The List
(Book Name & Author/Bookmark – Recommended Reading?)
- Oscar Charleston: The Life and Legend of Baseball’s Greatest Forgotten Player by Jeremy Beer/1993 Ted Williams Co. Oscar Charleston – Yes, definitely, if you, like me, are pained about the gap in knowledge about someone Joe Posnanski rated the 5th greatest baseball player of all time. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2020/11/21/oscar-charleston-by-jeremy-beer/
- Fairlane Road by Cody Lakin/2016 Topps Dee Gordon – I liked the story and the characters. Charlie Knox is a great name for a villain. I think Cody Lakin is getting better with each book, and I would guess I’ll recommend the later works higher. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2020/11/21/fairlane-road-by-cody-lakin/
- Anxious People (audiobook) by Fredrik Backman/2007 Topps Morgan Ensberg – I’m going to write something here that I haven’t taken the time to think over whether or not is accurate: Fredrik Backman is my favorite current author of fiction. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2020/11/25/anxious-people-by-fredrik-backman/
- The Searcher by Tana French/1992 Topps Cal Ripken, Jr. – Like The Witch Elm, this book keeps you just curious enough about the mystery to keep you reading. Also like The Witch Elm, French uses some overly convenient tools to weave her mystery, things like amnesia that compounds questions or a kind of “spidey sense” that apparently police officers have allowing them to know when someone is there but unseen. Basically I’d say you won’t regret reading this, but you can certainly skip if you don’t love French already. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2020/12/04/the-searcher-by-tana-french/
- Ready Player Two (audiobook) by Ernest Cline/2016 Topps Wade Davis – I think it gets bogged down with the details of the Oasis worlds and the hunt, but if you liked Ready Player One I doubt you’ll regret reading the sequel. Wil Wheaton narrates the audiobook (as he does for Ready Player One), and I think he’s quite effective. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2020/12/19/ready-player-two-by-ernest-cline/
- The Girl With A Fairy’s Heart by Cody Lakin/1975 Topps John Knox – Charlie Knox returns in Cody Lakin’s third book, his best yet. This is the evolution of a developing author, and I hear his unpublished fourth book is his best. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2020/12/30/the-girl-with-a-fairys-heart-by-cody-lakin/
- Troubled Blood (audiobook) by Robert Galbraith (aka J.K. Rowling)/2016 Topps Bartolo Colon – Unless you can’t get over J.K. Rowling’s stance on the Trans community or separate the artist from the art, this, along with the four other Strike novels, is a resounding yes for me. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/01/01/troubled-blood-by-robert-galbraith/
- The Last Trial (kindle book) by Scott Turow/1992 Topps Alejandro Pena – Easy read that keeps you curious with the story moving. Not sure if it would be better having read any of the previous Kindle County books by Turow, but it was enjoyable enough. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/01/09/the-last-trial-by-scott-turow/
- Ask Again, Yes by Mary Beth Keane/1991 Score Wayne Edwards – Wonderfully written story that follows two families over two generations. Not always happy, and the characters definitely get put through the ringer, but they are all likable or find a way to redeem themselves.
- A Promised Land (audiobook) by Barack Obama/2008 Topps Barack Obama – Gets bogged down in story-telling and policy details at times, but wonderful listen. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/01/15/a-promised-land-by-barack-obama/
- The Negro Baseball Leagues by Bob Motley/1994 Score Dave Winfield – Yes, this book is an absolute joy start to finish. You’ll love both Bob Motley and his subject matter. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/01/18/the-negro-baseball-leagues-by-bob-motley-with-byron-motley/
- Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu/2016 Topps Kolten Wong – This is a completely unique book that stays interesting and original from start to finish. It’s fun despite some of the serious subject matter, and I would definitely recommend it. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/01/28/interior-chinatown-by-charles-yu/
- All Adults Here (audiobook) by Emma Straub/1975 Topps Rusty Staub – This is a very enjoyable book, well-written with likable characters who find ways to improve themselves throughout. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/01/29/all-adults-here-by-emma-straub/
- Hank Greenberg: The Hero of Heroes by John Rosengren/1988 Score Lou Whitaker – All baseball biographies can get bogged down with the sort of chronological story-telling of a season or season by season career. But, I remember finding this book in a wonderful bookstore in Boston before a Red Sox-Royals game and being excited to know more about this player I really didn’t know much about, and this book covered it all and then some. I think it was a great find, and I’m really glad I read it. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/02/01/hank-greenberg-the-hero-of-heroes-by-john-rosengren/
