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The Ball: Discovering the Object of the Game
by
John Fox (Goodreads Author)
Anthropologist John Fox sets off on a worldwide adventure to thefarthest reaches of the globe and the deepest recesses of our ancientpast to answer a question inspired by his sports-loving son:
"Why do we play ball?"
From Mexican jungles to the small-town gridirons of Ohio, frommedieval villages and royal courts to modern soccer pitches andbaseball parks, The Ball explores t...more
"Why do we play ball?"
From Mexican jungles to the small-town gridirons of Ohio, frommedieval villages and royal courts to modern soccer pitches andbaseball parks, The Ball explores t...more
Paperback, 400 pages
Published
May 15th 2012
by Harper Perennial
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From early on, people have always used balls. Back in the beginning of humans, we threw balls at our prey in an attempt to slow them down. With modern day humans, we used balls to play various games. We have transformed balls from a luxury to a necessity. The Ball by John Fox is all about the history and origins of the games we play today. Fox travels around the world to multiple questions to find the answer to the question “why do we play ball?”
The Ball was a good book. I enjoyed all the histo...more
The Ball was a good book. I enjoyed all the histo...more
I won an advance copy of this through First Reads and was pretty intrigued by the subject matter. There's plenty of fun anecdotes from John Fox's travels around the world playing ball games. There's some interesting facts and history sprinkled throughout the book. But in trying to figure out why I didn't like this more than I did, I think I've found that there's a general lack of focus. If the point was to try to find out 'why do we play,' there's not enough exploration into that topic. I conced...more
I saw John Fox speak and do a reading at Porter Square Books in Cambridge before I read The Ball. He was engaging, lively, and humorous, and his book is as well. The premise is simple: during a game of catch, Fox's soon asked, "Why do we play ball?" Fox, an archeologist and sports fan who'd studied ancient Mayan ball games was stumped. So he set out to find out why.
The ensuing chapters are less an answer to that specific question than descriptions of the sport-by-sport case studies Fox undertook...more
The ensuing chapters are less an answer to that specific question than descriptions of the sport-by-sport case studies Fox undertook...more
Read this book! One of the best, most inspiring and wide ranging books on sports I've come across. Lacrosse, football, basketball, even ulama, the surviving ballgame of the Aztecs, gets treated in this book, humanized by the players Fox meets and interviews. I was touched by the story of Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir, a devout Muslim basketball player who has set scoring records while maintaining hijab, and the traditions coming out of the Onondaga nation preserving and passing on their heritage. The book...more
This book sets out to answer the innocent question of Fox’s seven year old son, “Why do we play ball, anyway?” The author has done a tremendous amount of research, some of it by physically visiting places where embryonic versions of our modern ball games are still played—going to the Orkney Isles, France, and the interior of Mexico in an attempt to show how interwoven playing ball is with being human.
I particularly enjoyed his advancement of the theory that it was man’s development of his abilit...more
I particularly enjoyed his advancement of the theory that it was man’s development of his abilit...more
A smart, witty, anthropologically slanted, Bill Bryson-esque romp through mankind's history of ball games, in an attempt to answer the question: "Why do humans play?" (That question is never directly answered but, to be fair, it's probably unanswerable.) THE BALL is delightful book full of details, history, insights, and even some personal memoir. Highly recommended, and not just for sports fans. [Disclaimer: the author is a friend of mine, but I'd think this was a great book even if he wasn't.]
Ironically, I read this book at a 4-day national volleyball tourney with over 120K young women participating! This is a quick non-fiction read that helps you connect with the past and humanity. It makes me regret not becoming an anthropologist my first year of college.
Must be fun to be an anthropologist making money writing about sports. Maybe I could do that when I grow up.
Solid venture into the anthropological origins and implications of sports.
Fascinating story of sport and society, lots of interesting facts.
All about balls :-). Why we play, tracing origins of some popular games etc etc. Decent book.
Like math and music, sports is a universal language.
Really enjoyed the intersection between history of the games an storytelling, both on the authors journey and ties to his son throughout. I thoroughly enjoyed the subject matter and it's tone of writing. I'm an avid sports fan and found great excitement in learning origins of the games we take for granted today. All in all, recommended read for any sports enthusiast.
Great read.
An anthropologist sets out to find out we play ball. He looks at ball games played in a variety of cultures. Finds similarities and variety and puts forth his own ideas of why humans evolved into beings who like to play ball.
As you might expect, there is more than a game going on when humans meet over a ball.
An anthropologist sets out to find out we play ball. He looks at ball games played in a variety of cultures. Finds similarities and variety and puts forth his own ideas of why humans evolved into beings who like to play ball.
As you might expect, there is more than a game going on when humans meet over a ball.
I started reading this after plugging "The History of the Mayan Ball League." On the recommendation of an anthropologist. It was a really nice diversion into the history of why we play ball, and in what forms we have, over the years.
It contains an interesting chapter on "the ball game," or ulama, as the Maya called it.
It contains an interesting chapter on "the ball game," or ulama, as the Maya called it.
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What answer do you come up with to the question "Why do we play ball?" John Fox takes an interesting look at both why we play and the variety of ball games we play. This is a great book for someone who wants to learn something about the subject but doesn't necessarily want every last detail about the ball games Fox discusses. I enjoyed it and have recommended it to some friends.
This book was received as a Goodreads, First Read.
This book was received as a Goodreads, First Read.
History, sports and it's influence on society...all presented in an easily digestible way by an entertaining anthropologist...what's not to love??
I now feel like I know more about sports than anyone. This book had great history of many games, and many things I had never heard of before like games played in other countries. Also it had a few essay like sections on other areas of the games, such as their use in education, medical things, race differences, and so on. I highly recommend this book as it is also easy to read.
This book looks at the history of ball and how certain games have evolved. Tennis, soccer, football, basketball and baseball are explored in depth. It is fascinating to learn how each of these games developed and changed over time.
Good facts, and actually learned a lot from the book. Definitely recommend to anyone who enjoys sports, particularly soccer.
I won this book on Goodreads First Reads.
I won this book on Goodreads First Reads.
Very insightful and enjoyable.
Review copy won on Goodreads.com on 4-6-12.
May 06, 2013
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John Fox, a Harvard Ph.D. anthropologist, has contributed commentary to Vermont Public Radio and written for Smithsonian, Outside, and Salon, among other publications. In 2010 he was awarded a MacDowell Colony fellowship. He lives in Boston.
Fox's book, The Ball: Discovering the Object of the Game will be published May 15 by Harper Perennial. He lives in Boston.
Advance praise for The Ball:
“Anyone w...more
More about John Fox...
Fox's book, The Ball: Discovering the Object of the Game will be published May 15 by Harper Perennial. He lives in Boston.
Advance praise for The Ball:
“Anyone w...more
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