a good-hearted lawyer with a drinking problem; a strange South American bank-shot specialist; a hot-tempered woman with a nose-ring and an endless supply of sex appeal; mentors and hustlers; friends and lovers. As she moves through this beguiling, sometimes treacherous subculture, Byer vividly describes her progress and mishaps on the tables. Ultimately, the humiliating losses and exhilarating wins -- both in the pool bars and her personal life -- alter how she thinks of the game and herself. Sweet is both an unexpected memoir and a fascinating glimpse into a world few people know and even fewer understand. more...

Price: $15.00

He was The Kid. The Splendid Splinter. Teddy Ballgame. One of the greatest figures of his generation, and arguably the greatest baseball hitter of all time. But what made Ted Williams a legend – and a lightning rod for controversy in life and in death? What motivated him to interrupt his Hall of Fame career twice to serve his country as a fighter pilot; to embrace his fans while tangling with the media; to retreat from the limelight whenever possible into his solitary love of fishing; and to become the most famous man ever to have his body cryogenically frozen after his death? New York Times bestselling author Leigh Montville, who wrote the celebrated Sports Illustrated obituary of Ted Williams, now delivers an intimate, riveting account of this extraordinary life. more...

Price: $16.95