Monthly Archives: September 2010

Cradle of the Game by Mark Cryan: a short review

Well-executed but nonetheless fairly typical tourist-oriented ballpark guide. A few of the ballyards are not currently involved in anything resembling an organized league.

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When Miners March by William Blizzard: a review

Odd and interesting. This is an account of events in West Virginia’s coal fields during 1921 and 1922, especially the march to Blair Mountain in ’22–with two decades’ context. It was written roughly 30 years after the events it describes, and the author’s father was one of the principal characters in the confrontation.

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David Falkayn by Poul Anderson: a review

These tales are pure space opera, and neither van Rijn nor Falkayn are particularly sympathetic characters. They’re also a platform for Anderson to build worlds, something no science fiction author has done as well; he takes a set of premises about the planet, and builds an appropriate environment and interesting characters–not aliens, characters–to populate it. That part is wonderful.

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Doc Holliday by Karen Holliday Tanner: a short review

Covers pretty much the same territory as Gary Roberts’ book on Holliday, but not as well, and this book is nowhere near so balanced. Prose is, at best, workmanlike.

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Conspirator by CJ Cherryh: a short review

Action packed, and funny.

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Michigan’s Superior Boundary

I find from Google that the “last touches” wording is from the federal law establishing the (prospective) state’s boundary as a result of the Toledo War, and that it is repeated early in the 1850 State Constitution. (I also see that current Michigan AG Mike Cox quoted the phrase in a 2004 opinion.) It looks like Houghton didn’t expect a fully literal interpretation of the boundary to stand. He was right in that Michigan evidently doesn’t “own” the last few miles of Minnesota’s North Shore, nor the aforesaid rocky islands–but Isle Royale remains part of Michigan, regardless of its proximity to Minnesota. And Ontario.

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A Fan’s Guide Farewell

Emails often made my day. I heard from fans, from past and present players, from team radio voices, from former and would-be player girlfriends, from executives, from prospective team owners, from newspaper reporters. Over the years I received thousands of notes on a vast array of topics. A Danville fan told me about watching Butch McCord. One writer told about his mother boarding black players in Decatur. Another filled me in on a former player’s troubled life after baseball. A batboy told about his continuing friendships with players who’d shared the Dubuque dugout. Pat Neshek wrote me a delightful note after his MWL summer. Bob Sprout thanked me for writing up his remarkable season, as did Bob Lawrence; both were reminded of lost friends. In the best email I ever received, a kind lady from Williamsport, Pennsylvania, told me in detail how her family became unintentional hosts to a gentle giant named Juan Salazar, and fell in love.

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Beating the Bushes by Frank Dolson: a short review

Nineteen largely-independent chapters, of varying quality on varying topics. The best are those on Jim Bunning, booze, and winter baseball.

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