Babe Ruth

by Wilborn Hampton

Babe Ruth is still regarded as perhaps the greatest baseball player ever to step on a diamond. Born into a poor family in Baltimore, George Herman Ruth Jr. was sent to a Catholic reform school at age seven, where he learned how to play baseball. Initially a talented southpaw, the Babe went on to shatter every home-run record on the books?and when fewer games were played in a season and a heavier ball was used. In this engaging and fast-paced biography, award-winning author Wilborn Hampton shares with readers The Babe was also a man of big heart, temper, and appetite.

Genres: Sports, Biography

208 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

WILBORN HAMPTON is the author of four books of nonfiction and one biography for Young Adults. In four decades as a reporter and editor for United Press International and The New York Times he helped cover some of the major news stories of the time. Now a full-time writer, he lives in New York.

Reviews

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yankees are the all time best in the league ever since babe Ruth played. He turned the Yankees around after hitting like 50,000 home runs. But the Babe did not always just care about baseball, he cared for the community. When he wasn't playing baseball he was at hospitals visiting young kids that look up at him.

[Nate Dierickx]

I like this book a lot because it talks about one of the greatest baseball players. I liked how it gaves stories of him as a kid and growing up. He didn't listen to the rules very much. He didn't even listen to his parents when he had to go to school. He got in so much trouble his parents sent him to a different home. He then learned how to play baseball and he was very good. Everyone was amazed on how good he was and how he had good hand eye coordination. He made it to professional baseball for Brother Mathias, his new parents. He got married to a young girl at the age of 20. He wanted to become the manager of the Yankees but they wouldn't let him, they wanted him to become the co-manager. He got asked by a lot of minor league teams to become their manager.

[Zachary Benton]

This pretty much just tells you about the back ground of Babe Ruth. Where he was born how he got into baseball. What he did in baseball. It was all the back ground stuff that you would need to know. Some people that he would get to know would be his coaches some other famous players at the time. He would also know his wife who's name was Hellen.

Over all it was a good book it covered a lot of his history in a short few hundred pages. I also liked the way they did the book starting out from where he was born and showing why and how he ended up. Starting to play baseball. It was cool how he got into baseball.

I think that people that like baseball or either Babe Ruth. This is is also a good book to use to get some good information about Babe Ruth to write a paper or any other different information on The Babe.

[Aiden Andrews · Rating 3 out of 5]

I knew as an avid baseball fan that Babe Ruth is one of the all-time greats and it doesn't take that much research to do so. When going into this book knowing a plethora of facts about George Ruth as they refer to him in the book, I found this book intriguing because it felt like a behind scenes about his life to the point where he takes off to what we know now as “The Babe”. What comes as a surprise babe wasn't a sought player with many chances to show what he is worth. George Ruth did not come from a great household being 1 of 8 children and only he and his sister would survive. His parents would work terribly long hours which made George fall into the wrong group and become a bit unruly. By the time George was 7 years old, his parents decided a more strict environment would best suit George so they sent him to St. Mary’s Industrial School For Boys. St. Mary’s was a strict school and an environment that helped George’s future for the best. however, as his time at St Mary’s grew so did his passion for baseball.

while Babe is most known for being able to swing the bat like no other, he began his baseball career as a pitcher, beings a great pitcher at that. In 1914, Babe was in five games for the Red Sox, pitching in four of them. He won his major league debut on July 11, 1914. After being traded to the new york Yankees, Babe’s transition to a full-time outfielder was easier than it should be for most. Babe dominated the sport, collecting numbers that had in no way been seen before. He re-wrote the record books from a hitting point of view, combining a high batting average with fantastic power and great precision on the ball, also to mention with very few errors as a fielder. Despite passing over 70 years ago, Babe still is and always be one of the greatest figures in the MLB. Babe gave hope to millions during The Great Depression and He impacted the sport like no other human being. He continues to be at the top of the ladder which all other players hope to be. Despite last playing nearly 80 years ago, the babe was one of the greatest of all time and one for the major league history books.

