Willie Mays

Jul 05, 2012 Nathaniel rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This is a well organized, sincere, detailed look at one of the great ballplayers of all-time. Many have noted it's lack of criticism, or even the scent of objectivity about its subject, it's a valid criticism. Perhaps one day, someone will do a more objective biography of this great player, but this is a very fine biography. I reserve most of my criticism for the author. Hirsch does a nice job covering all the topics but frequently I found him going on a bit too long, when the topic had been exh...more This is a well organized, sincere, detailed look at one of the great ballplayers of all-time. Many have noted it's lack of criticism, or even the scent of objectivity about its subject, it's a valid criticism. Perhaps one day, someone will do a more objective biography of this great player, but this is a very fine biography. I reserve most of my criticism for the author. Hirsch does a nice job covering all the topics but frequently I found him going on a bit too long, when the topic had been exhausted, a paragraph, or a page before.

Example: he deftly covers the inequities in pay African-American ballplayers faced in the 1950s (and throughout the book) smartly comparing them to white players of the day, even of the same stature of Willie (Mickey Mantle), but I feel then goes on, adding on unneccesarily. The facts Hirsch lays out explain all too starkly the injustice. Does anyone really need more?

Example: In Hirsch's analysis of The Catch, he smartly gets other players and managers criticism of Mays, and then gets the explanation from Willie that defends the play. Hirsch then goes on again. Willie's explanation, whether you buy it or not, is sufficent, what Hirsch add to the conversation, after that, is superfluous.

Example: Hirsch also makes noise about Willie having hit a HR in every inning from 1 to 16. Seems to me the correct part of that stat to go on about is from inning ten to sixteen, thats at least seven walk off HRS, not one to nine. But Hirsch ask rhetorically how many players [during their career:] come up in every inning? Really? You play long enough (in Mays case 22 years), probably every player. Don't get me wrong, I'm in no way diminishing Mays' achievement, I'm questioning the analysis.

I also don't know if Hirsch not being a noted baseball writer or even a more noted biographer hurts or helps him at the certain points. He doesn't screw up anything major, or even anything unforgivable (he misspells the hotel in Milwaukee, the Pfister...incredibly small beans), but there is a constant sense that Hirsch is a little uncomfortable in the language of baseball.

Look even after all that, if you have an interest in Willie Mays, all time great, and are a baseball fan, this is a trememdous book, and a whole lot of fun, and I totally recommend it. (less)

2 likes · like · see review

Jan 06, 2013 hamptonenglish10 rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Eric Mikulan
Ms. Brooks and Ms. Sims
English Book Review
7 January 2013

For my non-fiction book I read the book Willie Mays: The Life, The Legend by James S. Hirsch. This book tells of the story of Willie Mays life from growing up in Alabama to becoming a Major League Baseball player. The book tells of May's struggles as he got drafted out of high school as he grew up in a time of great racism. His struggles continued as he began to play in minor league baseball in Minneapolis. Due to the great ra...more Eric Mikulan
Ms. Brooks and Ms. Sims
English Book Review
7 January 2013

For my non-fiction book I read the book Willie Mays: The Life, The Legend by James S. Hirsch. This book tells of the story of Willie Mays life from growing up in Alabama to becoming a Major League Baseball player. The book tells of May's struggles as he got drafted out of high school as he grew up in a time of great racism. His struggles continued as he began to play in minor league baseball in Minneapolis. Due to the great racism of the time of when he played in the Negro Leagues of the south which is were all the African American baseball players played until Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier of Major league baseball. The book goes on to tell of May's career in the MLB with New York and San Francisco, and gives praise to one of the greatest baseball players of all time.

This book on Willie Mays is a non-fiction biography, I know this because the author tells the story of Willie Mays and his life and Career in baseball. Some information that I found interesting in this book is that Willies Mays ranks fourth on the all time home run leaderboard with 660 home runs. Willie Mays was the highest paid player of the late 1950s making $100,000 which seems like a miniscule amount of money compared to todays athletes. Willies Mays played 22 seasons in the MLB which is a very long time to be in major league baseball where the average player only plays for around 5 years. Willie Mays set a Major league record for durability by playing more than 150 games in thirteen or more seasons.

