Sports/Games/Chess
In 2015, 36-year-old Chicago resident David King finds himself at a personal and professional crossroads. Feeling bored and restless, he longs to strike out on a crazy journey in a quest for beauty, kindness, and inspiration as to where his life should go from here. Having taken up biking as a hobby, he consults a map of the United States and, in a spur-of-the-moment decision, vows to ride across the country - from San Diego to Miami.
Over the course of four months, "America on Two Wheels: Biking Coast to Coast in Search of Human Stories" follows David's journey as he pedals more than 3,000 miles across mountains, desert, bayou, and tropical flatlands, overcoming physical and mental challenges in pursuit of a destination he's not sure he'll even reach. Painting a tableau of adventure and a world of possibility in the vein of Jack Kerouac or Paul Theroux, he introduces readers to an unforgettable cast of characters and their unsung acts of kindness. David invites the reader to join him on a journey through fear, doubt, patience, and discovery - not just across a continent, but toward a profound lesson of gratitude. Part travelogue, part memoir, part spiritual journey, "America on Two Wheels" is an ode to pursuing the open road with an open heart.
It's an appealing puzzle-book format that's perfect for on-the-go play--to be pulled out of a purse, messenger bag, or knapsack. And just like crosswords, Sudoku, and word searches, Bananagrams! are the kind of puzzles best for when commuting or in the waiting room, or to play before bed--whenever there are a few minutes to challenge and stretch the brain.
On-the-Go offers a total of 575 original puzzles in three levels of difficulty and sixteen lively and varied puzzle types, including two created exclusively for this book. Plus there are Weords (weird words that are fun to play), lists of common two- and three-letter words to improve your game, fun facts about bananas and monkeys, and (of course!) an answer key.
Matching suits and numbers is fun to play with these beautifully illustrated cards by Caldecott winner Chris Raschka.
Features:
- Cards are 3.25" x 4.5"
- Instructions included
- Sturdy sliding tray box for easy storage
A classic look at those years of baseball futility and frustration that make the rare taste of success so much sweeter. Any team can have an off-decade. But three in a row? Only in Cleveland. No sports fans suffered more miserable teams for more seasons than Indians fans of the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s. Terry Pluto takes a fond and often humorous look at “the bad old days” of the Tribe and finds plenty of great stories for fans to commiserate with. Other teams lose players to injuries; the Indians lost them to alcoholism (Sam McDowell), a nervous breakdown (Tony Horton), and the pro golf tour (Ken Harrelson). They even had to trade young Dennis Eckersley (a future Hall-of-Famer) because his wife fell in love with his best friend and teammate. Pluto profiles the men who made the Indians what they were, for better or worse, including Gabe Paul, the underfunded and overmatched general manager; Herb Score, the much-loved master of malaprops in the broadcast booth; Andre Thornton, who weathered personal tragedies and stood as one of the few hitting stalwarts on some terrible teams; and Super Joe Charboneau, who blazed across the American League as a rookie but flamed out the following season. Long-suffering Indians fans finally got an exciting, star-studded, winning team in the second half of the 1990s. But this book still stands as the definitive story of that generation of Tribe fans—and a great piece of sports history writing.
1st edition; inscribed by author on ffep. DJ protected. VG+/VG+
An inside, in-depth look at a fascinating baseball life ...
There were spectacular highs--Rookie of the Year, All Star, World Series ... And devastating lows--the end of his playing days, a tragic accident in his second year as manager, a heartbreaker in the World Series, being fired from the job he loved ...Mike Hargrove truly spent a lifetime in baseball. From the sandlots of tiny Perryton, Texas, to the biggest stage, Game 7 of the World Series, he played, coached, managed ... lived the game for four decades.
The Cleveland Indians were at the center of Hargrove's baseball life for more than 20 years. He played for some mediocre Indians teams in the 1980s. He managed some of the best Indians teams ever in the 1990s--including five consecutive division titles, one of the most powerful offensive lineups in baseball history (Lofton, Belle, Baerga, Murray, Thome, Ramirez) and two trips to the World Series.
Not bad for a kid who didn't play baseball in high school, was a walk-on in college and an afterthought 25th-round draft pick.
One constant in Hargrove's roller-coaster career: Sharon Hargrove. Their 50-year marriage in an unsteady business (from 1970 to 1995, the Hargroves lived in 23 different houses) is inspiring.
This book takes a close-up look at a life and career long under-appreciated--by us, not by him--perhaps because much of it was spent in the shadows of so many big personalities. But Hargrove's story includes big moments--both heartbreaking and heart-stopping.