[Hudson Marshall · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very inspiring and as a young athlete it put into perspective what these athletes have to go to. Babe Ruth is big hearted man who I think other athletes should look up to. This book goes through his life story only briefly from when he first picked up a bat to when he hit his first home run as a pro athlete. You don’t need to be a baseball player to read this and find it enjoyable, it will suit any athlete or none athlete. I highly recommend this book.

[Ronald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Concise but may have a thing or two about the Babe you did not know. Some pictures included.

[Josh Hensley]

Very good book goes into a lot of detail about his life.

[Colton Carter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Babe Ruth is a legendary baseball name that everyone knows. The author's purpose for writing Up Close Babe Ruth was to share the story of Babe Ruth's life before he became a legend. He wanted to provide readers with the true life story of George Herman Ruth. The theme of the book was to tell the kind of life that George Herman Ruth grew up in and how these life experiences shaped him to become the legend that he was. Growing up in the slums of Baltimore, George Ruth had to learn how to survive and to fight his way out. It was this strong spirit that he carried over to his adult life and into baseball that made him the great player that he was.
The author does a good job of telling the narrative story by using personal quotes from Babe Ruth to help us understand who he really was. I like the account of his baseball career in the book also. By adding these two things together is made the book interesting.
The writer's opinion was made clear that Babe Ruth wasn't one of the sweetest guys in his childhood nor during his adult life. The author describes George Ruth as a youngster learning to control his pitches by throwing tomatoes, eggs, and rotten fruit at trucks and wagons. As an adult he was intense about playing the game of baseball and frequently referred to punching people in the nose when he was challenged.
I enjoyed reading Up Close Babe Ruth. My dad and my grandpa had always shared the stories of his career with me, but I never knew anything about his childhood and the struggles that he encountered. It gives me greater appreciation for the great baseball player that he was.

[Jordan Wells · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book it says how Babe Ruth is still talked about as perhaps the greatest baseball player ever to step on a diamond. He was born with a poor family in Baltimore, George. Herman Ruth Jr. was sent to a Catholic school at age seven, where he learned how to play baseball. He did very well for his first time and was seen as a very talented young boy. Babe Ruth then went on to shatter every home run record on the books. When fewer games were played in a season and a heavier ball was used to make it fair if he were to break a record. In this visual and heart pumping biography, award-winning author Wilborn Hampton shares with readers The Babe Ruth was also a man of big heart, temper, and appetite.
I can’t relate to this book because I only played baseball for about two years and I wasn't very good at it. I wasn't a home run hitter, but I got the ball out there for the most part.
I liked this book because I love learning about historic people and how they came to be. Babe Ruth was a perfectionist when it came to baseball. I found it interesting how Babe Ruth sometimes had trouble managing his anger when it came to baseball. If Babe Ruth would strike out then he would be so angry that when he got back to the dough outs he'd punch the fence.
I would recommend this book to anyone who loves baseball and who loves learning about the great Bambino. (Babe Ruth) I loved reading this book and if you decide to read it I know that you’ll love it too. So all of you baseball lovers and historian lovers, go on out and pick yourself up a copy today!

[Gunnar Rains]

When I began reading the book I was a little intrigued. I had never heard about Babe Ruth as a child and his tough time growing up. It tells of when and where he was born to where he died and it’s a very in-depth telling of his long and sometimes sad life.


The book itself is very interesting and factual but I have to say I had a little trouble reading it sometimes. One of the main things it does is pulls facts from other books. Like Babe's autobiography. And sometimes it questions what's in some of the books because (SPOILER ALERT) the Babe has some mental issues due to his health later in his life. The reason I chose the book is I have always been a big baseball fan and I have to say when I read the book I didn’t know a whole lot. About the league,managers,some of the players,etc… and I have never heard of some of the things that happened during Babe’s 22 year career. Like for example the Babe played the Boston Braves at the tail end of his career. I had never known that. So like I said before it’s a very in-depth look into the Babe’s life.