Overall I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking to further there knowledge of one of the greatest baseball players of all time. I give the book four stars out of five since it provides lots of information about Willie Mays and Major League Baseball. However I did not give this book a fifth star because of the fact that it can become fairly boring at times. The book should be read if you like baseball and if you like the history of some of the greatest players. (less)

like · see review

Jan 04, 2013 Ty rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is one of the few biographies of the great Willie Mays and the only one written with his support (thus "authorized"). the book is a very detailed look at the Say Hey Kid's life and times. i believe that Mays is the greatest baseball player of all time, and not coincidentally, the greatest NY/SF Giants player of all time, of course. reading through the description of his playing career was fascinating for me, as i never got a chance to see him play in real life. i found it a bit odd that the...more

like · see review

Jul 05, 2012 Rogers rated it 4 of 5 stars

Willie Mays may be the least well known baseball superstar, in terms of personality, that exists. This book goes along way to giving the reader insight to the man. I found out a lot of things about Mays that I didn't know.

In terms of Mays place in the game, I think the author summed it up quite well. 'Babe Ruth may have been the most dominant player as compared to his peers at the time. Ted Williams was probably a better hitter than Ruth. But Mays was the master of the game.' Willie could do ev...more

like · see review

Mar 23, 2012 James rated it 4 of 5 stars

For those who never got to see him play—an ever-growing segment that now includes a couple of generations of fans—the legend of Willie Mays is built on grainy film of "The Catch" in the 1954 World Series, maybe a shot or two of him zipping around the bases, and numbers like 660 (home runs), 338 (stolen bases), and 2,062 (runs scored). We accept his greatness because it's always been there, a standard for the heroes of our times to be measured against. He shows up on any credible all-time all-sta...more For those who never got to see him play—an ever-growing segment that now includes a couple of generations of fans—the legend of Willie Mays is built on grainy film of "The Catch" in the 1954 World Series, maybe a shot or two of him zipping around the bases, and numbers like 660 (home runs), 338 (stolen bases), and 2,062 (runs scored). We accept his greatness because it's always been there, a standard for the heroes of our times to be measured against. He shows up on any credible all-time all-star team, and stands among the truly elite in Baseball's Hall of Fame.

But most of us don't really know him. We, who began watching baseball when Reggie Jackson and George Brett and Mike Schmidt were the gate attractions, can typically store what we know about Mays in a thimble. Sure numerous books, including a couple of autobiographies, have been penned on the Say Hey Kid. Most are the type that belong in elementary school libraries, where they might find their way off the shelf for an occasional Black History Month report.

For all Mays did, on the field and off, no one ever captured the breadth of his contributions. Until now. James S. Hirsch's "Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend" is the first authorized biography of baseball's most complete player, and it builds on everything that has come before it. Here is Mays as a youngster growing up in starkly segregated Alabama, as an anxious rookie convinced he doesn't belong in the big leagues, and as a reluctant superstar, skeptical of the motives of everyone who approaches him.

This lack of trust, well-founded in some cases, has helped to shroud Mays' legacy over the past four decades. His reticence with reporters, especially after his Giants moved to San Francisco, and sensitivity to critical stories fed off each other. If not for the financial difficulties that plagued him throughout most of his adult life, Mays might have been even more reclusive. Ironically, the need for money that caused him to take a job at Bally's International casino in Atlantic City led to his temporary banishment from baseball in the 1980s, dropping him further out of the public view.

Mays' wariness delayed this release by nearly a decade. Hirsch, a former reporter for the New York Times, approached him originally in 2000 about collaborating on a biography. He was hardly the first to ask, and Mays declined as he had all previous such requests. Hirsch instead wrote another book. He asked again a couple years later. Again Mays was uninterested. But as time passed he warmed to the idea, and when Hirsch asked a fourth time in 2007 they struck a deal.

Mays helped open doors for Hirsch, who interviewed 130 people, from former teammates to playmates back in Fairfield, Ala., the segregated company town in which Mays grew up. He also dug into newspaper and magazine archives as well as more than 135 books. While most of the stories have been documented elsewhere over the years, Hirsch has molded them all into a definitive life story, set in the context of Mays' time.

