reviews
Dec 15, 2008
Natalie
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This is a must-read for baseball fans. I know there aren’t that many people who give a shit about baseball but I have really grown to appreciate it. This book is a transcription of interviews with baseball players who played around the turn of the century. It was published in the 60’s.
The stories are great and I just have to wonder what happened to this sport. It was such in integral part of American culture (the little that exists) and it’s really fallen by the wayside. It was ment More...
The stories are great and I just have to wonder what happened to this sport. It was such in integral part of American culture (the little that exists) and it’s really fallen by the wayside. It was ment More...
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Jul 07, 2010
Dave
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What a great Costco find! Stumbled on this book that claimed to be the best baseball book ever published. Problem is, it was published in the 1960s initially. The author set out to find a handful of aged former baseball players, long forgotten yet residing somewhere in the country with balefuls of memories on the greatest sport of all time. Each chapter is essentially a different ballplayer from the early 20th century waxing poetic about different teammates, managers, and opponents. It was
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Apr 30, 2009
Michael
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I won't begin this review by referring to The Glory of Their Times as an astounding oral history of baseball in the early 20th Century. It's the stories and the minds of the men who played that are so compelling; for example, hall-of-famer Sam Crawford's insight into the number of misfit characters he played alongside and against, like Rube Waddell, who'd kill several pints before hopping over the centerfield fence and walking to the mound. Crawford marvels over a time when people in general w
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Jan 13, 2010
Tom
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Many people have called The Glory of Their Times the best baseball book ever written. Although I wouldn't say that, it is very good, and a must read for baseball fans.
Lawrence S. Ritter doesn't do much in this book except put the tape recorder down on a table and let the ballplayers such as Rube Marquard, Paul Waner, Goose Gooslin, Hank Greenberg, Lefty O' Doul, Tommy Leach, Fred Snodgrass, Harry Hooper and many more tell their respective stories. It is a fast read even though it's More...
Lawrence S. Ritter doesn't do much in this book except put the tape recorder down on a table and let the ballplayers such as Rube Marquard, Paul Waner, Goose Gooslin, Hank Greenberg, Lefty O' Doul, Tommy Leach, Fred Snodgrass, Harry Hooper and many more tell their respective stories. It is a fast read even though it's More...
Jun 30, 2009
Adrienne
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This is a fabulous history of the early days of baseball - that is, the early 1900s - and what makes it so special is that it isn't like an ordinary history. Instead, it is comprised of short chapters that are the transcriptions (with some editing) of interviews with some of the best baseball players of that time. Men whom I had heard of before, like Fred Snodgrass, Hank Greenberg and Sam Crawford were featured, but also others that I didn't know before reading the book but felt like I knew well
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Jul 31, 2010
Jim
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The Glory of Their Times is a great book for any baseball fan. It contains the stories of 26 of the greats of the game from the first half of the twentieth century, as they remember them. The book is filled with tales of triumph and tragedy and memories that span the range of human emotion. The astounding feats,amazing careers and humorous anecdotes are too numerous to list. Every players' story is unique, but they are all united by their love for the game of baseball. I encourage all enthu
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Feb 07, 2009
Kevin
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The author interviews players that were around when baseball was just beginning to become a professional sport. There weren't that many still alive, so the ones he interviews were lesser known players. They still share some fascinating stories.
This is definitely a book for those who enjoy the deeply personal part of the early days of baseball. Not a lot of gossip or strategy. Just some stories of what men did to play the game they love, and what life was like on a ball team.
This is definitely a book for those who enjoy the deeply personal part of the early days of baseball. Not a lot of gossip or strategy. Just some stories of what men did to play the game they love, and what life was like on a ball team.
Jul 15, 2008
Jared
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I really enjoyed this book, although it isn't a book I would read all at once. It is a series of oral histories by famous baseball players from around 1900-1920. The author didn't start collecting the histories until the mid-1960s, so a lot of better known names (i.e. Joe Jackson, Babe Ruth, etc) aren't included because they had already died by that time. However, he talked to about 20 former players and then essentially transcribed their conversations. Some of the interviews were less than
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Aug 20, 2009
Mike
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This is the book to be read by those who wish to truly understand the history of baseball. It is stories told to the author by those who lived them, including some of the very best of professional baseball's early players. I own several large shelves of baseball books, but this is the one I lend out the most and I recommend it to anyone who asks.
Oct 12, 2007
Donald
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"The Glory Of Their Times" remains a timeless work, and can be enjoyed by more than just hard-core baseball fans. Basically the story of the early days of Major League Baseball, told by the surviving oldsters who had played it, "The Glory Of Their Times" works so well because it isn't just another opinion piece by a professional writer. The stories told by these players illustrate what life was like during the first few decades of the twentieth century better than any histori
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Jan 15, 2009
Senecacat
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This was perhaps the first baseball history book I read as an adult, and it was a great place to start. Although the players interviewed are not all household names, their stories are memorable, especially since you read them as the players told them to Ritter. I think any avid baseball fan would enjoy this book.
Jul 16, 2009
Brayden
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Contains the oral histories of a bunch of former professional baseball players who played during the heyday of the sport during the early 1900s. The stories are quirky and fun and revealed a lot about how the game has changed (and also what makes it such an enduring pastime). Thoroughly entertaining.
Dec 09, 2011
Amatullah
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Brilliant! The author took a tape recorder and interviewed old time, legendary baseball players from the early 1900's and late 1800's. He then used their own words in narrative form in the book. A true marvel and a book to cherish. A legend of a book with legendary stories and accounts from men who loved baseball as much as it is possible.
Jul 05, 2011
Sparrowfall
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You don't have to love baseball history to love this book (I do and I did, and if you do you will). The stories of the every day life of baseball players from older eras are also wonderful to read.
Dec 15, 2008
Craig
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i read it in a holding cell in o'hare airport and that still didn't stop me deriving pleasure from it. i don't know if i could possibly give a more glowing recommendation than that.
Jan 03, 2012
Nick
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Good stuff. Interesting to read what the old timers thought about the game, and who they think was the greatest ever that they played against.
Jun 09, 2010
Randy
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An oral history of the "dead-ball" era. The intelligence of these early ballplayers, and the intensity of their personalities, puts the vast majority of contemporary athletes to shame.
Aug 11, 2010
Mark
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An oral history of baseball prior to the Babe Ruth era. An excellent book for baseball or history buffs alike!
May 03, 2010
Osborneinri
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One of the all-time great books about the early decades of baseball -- as told by the men who played it.
Mar 10, 2010
Kent
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The greatest baseball book ever. I could read it a thousand times. I should read it a thousand times.
Jan 19, 2012
Big League
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A classic, but remember these are interviews, memories. Its not always exactly factual stuff.
Sep 09, 2011
Gary
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I love the early day of baseball when they play for the love of the game, not money.
Jul 19, 2011
Rebecca
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Loved this book. A must read for anyone who likes baseball and history.
Jan 27, 2009
Jackmccullough
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This is a great book about baseball. Ritter had the chance to interview many of the very early baseball players, so you get a great feel for what life was like at the beginning.
Jan 06, 2012
Kyle
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Fun book. Never heard of any of these guys, but they played with all the greats. Most are in the Hall of Fame. Cool to hear about how baseball used to be played. We have mostly prima donnas now.