Like I said before the book is very interesting but due to it being in so much depth it’s a bit of a slow read. The reason for that is if you don’t really catch something that happened before you won’t really know what’s going on. The book is very fast pace bouncing from year to year in the matter of 8-9 pages and that’s kind of the reason why I had to read it a little slower. However I thought that it was a very good book and would recommend it to any baseball fan.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gr 7 Up-This book offers readers a fascinating look at the life of the man who, at the age of seven, was taken by his father to a Roman Catholic institution for homeless and troubled boys for "incorrigible" behavior. The teachers and students at St. Mary's became his family, and Brother Matthias, the athletic director, instilled in him his love of baseball and became a lifelong mentor. In 1914, when Babe was 18, the owner of the Baltimore Orioles offered him a contract. So began his tumultuous career in baseball, which lasted more than 20 years, most of which were spent with the New York Yankees. Hampton's narrative gives baseball lovers plenty of detailed statistical facts, but as a whole, the biography is more a weaving together of the various elements of Babe's personality that made him the larger-than-life legend. His generosity, his inability to control his excessive appetites, his quick temper, and his fondness for practical jokes all come through in this recounting that is more accessible than Leigh Montville's The Big Bam (Doubleday, 2006). Carefully chosen photographs enhance the presentation, and the author is meticulous in listing his sources. His extensive research and engaging conversational tone combine to produce a chronicle of Ruth's life that both fans and novices will find hard to put down.-Kim Dare, Fairfax County Public Schools, VA Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.

[Cam Phinney · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great book. It was a book about George Herman "Babe" Ruth and the main parts of his life. He had a tough childhood growing up in Baltimore. With his mom almost always ill and his dad running a bar in town no one could watch George. So George would never go to school and constantly get in trouble with the cops. His dad who was also named George and his mom made a very hard decision early in his life. They decided to send his to St. Marys Industrial School. In St. Marys he learned how to be a taylor, get educated, not to get in trouble, and how to play baseball. Playing baseball at St. Marys would sky rocket his career. He was a star at St. Marys and the stands plus more would be filled with people just wanting to see him play. Scouts took great notice to that. He was a big fun loving giant. The Baltimore Orioles would offer him a contract. Of course he would except it. Then the Orioles were also going bankrupted so they had to sell some players. One of those players was Babe Ruth. The Orioles would sell him to the Boston Red Sox in 1914. Babe preformed exponentially for the Red Sox. But of course the Red Sox being as bad as a franchise as they are, in fact the worst ever, would trade him to the New York Yankees where he had the best seasons of his life. From then on George would become a legend and many people say the best there ever was.

[Dalton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a very good story on the babes baseball career and outside life. When he was a boy his parents didn't take much care in his life so he was able to go and do whatever he wanted without consequence. Later he was sent to a reform school for delinquents, homeless kids, and kids without a family. Babe lived his life at the reform school and later when he was about thirteen or fourteen a huge group of people formed a baseball union with teams scattered in ages. The babe was a natural at baseball but he needed to be taught the right way. When he started playing they had to put him in higher aged teams cause of his talents for the game. The babe played catcher most of the time but on one day he was laughing and saying bad comments to his pitchers sp brother mathiss the coach made him play pitcher so he did and he hadn't ever played the position before but because of his natural talent he did outstanding he started to play pitcher now. Now he didn't just have a great pitch he also had a great bat he could crank home-runs easily. A minor league team called the Baltimore Oriels the teams manager heard about the babe and came to watch one of his games.

[Jake R]

In this book, Babe Ruth, by Wilborn Hampton he theme shows that you can change your life by working hard. In this book Babe Ruth is from Baltimore. He lives in a very pore family with a hard life. He tends to do some bad things. He was able to play on the Boston Red Sox, the New York Yankees, and the Boston Braves. He was an amazing hitter and also pitched which is odd because pitchers can usually never hit. This story is told as if someone was watching his life. Babe Ruth could be said to be one of the best baseball players to ever live.

I thought this was a great book, and it was written very well. The also told us all about his life like when he says "Babe Ruth lived very poor as a kid". This shows that he told us about his life at the beginning and all the way to the end. I can relate to this because when I work hard, and do the things that I need to do to get better, the verdict always comes out good. I would like to recommend this book to anyone who enjoys baseball sports I just history general. This can relate history because Babe Ruth is thought to be one of the greatest baseball players in the world.