That context is essential in understanding Mays' place not just in baseball history, but American history. Though Jackie Robinson broke the game's color barrier four years prior to Mays' rookie year, the game was hardly integrated. Mays had learned as a child to go along to get along, an approach that earned him the rebukes of more outspoken African-American players such as Robinson and Hank Aaron. But Mays, who began playing in the Negro Leagues while still in high school, felt he did his part over time to break down barriers. Hirsch details his efforts to buy a home in an all-white neighborhood in San Francisco in 1957. Mays was later the first black member at the Concordia-Argonaut men's club, and though he faced discrimination his entire career, he preferred to keep these episodes quiet whenever possible.

His play on the field was never quiet, of course. Mays brought a flair for showmanship with him from his time with the Birmingham Black Barons. His amazing range in center field and daring feats on the bases earned him attention, if not respect, almost immediately. His arrival helped spark a rebirth for the Giants in 1951, the season noted for Bobby Thomson's Shot Heard 'Round the World which ended a three-game playoff against the Dodgers. Three years later Mays' defense stole the show, when he made his famous catch of a deep drive by Cleveland's Vic Wertz in Game One of the World Series. Hirsch devotes an entire chapter to the game, in which Mays made another play later that he felt was as good if not better than his immortal grab.

There's plenty more baseball, including Mays' offseason barn-storming tours, his second MVP season in 1965, his repeated bouts with exhaustion, and the 1972 trade that returned him to New York, this time with the Mets.

This is a major accomplishment by Hirsch, whose persistence and years of research brought one of the game's greats back into the limelight. It requires some effort, however, and persistence on the part of the reader. At 628 pages, "Willie Mays" is thicker than a bible. There's nearly a page for each of Mays' home runs. After a certain point some of the season recaps begin to blend together and the differences in approach to discrimination with Robinson border on redundant.
(less)

like · see review

Dec 31, 2011 Cheryl Gatling added it

I was initially a bit intimidated by the size of this book. I knew I wanted to read about Willie Mays, but did I want to read that much about Willie Mays? Yes, it turned out I did. The accomplishments of his long career were easy to read. He began in the Negro Leagues, and when he first got called up to the New York Giants, he was so young and insecure that, at first, he refused to go. Leo Durocher gave him encouragement and protection until his skills blossomed. It seemed he did everything well...more I was initially a bit intimidated by the size of this book. I knew I wanted to read about Willie Mays, but did I want to read that much about Willie Mays? Yes, it turned out I did. The accomplishments of his long career were easy to read. He began in the Negro Leagues, and when he first got called up to the New York Giants, he was so young and insecure that, at first, he refused to go. Leo Durocher gave him encouragement and protection until his skills blossomed. It seemed he did everything well: power hitting, speed running (with his hat famously flying off), but most magically, having the ball just plop down into his waiting glove. Fans responded with an outpouring of love, but the relationship between Mays and reporters was always strained. He was wary, reserved, and did not reveal his private thoughts. With children, though, he was always at ease, visiting hospitals even when no cameras were looking, and playing stickball in the streets. He always hated controversy, and was known as a peacemaker, stepping in to break up on-field fights. All of this was interesting, but the underlying theme of racial tension makes it more so. Mays began his career in the age of segregation, having to stay in separate hotels and denied entry to restaurants. Even when things began to change there were incidents. He was thrown out of a Las Vegas casino. He was denied the house he wanted to buy. And did his depiction in the press deprive him of respect that he deserved? He was depicted as a natural, not as a skilled or smart player, although he was both. He was the eternal happy-go-lucky kid. Was Durocher's protection of Mays a form of paternalism, implying that he could not speak for himself, or make his own decisions? Was Mays an Uncle Tom, as Jackie Robinson would later imply, as he criticized him severely for failing to join the political agitation for equal rights? All Mays wanted to do was play baseball. Baseball was his life, and the team was his family. That made the ending of his career painful, especially as he perceived that his two teams slighted him, but in the end Mays was recognized by everyone as one of the greatest baseball players of all time.(less)

like · see review

Jul 17, 2011 Chuck rated it 4 of 5 stars

It's stunning to think that, as important he is as a baseball player and as an American icon, there has never been a biography written about Willie Mays. For people who actually read my book reviews, you will note that my summer reading kick has included some sports biography. The last book I posted on was a life of Henry Aaron, and, although I didn't know a great deal about Mays at the time, the one troubling thing I found was the author's need to "dog" Mays to promote Aaron (something Aaron hi...more It's stunning to think that, as important he is as a baseball player and as an American icon, there has never been a biography written about Willie Mays. For people who actually read my book reviews, you will note that my summer reading kick has included some sports biography. The last book I posted on was a life of Henry Aaron, and, although I didn't know a great deal about Mays at the time, the one troubling thing I found was the author's need to "dog" Mays to promote Aaron (something Aaron himself did not do).

