Kategoria BISAC: Sports & Recreation >> Essays

The aim of this book, in discussing Elias s theory, is not to refute it. Tendentiously, the theory works with its weaknesses and strong points and it has been enriched by a number of authors over time. The objective of this volume is to discuss the blind spots and, more simply, what is too often taken for granted: namely the obvious pacifying effect of sports and/or produced by sports. This analysis has been guided by two perspectives: the sociological one which questions the "naturalization" of sport which is also the naturalization of the "wildlings" which have to be civilized, and the...

Winner of the 2017 NASSH Book Award for best edited collection.

The hardening of racial lines during the first half of the twentieth century eliminated almost all African Americans from white organized sports, forcing black athletes to form their own teams, organizations, and events. This separate sporting culture, explored in the twelve essays included here, comprised much more than athletic competition; these "separate games" provided examples of black enterprise and black self-help and showed the importance of agency and the quest for racial uplift in a country fraught with...

In 2015, Booklist observed, the arrival of Hauser s annual boxing review is akin to Christmas morning for fight fans. Nobody knows a sport any better than Hauser knows boxing.

Each year, readers, writers, and critics alike look forward to Thomas Hauser s annual collection of articles about the contemporary boxing scene. He s one of the last real champions of boxing and one of the very best who has ever written about the sport.

A Hard World continues this tradition of excellence with dressing-room reports from big fights like Canelo Alvarez vs. Miguel Cotto, a...

Featuring 38 true-life stories of adventure and self-discovery, adrenaline, and honesty, a former professional NCAA downhill competitor reveals the soul skier's" raison d'etre" finding exhilaration, faith, grief, love, and everything that truly matters amid the gloriously tangible, tactile, break-your-leg-if-you're-not-careful rocks, trees, and gullies of the alpine world. These essays, collected from numerous glossy ski and lifestyle journals, including "Powder," "Couloir," and "Telemark Skier," celebrate the land of winter and the author's roles as mountaineer, ski racer, father, and...

Everything many of us know about figure skating, we learned from the man who's been called the "Voice of Figure Skating." Now Dick Button, the Emmy Award-winning skating commentator famous for his precise, passionate, opinionated rinkside analyses and for his historic career as a two-time Olympic gold medalist, five-time World Champion, and seven-time U.S. Champion (plus being the inadvertent inventor of the flying camel, the first to successfully land a double Axel in competition, and the first ever to do a triple jump) demystifies this art and sport beloved by millions.

In "Push...

Bob Babbitt's stories bring out the human side of running, cycling and triathlon in a way that no one else ever has. Through humor and inspiration, this book will become a must-have for the hundreds of thousands of endurance athletes who have made these sports not just their hobbies, but an integral part of their lives.

In the first book on this tragic event, 4:09:43, Hal Higdon, a contributing editor at Runner's World, tells the tale of the Boston Marathon bombings. The book's title refers to the numbers on the finish-line clock when the first bomb exploded.

In 4:09:43, Higdon views Boston 2013 through the eyes of those running the race. You will meet George, a runner from Athens, birthplace of the modern marathon, who at sunrise joins the eerie march of silent runners, all aimed at their appointments in Hopkinton, where the marathon starts. You will meet Michele, who at age 2...

"In all, beautifully written and wonderfully inspiring."
--The Wall Street Journal

"Crossing the Atlantic under sail, alone, is a nexus of sorts for all sailors, a dream and an adventure that seems obtainable within the framework of life and work, and it's in this context that Sea Trials provides inspiration to all of us. Bourke's route across the ocean, as a participant in the 2009 OSTAR, is circuitous at best as he battles headwinds and mechanical snafus, but he keeps it in perspective and never loses his sense of humor and awe. Sure he wants to do well in the...

For John Gierach, "the master of fly-fishing" (Sacramento Bee), fishing is always the answer--even when it's not clear what the question is. In All Fishermen Are Liars, Gierach travels around North America seeking out quintessential fishing experiences, whether it's at a busy stream or a secluded lake hidden amid snow-capped mountains. He talks about the art of...

What can a new father learn about parenthood from reading sports almanacs? For most dads, the answer to this question is: nothing. But to Josh Wilker, whose life and writing have been defined by sports fandom, all of the joy, helplessness, and absurdity of parenthood are present between the lines.

After all, what better way to think about losing control than Eugenio Velez's forty-five consecutive at-bats without a hit? How better to understand ridiculous joy than the...

On any given workday, any little thing might send Steve Smith's thoughts spinning back to Saturday--last Saturday, Saturday two weeks ago, Saturday two years ago, back into the thrilling minutiae of game day--until reality reminds him: this is not how well-adjusted adults act. Steve Smith is not a well-adjusted adult. He's a Nebraska football fan, and this is his rollicking account of what it's like to be one of those legendary enthusiasts whose passion for the Cornhuskers is at once irresistible and hilarious.

A journey into an obsessed Nebraska fan's soul, Forever Red...

One of the most famous and certainly most successful professional hockey teams of all time, the Montreal Canadiens are practically a national institution in Quebec society. More than any other team, the Habs play an important role in the identity, economy, and culture of their home town and province.

The essays in The Montreal Canadiens: Rethinking a Legend offer a panoramic view of this influence. What were the connections between the Maurice Richard Riot of 1955 and Quebec's Quiet Revolution? Can we say that loyalty to the team constitutes a religion for its fans? How is...