[Caleb Lattin · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was okay. Kinda jumps through not-so-important times in Babes life. It was a good book if you had no clue who Babe Ruth. One or the things I likes about this book was it started off as if you knew nothing about Ruth, but it fills in all the gaps that you forgot or didn"t know about Babe. It starts off by saying Babes childhood was really bad. I don't think the book was fibbing. Babe did have a really bad childhood. He was sent to St. Gabriel's school to get his life back together. That is where he learned to play baseball. This book also says that Babes life outside the field was awful, but on the field, he was the greatest ball player who ever lived.
I would recommend this book the anyone who likes long, boring reads. Let's just say that this book was very bland and didn't have much info to it. It just says Babe did this, then he did that, and some more of this, and more of that. It was like this for the beginning and the end of the book.
It might be a good class read. It's better than reading a textbook, but I don't think that the kids would be very i gaged in the story and what's going on.

[Brandon Youngkrantz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Babe Ruth by Wilborn Hampton is a book on Babe Ruth's interesting and bizarre. The book starts out when he was just a young child with no one to take care of him. He eventually gets sent to a reform school and plays real baseball for the first time. He gets notices by a rival school and gets asked to play on the Baltimore Orioles. Than that team goes down and then he goes to the New York Yankees. He gets in trouble by partying to much and gets suspend a lot. He then shapes up an ends up playing 21 years in the big leagues.

I really like this book. It was interesting and told me about his weird life as a baseball player and in his life.

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes baseball and books about people.

[Aaron Vargas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy reading this book it is really interesting especially if you are into sports. The Orioles players referred to him as “Jack's newest babe".

I would recommend this book to anyone who is into sports or who is into history sports.

[Adrian Delossantos · Rating 5 out of 5]

I give this book 5 stars. It really talks about Babe Ruth life life and how he became who he became. It also talks about how hard his life was and the things he had to go through with and without his family. If you ever want to learn about Babe Ruth this is a book that you should read it is very detailed and it is very easy to read. It is not like other biographies that you cannot understand some of the words that they wrote. I recommend this book to all the baseball players.

[W. Nikola-Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a fan of the entire Up Close series. The Babe Ruth book is a good introduction to the subject. Although it doesn't parse out all the rumors and innuendoes in Ruth's story, it does a good job with his chronology and impact on the sport. The best book on Ruth by far is still Montville's The Big Bam.

[Jeff Ball · Rating 5 out of 5]

Babe Ruth - What else do you say

A great reminder of just how great Ruth's numbers were as a hitter and how great a pitcher he was. Try to imagine how much more his batting #s would have been if he had been given a chance to bat everyday right when he became a major leaguer. No better offensive players than Ruth and Ted Williams. No better.

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the 3rd biography I've read on Babe Ruth and a good one. If you wish to know about Babe's life without all the stats and details, I recommend this book. At less than 200 pages it filters out all the little things that slow down and bore a reader while giving facts and the true story.

[W. Nikola-Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are two books on Babe Ruth that I keep on my shelves: Wilborn Hampton's Babe Ruth (part of Viking's Up Close series) and Leigh Montville's The Big Bam. You really don't have to go much farther than this to find out about one of the biggest stars on--and off--the field.

[Danny Ruano · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is okay not too bad I didn't really finish the whole thing since I kinda stopped reading it for awhile cause I had a lot of projects to do and I wish I could've read the whole book because the book was interesting

[Shawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good

[Chris Gager · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read a bio of the Babe and this might have been it. Date read is a guess.

[Haelen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was very considering that it was a biography. It's a biography about babe ruth.

[Charlie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a well thought out book that provides a lot of information. At first I only wanted to read it because it was homework but then when I started reading it I realized how cool this book was. The author wrote it in such a way that it was like he personally knew Babe Ruth, and if you think you know a lot about babe ruth, wait until you read this!