Similarities between the two are many, the comparisons, natural. Both were born in Alabama in the 1930s, both were raised by strong, supportive fathers, both "came up" through the Negro Leagues, and both faced the segregation of baseball in the 1950s, as well as facing segregation in the supposedly "liberal" and "free" North. Neither publicly complained about the treatment they endured, and both were initially criticized for not using their athletic fame to comment on social issues, and both also became respected as pioneers, showing African-Americans in a positive light when few were visible.

However, both were different men. I won't discuss Aaron more--he is a man I profoundly respect whom I have written about elsewhere. And, perhaps because of the difference in their ages (Mays is a few years older), I have fewer memories of Mays playing that I do of Aaron. I do, however, remember Willie Mays 40th birthday because it was a national news event, and I realize from Hirsch's biography that he was still playing at a high level the season he turned 40. Interestingly, my memories of him are of spectacular catches in the outfield rather than at the plate.

Mays does a remarkable job of chronicling Mays life from the early days to the present, using testimony, documentary evidence, and, sometimes, interviews from Mays himself. Hirsch's usual patter is to tell a story with the evidence available, and then to provide Mays' comments afterward.

What emerges is a man who, because of a combination of skills and effervescent personality, gained acceptance in the the 1950s at a time when very few African-Americans were granted access to much of anything in society. And therein lies the rub with Mays--his celebrity got him a "pass," protecting him from some of the worst things that many black men at the time faced, and yet he faced much racism. His refusal to complain or even publicize the slights he faced causes some to criticize him as a "Tom" or as someone whose status as athlete made him out of touch with everyday African-America. Hirsch notes that Mays was a transformative player--the first African American baseball player that white youth actively emulated. He also notes Mays steadfast refusal to court controversy over the many slights he faced for his race (inability to gain housing in San Francisco even when he was the highest paid Giant is one example) as being part of a consistent philosophy, while continuing to note the criticism he received for not being activist enough. (This was virtually identical to the stance Aaron took). Important to remember is that both men were sons of the South, of segregation, and that it is easy for someone like Jackie Robinson, who grew up in California in an integrated neighborhood, to criticize people for not opposing segregation when they have less experience with it. Opposition in the South could get a black man killed, something taught by Mays' father.

However, this book is primarily about baseball. Mays' greatness is hard to quantify--at one level, he is considered the greatest player ever, but he doesn't hold many records, and those he does hold are obscure (he is the only player to cumulatively hit a home run in every posssible inning of a baseball game from innings one to 16, for example). But his records are impressive--660 home runs are, before the age of steriods, second only to Aaron and Babe Ruth, a career batting average over .300, nearly two thousand runs scored and two thousand runs batted in. It is the record of a player who was excellent for a very, very long time--quite productive into his 20th year in the bigs (although he faded quickly the year later, and regretted the last two years he played).

But more than that is the defense--the ability to anticipate the ball, to catch what would, for any other outfielder, be a home run or a triple, the rocket arm, able to consistently throw out a runner at home. Mays has far more putouts than any other outfielder, a record that hasn't come close to being reached in the nearly forty years since he retired. Also hard to quantify is the crafty base running, often being thrown out but distracting the fielders so a team mate can score the winning run, things that made his team win many games but never appeared in any stat line.

This is the genius of Hirsch's book--he is able to make the average reader understand the subtleties of Mays' greatness while meaningfully exploring the issues he faced in life. The book is flattering but not a hagiography; Mays faults are noted (it is interesting to note that he read every page of the book but did not ask Hirsch to change anything except a factual error or two).

I'm going to return to Howard Bryant's biography of Henry Aaron for a moment. I though it a superior book, but thought it was flawed by the author's need to push Aaron above Mays. It bothered me at the time because I thought it diminished from the strong case he made for Aaron's greatness, which stands alone and is not threatened by Willie Mays. Hirsch also notes that, given the way Mays was torn up by racial controversy, had he been in a position to assault Ruth's home run record, he would not have handled it as well as Aaron did (something Mays acknowledges).

