false 402392 2 <p> From the perspective of 2007, the unintentional irony of Chance's boast is manifest&#8212;these days, the question is when will the Cubs ever win a game they have to have. In October 1908, though, no one would have laughed: The Cubs were, without doubt, baseball's greatest team&#8212;the first dynasty of the 20th century. </p> <p> <i>Crazy '08</i> recounts the 1908 season&#8212;the year when Peerless Leader Frank Chance's men went toe to toe to toe with John McGraw and Christy Mathewson's New York Giants and Honus Wagner's Pittsburgh Pirates in the greatest pennant race the National League has ever seen. The American League has its own three-cornered pennant fight, and players like Cy Young, Ty Cobb, Walter Johnson, and the egregiously crooked Hal Chase ensured that the junior circuit had its moments. But it was the National League's&#8212;and the Cubs'&#8212;year. </p> <p> <i>Crazy '08</i>, however, is not just the exciting story of a great season. It is also about the forces that created modern baseball, and the America that produced it. In 1908, crooked pols run Chicago's First Ward, and gambling magnates control the Yankees. Fans regularly invade the field to do handstands or argue with the umps; others shoot guns from rickety grandstands prone to burning. There are anarchists on the loose and racial killings in the town that made Lincoln. On the flimsiest of pretexts, General Abner Doubleday becomes a symbol of Americanism, and baseball's own anthem, "Take Me Out to the Ballgame," is a hit. </p> <p> Picaresque and dramatic, 1908 is a season in which so many weird and wonderful things happen that it is somehow unsurprising that a hairpiece, a swarm of gnats, a sudden bout of lumbago, and a disaster down in the mines all play a role in its outcome. And sometimes the events are not so wonderful at all. There are several deaths by baseball, and the shadow of corruption creeps closer to the heart of baseball&#8212;the honesty of the game itself. Simply put, 1908 is the year that baseball grew up. </p> <p> Oh, and it was the last time the Cubs won the World Series. </p> <p> Destined to be as memorable as the season it documents, <i>Crazy '08</i> sets a new standard for what a book about baseball can be. </p> 391782 1 3 2007 Crazy '08: How a Cast of Cranks, Rogues, Boneheads, and Magnates Created the Greatest Year in Baseball History total:190|5:43|4:82|3:53|2:7|1:5| 190 721 295 57 1158684 0060889381 9780060889388 52 19 3.79 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1158684.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 4 0 false Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Mar 19 07:17:10 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 19 07:44:11 -0700 2009
Murphy's affection for the woebegone Chicago Cubs makes this chronicle of their last championship season a wistful reminisce...more...]]> 402392 0060889373 9780060889371 138 38 3.79 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174448833m/402392.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/402392.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 4 0 false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sat Oct 03 10:52:39 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 03 10:54:08 -0700 2009 more...]]> 1158684 0060889381 9780060889388 52 19 3.79 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1158684.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 4 0 false Tue Mar 18 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Mar 31 21:47:43 -0700 2009 Thu Apr 02 22:03:58 -0700 2009 more...]]> 402392 0060889373 9780060889371 138 38 3.79 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174448833m/402392.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/402392.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 4 1 false Thu Oct 25 10:19:17 -0700 2007 Thu Oct 25 10:21:43 -0700 2007 more...]]> 1158684 0060889381 9780060889388 52 19 3.79 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1158684.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 3 0 false Wed May 27 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 02 11:13:57 -0700 2009 Tue Jun 02 11:30:21 -0700 2009 1 The primary plot here is about the run up to the 1908 World Series and the struggles between the Cubs, New York Giants a...more...]]> 402392 0060889373 9780060889371 138 38 3.79 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174448833m/402392.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/402392.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 4 0 false Mon Mar 02 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 23 13:28:02 -0800 2009 Wed Mar 04 13:36:13 -0800 2009 more...]]> 402392 0060889373 9780060889371 138 38 3.79 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174448833m/402392.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/402392.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 4 0 false Sat Feb 14 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 15 10:19:23 -0800 2009 Wed Mar 25 08:50:54 -0700 2009
"Crazy '08" is, primarily, the story of the ridiculously close, eventful and controversial pennant race between the Chicago Cubs and the New York Giants. Mu...more...]]> 402392 0060889373 9780060889371 138 38 3.79 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174448833m/402392.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/402392.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 5 0 false Tue Apr 21 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Apr 15 11:03:29 -0700 2009 Wed Apr 22 06:17:19 -0700 2009 more...]]> 1158684 0060889381 9780060889388 52 19 3.79 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1158684.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 3 0 false Sun Apr 27 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Apr 29 09:05:29 -0700 2008 Tue Apr 29 09:58:38 -0700 2008
On the other hand, Murphy's e...more...]]> 1158684 0060889381 9780060889388 52 19 3.79 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1158684.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 3 0 false Mon Apr 21 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Apr 12 07:39:54 -0700 2008 Mon Apr 21 16:28:07 -0700 2008 more...]]> 402392 0060889373 9780060889371 138 38 3.79 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174448833m/402392.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/402392.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 5 0 false Thu Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Fri Feb 01 15:16:46 -0800 2008 Fri Feb 01 15:17:34 -0800 2008 more...]]> 402392 0060889373 9780060889371 138 38 3.79 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174448833m/402392.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/402392.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 4 0 false Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sun May 06 11:03:03 -0700 2007 Thu Jun 21 08:48:23 -0700 2007 Ball Four and Eight Men Out among others, both of which go far beyond talking about baseball. And "1908" does the same thing "Eight Men Out" and, say, the Robert Creamer bio of Bab...more...]]> 402392 0060889373 9780060889371 138 38 3.79 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174448833m/402392.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/402392.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 3 0 false Mon Apr 09 13:45:33 -0700 2007 Tue May 12 06:25:31 -0700 2009 more...]]> 402392 0060889373 9780060889371 138 38 3.79 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174448833m/402392.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/402392.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 3 0 false Sat Aug 22 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 09 11:49:38 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 25 09:06:56 -0700 2009 more...]]> 1158684 0060889381 9780060889388 52 19 3.79 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1158684.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 3 0 false Mon Mar 09 11:14:32 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 23 08:18:19 -0700 2009 more...]]> 402392 0060889373 9780060889371 138 38 3.79 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174448833m/402392.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/402392.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 5 0 false Fri Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Jan 11 08:09:50 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 11 08:13:44 -0800 2009 more...]]> 1158684 0060889381 9780060889388 52 19 3.79 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1158684.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 5 0 false Wed Sep 17 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Sep 14 04:57:10 -0700 2008 Wed Sep 17 19:17:05 -0700 2008 Murphy doesn't just talk baseball; she puts the 1908 baseball season into a larger context of American society at the time and enriches it with the personal and profes...more...]]> 402392 0060889373 9780060889371 138 38 3.79 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174448833m/402392.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/402392.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 4 0 false Mon Oct 06 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun May 11 17:49:02 -0700 2008 Mon Oct 06 16:08:28 -0700 2008
When the Cubs really did go to the World ...more...]]> 1158684 0060889381 9780060889388 52 19 3.79 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1158684.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 3 0 false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Jul 21 05:47:46 -0700 2008 Thu Jan 15 07:23:30 -0800 2009 more...]]> 1158684 0060889381 9780060889388 52 19 3.79 http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1158684.Crazy_08_How_a_Cast_of_Cranks_Rogues_Boneheads_and_Magnates_Created_the_Greatest_Year_in_Baseball_History 3 0 false Fri Feb 06 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 06 12:36:12 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 06 12:38:18 -0800 2009 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=1158684