- 24: Life Stories and Lessons From the Say Hey Kid (audiobook) by Willie Mays and John Shea/1994 Score San Francisco Giants Team Card – This is a completely different biography with more involvement from Mays himself. It’s broken up into life lessons and can be read in order or by skipping around, so even if you’ve read other biographies about Willie there’s still plenty to gain here. I would ague, in fact, that it all adds up to being the best, most enjoyable book about Mays. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/02/03/24-life-stories-and-lessons-from-the-say-hey-kid-by-willie-mays-and-john-shea/
- The Midnight Library (audiobook) by Matt Haig/1990 Topps A. Bartlett Giamatti – Felt like a modern version of It’s a Wonderful Life with a quantum physics twist, but overall it was interesting and enjoyable and a good way to consider your own life and the choices you’ve made. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/02/10/the-midnight-library-by-matt-haig/
- How To Stop Time by Matt Haig/1987 Topps Jamie Moyer – About a man who has been alive for over 400 years, this book could’ve gone the way of Forrest Gump, where the main character is involved in EVERY event that took place over the years, but Haig threads the line nicely between fantasy and outright absurdity. It’s a nice book, a good read. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/02/11/how-to-stop-time-by-matt-haig/
- The Poet (Kindle Book) by Michael Connelly/1988 Topps Dan Quisenberry – A typical Michael Connelly book, full of twists and turns and mystery, with interesting characters and a story that sucks you in. It’s the first of a series of Jack McEvoy books, and I’ve already moved onto the second, so definitely good enough to keep me interested and invested. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/03/01/the-poet-by-michael-connelly/
- The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley/1988 Score Tony Phillips – I thought this book was delightful. That’s the word I kept coming back to while I read. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/03/25/the-authenticity-project-by-clare-pooley/
- The Girl With The Louding Voice by Abi Dare/2016 Topps Clayton Kershaw – It took me a little while to get fully invested in Adunni’s story, but in the end I loved the experience of reading this book. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/04/16/the-girl-with-the-louding-voice-by-abi-dare/
- Little Bee by Chris Cleave/1988 Topps Jose Uribe – This is a very good, very well-written book. It is not a particularly happy book, so maybe not a beach vacation read. But worth reading. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/05/04/little-bee-by-chris-cleave/
- Under The Wave at Waimea by Paul Theroux/1988 Topps Joey Meyer – Theroux is a wonderful writer and storyteller. There is no doubt that you know EXACTLY who Joe Sharkey is. This book will lead me to other Theroux books I’m sure. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/07/10/under-the-wave-at-waimea-by-paul-theroux/
- The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown/1991 Topps Bob Tewksbury – I found the book really interesting, and I’ve gone back to it a few times, each time finding a new emphasis that catches my attention. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/07/10/the-gifts-of-imperfection-by-brene-brown/
- Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar/2016 Topps Kurt Suzuki – I would absolutely recommend this book, the dialogue is fantastic and the subject matter interesting. Just be patient at the beginning. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/07/11/homeland-elegies-by-ayad-akhtar/
- Amnesty by Aravind Adiga and Edie Richter Is Not Alone by Rebecca Handler/2021 Topps Heritage Liam Hendriks – Amnesty is the better of the two books. It’s enough of a mystery around what has happened and what will still happen to keep you reading, and it’s full of interesting cultural observations. Edie Richter is a rougher ride, less than happy, and at times downright frustrating. Interesting enough to finish, but not a strong recommendation. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/09/02/amnesty-by-aravind-adiga/
- The Bona Fide Legend of Cool Papa Bell: Speed, Grace, and the Negro Leagues by Lonnie Wheeler/1993 Ted Williams Co. James Bell – Trying to write these biographies of long gone ball players who weren’t well-chronicled even while they were playing is a tall task, but Lonnie Wheeler does an incredible job of telling the tales and setting the scene and giving a solid picture of the Hall of Famer. A no-doubt triple. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/09/15/the-bona-fide-legend-of-cool-papa-bell-speed-grace-and-the-negro-leagues-by-lonnie-wheeler/
- How Beautiful We Were by Imbolo Mbue/2021 Topps Austin Meadows – This is not an easy book to read, and it takes a while to get fully engrossed, but it gets there eventually, and in the end Mbue really impressed me. https://booksandbookmarks.com/2021/10/02/how-beautiful-we-were-by-imbolo-mbue/