However, rather than criticize Bryant, I want to celebrate one of its excellences, one that I didn't fully appreciate 'til I read Hirsch's book on Mays. Bryant, who is African-American, writes from an "inside" that Hirsch cannot access. When Bryant notes that Aaron was criticized for "not hustling," the author goes into a thoughtful explanation of the challenges faced by an African-American male in the South, noting that sunup to sundown labor was expected no matter what, and that there was no advantage for a black man to move a bit faster to impress a white boss. It's the kind of insight that helps explain a time, a place, and a bias very well. It's something that, as gifted as he is, as good as the book was, Hirsch as a white East Coast male, doesn't have the experimentally authority to write about. This isn't a flaw in the book at all, but I wondered if an African American author might have offered different analysis of Mays' refusal to court controversy.

This book is excellent; I always had in my mind that Mays was a good player, and now I can see what all the shouting is about. I heartily recommend it, for baseball fans and for those interested in social history of the 50s and 60s.(less)

1 like · like · see review

Feb 13, 2011 Scott Taylor rated it 5 of 5 stars

My first introduction to Mays was via the Peanuts comic strips of my youth. It was a spelling bee, and Charlie Brown was asked to spell "maze." "M...A...Y...S" Charlies says, and immediately the teacher says "Waaaa waaa waaaaaaaa" which, in this case, means "incorrect!" It illustrates something I learned in this book, that Willie Mays was not only a great baseball player but also a great ambassador for the game into popular culture.

An absolute treat, this book takes the reader back to the 1930s...more

like · see review

Apr 09, 2010 Keith rated it 5 of 5 stars

One of the professors at the seminary I attended once said that God is closer to us "than our underwear". For me, it's kind of that way with Willie Mays. I grew up looking at box scores in the daily papers searching for his stats. Every chance I got to watch him on that newfangled thing called a television, I was enthralled. He was the only player people expected to hit a home run every time he batted, steal every base he could if he didn't and got on some other way, catch everything that was h...more

like · see review

Mar 28, 2010 Frank rated it 4 of 5 stars

The best baseball player of all time. I'll concede that, maybe, anotehr player could hit, hit for power, run, throw and catch, better than Willie Mays. but I'll never be eight yers old again. And, back then, Willie Mays was God. An electrifying player--if the Giants lost, 15-1, it was OK if Mays had hit a home run. The biography was very satisfying and enlightening. If you don't enjoy baseball, you still might find the book worth reading, if only from the civil rights viewpoint. Mays, essentialy...more

like · see review

Aug 15, 2012 Chris Munson rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography, sports

Anyone that knows me knows that I have a passion for baseball. So, I often try to read something baseball related. I also like to read about great people. Recently, I saw that Willie Mays and I shared the same birthday and I saw this book in the bargain bin. Willie Mays definitely had an interesting life. From his time in the Negro Leagues to his debut in the major leagues, Willie's story shows what you can overcome if you work hard, never give up and are surrounded by supporting and loving peop...more

like · see review

Jun 17, 2010 Gary Land rated it 5 of 5 stars

Willie Mays was one of my boyhood heroes. Indeed, my now well-worn San Francisco Giants 1959 Yearbook with his (and Willie McCovey's) autograph remains a prized possession. One gratifying element in reading this book was to learn that my youthful hero-worship was not misplaced; Mays was and is an admirable man on and off the baseball field. More significantly, Hirsch places Mays's style of play and accomplishments within the context of baseball history, noting how he and other black stars enlive...more

like · see review

Aug 05, 2012 William Cunion rated it 4 of 5 stars

The first (?) extensive biography of the Say Hey Kid. Extremely enjoyable book, as it brings to life a figure who does not easily lend himself to a book-length biographical treatment. Despite his enormous talent and his obvious place in American history, Mays’s life largely lacks the drama and conflict of most biographical subjects. In fact, he comes across as a rather simple man, one who loved what he did, and who enjoyed adulation, but shied from the spotlight. He avoided controversy, virtuall...more

like · see review

Mar 01, 2012 Spiros rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone who wants to know greatness

