Baseball And The Baby Boomer: A History, Commentary, And Memoir
I recently had a chance to check out Talmage Boston’s new book “Baseball and the Baby Boomer: A History, Commentary, and Memoir.”
For those not aware, “Baby Boomers” are the generation born between the years 1946 and 1964. So, in general, Baby Boomers are those who got their first taste of major league baseball, in terms of being a fan, somewhere between the 1950 and 1975 seasons.
With “Baseball and the Baby Boomer,” Talmage Boston focus on men from baseball’s history – who Baby Boomers are well aware of, or should be – such as (but limited to) Mickey Mantle, Jimmy Piersall, Carl Yastrzemski, Jackie Robinson, Branch Rickey, Nolan Ryan, Bart Giamatti, Roger Maris, Lou Brock, Dr. Bobby Brown, and Bobby Bragan – and tells us their story.
Now, this is where it gets interesting. The narrative in “Baseball and the Baby Boomer” is, indeed, presented as “History, Commentary, And Memoir.” Talmage Boston consistently weaves through those approaches as he details each hero featured in the book.
And, it’s the combination of this book being “History, Commentary, And Memoir” which makes it very entertaining.
For example, as a Yankees fan, I know the story of Mickey Mantle, backwards and forwards. And, reading the facts and figures about Mantle is “been there, done that” for me. But, in his chapter on Mantle, in addition to providing all the biographical details, the author combines the Mantle story with the story of Jimmy Piersall – and links them in how they were driven by the fathers. At the same time, Boston tees off this storying by mentioning how his own father didn’t push him towards baseball – but did provide some things that the fathers for Mantle and Piersall could have been better at providing.
Basically, with “Baseball and the Baby Boomer,” Talmage Boston, as a baseball fan and historian, shares some stories about baseball heroes who could be found from the 1950′s through the 1990′s – combining facts, opinion and personal connections. And, he does it in a very entertaining manner.
Is “Baseball and the Baby Boomer: A History, Commentary, and Memoir” one of the best baseball books that I’ve ever read? No. But, it’s a well researched, somewhat uniquely constructed and a very pleasant reading experience – whether you’re a Baby Boomer or not. If you’re a baseball fan, and enjoy reading about it, I recommend that you consider checking out this book.