Shelves: beisbol, heroes, housingworks, california

Willie Mays was my third childhood hero, right behind Curious George and Batman. In our games of streetball (or drivewayball), I willingly ceded any right to "be" Willie to Anthony McBride, who was a year older and infinitely more athletic than me. I was perfectly content to "be" Bobby Bonds. Hence, it was a long time before I nerved myself to pick up this tome, and it was only because I found a $10 hardcover copy at Housing Works that I wound up purchasing it, and carried it around the East Coa...more Willie Mays was my third childhood hero, right behind Curious George and Batman. In our games of streetball (or drivewayball), I willingly ceded any right to "be" Willie to Anthony McBride, who was a year older and infinitely more athletic than me. I was perfectly content to "be" Bobby Bonds. Hence, it was a long time before I nerved myself to pick up this tome, and it was only because I found a $10 hardcover copy at Housing Works that I wound up purchasing it, and carried it around the East Coast for a couple of weeks; when I returned to work, the first thing to greet my eyes was a shiny stack of $10 copies on our remainder table, but hey: it's nice to buy books at Housing Works (also, a tee-shirt to replace the Paul Madonna Green Apple shirt I had left in Baltimore).
All in all, Hirsch does a great job. What galled me the most, even more than the racist residents of Miraloma Drive who tried to stop Willie from lowering their fucking property values when he moved to the City in 1958, was reading about San Francisco's idiot parochial press. I mean, I have been known to drink, but I'm pretty sure I am incapable of the vitriolic spew that Charles McCabe scrawled about Mays, and it comes as no surprise that Glenn Dickey questioned Willie's baseball intelligence; Dickey is the same cock-knocker who would later opine that that the 49ers should trade Joe Montana after the 1985 season. In reading this, Barry Bonds' relations with the press become more understandable; Barry is my exact contemporary, and he grew up watching the local press buffoons rip into both his father and his godfather.
Actually, it always amazes me how het up journalists get about players' salaries. Was Willie taking money that Stoneham had otherwise earmarked for the media? Stoneham basically ran (or drank) the franchise into the ground: between 1968 and 1974 the Giant's debuted Bobby Bonds, Dave Kingman, George Foster, Garry Maddox, and Gary Mathews into their outfield; by 1977, none of those players was with the team. Did the press ever get snippy with Stoneham? Not even after he sold the team to LaBatts, and put the Giants in jeopardy of being moved to Toronto or *shudder* St. Petersburg. And yet these same stooges had the effrontery to accuse Willie Mays of "Uncle Tomming". Fortunately, the local sporting press has both shrunken and dramatically improved since Willie's time, and I willingly buy the fishwrap on Saturdays just to read Bruce Jenkins. (less)

1 like · like · see review

May 18, 2013 Conner Rodriguez rated it 4 of 5 stars

Name: Conner Rodriguez
Date: 5/18/13
Period:4
Book: Willie Mays, The Life Leged
Author: James S. Hirsch
Rate: 4 stars

Summary:
I chose this book because Willie Mays is one of the best baseball players of all time. The book “Willie Mays” is about young man who started out in the negro leagues and got the chance to prove himself in the white leagues. In the white leagues he excelled and eventually became one of the best players in baseball history. My favorite quote in this book is“I think I was the bes...more

like · see review

Jul 02, 2010 Tom Gase rated it 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book. I guess the best compliment I can give this book is that I'm a baseball fan, but a Dodger fan and I LOATHE the Giants. I mean, I hate the colors orange and black because of them. But that being said, this book on the Say Hey Kid was flawless. It's long at 560 pages, but it's basically all baseball. About 10 to 20 pages on each year he played in the Majors, a little more on his years in 1951, 1954 and 1965, but all in all you get to follow Mays throughout his career. Only the l...more

like · see review

Apr 06, 2010 Bookmarks Magazine rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: may-jun-2010

The readers who seemed to appreciate Hirsch's biography the most were those who either had a personal connection to Mays's story or those who delight in baseball records and minutiae. The book is undoubtedly a must-read for anyone who is excited about an entire chapter devoted to the famous catch in the 1954 World Series (according to Mays himself, the catch was less impressive than the throw). But many reviewers felt the book dragged, either because of the vast detail or the digressions into co...more

like · see review

Jun 19, 2011 Adrian added it

The full life at 557 pages. Covers in detail his two years in the negro leagues and 22 years in the majors. Hirsch is good on race relations and portrays Mays as an arch conciliator, seldom taking offense and always seeing the other guy's point of view mainly because this was his personality. This caused trouble with more combative types like Jackie Robinson. I wasn't aware of Mays' difficulty in buying a house in San Francisco in the late 50s nor about the Giants' racial problems which Hirsch b...more

1 like · like · see review

Jun 13, 2012 Jason Koivu rated it 4 of 5 stars

A strong and well-constructed biography of one of the first black men integrated into the majors in early 1950s America, and more importantly to the man himself, one of the best players and nicest guys ever to play the game. Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend encompasses a great deal of this monumental and yet utterly humble man's life as well as the times he lived it in prose that is at times lyrical - especially when it comes to describing baseball - but which is at all times throughout the boo...more

3 likes · like · see review

Dec 01, 2010 Rich rated it 4 of 5 stars

When I was a kid, I did not want to be a policeman or a fireman or even a baseball player - I wanted to be Willie Mays. My parents saved my crayon drawing of the center fielder with his back to home plate, racing to catch the deep drive, number 24 emblazoned on the back. In other words, this is not an objective review. I was simply enthralled with the book - details of his life in the South, the barnstorming tours of Latin America, the housing discrimination of San Francisco in the fifties, the...more

like · see review

May 08, 2011 Deedee Light rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Well, I love baseball and I will always love the smooth stride of Willie Mays deep in the grass. This is not only a story about Willie Mays but a story about segregation, family and America's game, then and to some extent now. Not a book for those the don't appreciate the skill it takes to catch a fly ball while running backward and fire it in from deep center to mid-field. BUT, if you understand the true nature of this kind of perfection, it's read not to be missed.

SPOILER ALERT: It also does...more

like · see review

Mar 24, 2010 Len rated it 4 of 5 stars

I like to start each baseball season by reading a baseball book, and it's hard to imagine a better baseball hero to read about than Willie Mays. This book was a thorough life story, starting with his childhood in Alabama through his time in the Negro leagues, on to his brief minor league experience -- and then of course the story of his remarkable major league career with the Giants and Mets.

Willie Mays has always been something of an anomaly -- a public figure with a very private personal life....more I like to start each baseball season by reading a baseball book, and it's hard to imagine a better baseball hero to read about than Willie Mays. This book was a thorough life story, starting with his childhood in Alabama through his time in the Negro leagues, on to his brief minor league experience -- and then of course the story of his remarkable major league career with the Giants and Mets.

Willie Mays has always been something of an anomaly -- a public figure with a very private personal life. Yes, we knew about his marriages and his financial issues and even his job with Bally's that kept him away from MLB for so many years. But he kept so quiet about his views on big issues that you perhaps thought he didn't have any views. But he definitely did.

Mays was one of the first African Americans in the major leagues and played during a difficult time in America for race relations. He wasn't outspoken like Jackie Robinson, but he experienced more than his share of racism and in his own way dealt with it -- by talking to kids and teaching them about right and wrong. He also was caught in the middle of baseball's expansion west and struggled with San Francisco fans early on being one of the last remaining New York Giants.

I loved reading about Willie Mays...both his on the field life and his off the field life. While I was too young to really compare him to today's baseball legends, I did get to see him play as a member of the New York Mets and remember even as a young child knowing there was something magical about him. I'll never forget seeing his pink Cadillac parked out front of Shea Stadium with the license plate that read "sey hey."

This is a great read for baseball fans, and for anyone who wants to explore what America was like in the 50s and 60s.

The only downside for me was that Hirsch was very rarely critical of Mays in the book. He did say a few things that were critical, but for the most part it was written as if Hirsch thought Willie Mays was never wrong and always the victim. This book is really a love letter of sorts to Mays. But hey, he was arguably the greatest all-around baseball player ever.(less)

like · see review

Apr 08, 2013 Robin rated it 4 of 5 stars

I grew up watching Willie Mays playing with the New York Mets, and was delighted when I learned he was a hero for the SF Giants too, the team I now follow. Reading this book was a perfect way to sustain my love of baseball during the off season. I learned how being a Mets fan and a Giants fan makes sense. I learned about the roots of baseball in New York. I learned about the horrific prejudice that Mays and other African-American players endured. I learned how and why Willie Mays was an Extraord...more

like · see review

Jul 23, 2012 Jesse Aporta rated it 3 of 5 stars

Not to continue the Mantle v Mays debate, but in the "overall life story" Mantle still comes out on top. I feel like Hirsch handles the subject of Mays with 'kid gloves,' whereas Levy pulls no punches when it comes to her bio of Mantle. Mays was a wonderful man, with a huge heart, but Hirsch doesn't effectively debunk the 'ignorant country bumpkin' stereotype of Mays. While Hirsch does discuss Mays' divorce and his monetary issues, he is very superficial when it comes to anything negative. The e...more

like · see review

Mar 15, 2012 Jeff Dickison rated it 5 of 5 stars

Outstanding biography of an astounding man. My favorite baseball player of all times. His catch in the '54 Series and the Giants defeat of the Indians in four straight made me a lifetime fan of the Giants and Mays. The first major league game I was fortunate enough to attend was in the old St. Louis Sportsmen Park where the Giants defeated the Cardinals behind Ruben Gomez and Willie's three hits. He was unbelievably fast. One of his hits was a routine pop up behind first and before the right fie...more

like · see review

Mar 29, 2010 Raymond rated it 4 of 5 stars

Five-hundred-sixty pages on Willie Mays? This is what James S. Hirsch has produced with, “Willie Mays, the Life, the Legend.” Of course, Willie Mays is (probably) the greatest of all the great baseball players. Willie’s active years were the years of racial integration of major league baseball and the years when the leagues came to span the continental nation - Willie’s Giants moved from the Polo Grounds in New York City to San Francisco. And then: Willie Mays is a singular, magnetic person/pers...more

like · see review

Oct 04, 2012 Greg Enloe rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: the-library

Willie Mays athletic ability as a baseball player was off the charts. Growing up in the south, I was a Hank Aaron fan and used to sit in the nosebleed seats of Atlanta Fulton County stadium yelling 'Hank, Hank' till my dad would finally tell me to shut up, he can't hear you.
What I learned from this book was that Willie was little emotionally immature and needed Monte Irvin and Leo Durocher to guide him off the field.
Book moves along well, I love reading about the other great players and series...more

like · see review

Feb 03, 2011 Friends Read added it

Shelves: alumni-1969, homeruns, nonfiction

"If you grew up loving baseball in the fifties and sixties in the New York environ, like I did, then you were a big fan of Willie Mays, possibly the greatest player ever. This authorized biography is a long but comprehensive life story of an individual who tried to be a positive influence on the game and his organization. However, the book provides a equal insight into history of baseball generally and of the social progress in race relations during the second half of the twentieth century. If y...more

like · see review

Dec 13, 2012 Larry Hostetler rated it 4 of 5 stars

Good book, but somewhat of an encomium to Willie (not that it's not deserved.) I learned a lot and have increased respect for the man. I wish we had video to see some of the talent and ability that made him such a legend; Hirsch shows that not always are statistics sufficient to describe the value of a player. Another outstanding baseball player we are left to wonder "what would his statistics have been if he hadn't had to serve in the military in his prime?" Only one major complaint - I thought...more

like · see review

Mar 15, 2010 Dale Stonehouse rated it 3 of 5 stars

There has long been a need for a Willie Mays biography, and while less than perfect, this one is welcome. The author, who says he never saw Mays play, nonetheless gives a good feel for the transformative nature of Mays' game as what is now called "the first five-tool player." Bridging the baseball eras of station-to-station, wait for the home run play to the modern game, Mays is portrayed as one of a kind on and off the field. My rating is this low mainly because the author is obviously not stee...more

like · see review

title link	preview: Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend
avg rating	preview: Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend Goodreads rating: 3.99 (752 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6962222-willie-mays?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348762131l/6962222.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6962222-willie-mays?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend by James S. Hirsch[/url]

Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend

Friend Reviews

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topic
Discuss This Book

combine
Other Editions (5)

Videos About This Book

Genres

Readers also enjoyed similar books

Books by James S. Hirsch

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website

Trivia About Willie Mays: The ...