It Never Rains in Tiger Stadium

It Never Rains in Tiger Stadium

Author: John Ed Bradley

Publisher: ESPN

Published: 2009-02-17

Total Pages: 306

ISBN-13: 0345517601

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“A lyrical memoir . . . about his teammates, his coaches, his parents and the magnetic power of football in Louisiana.”—NPR “The best sports book of the year.”—Sports Illustrated Inspired by a classic essay about a visit to a dying coach, It Never Rains in Tiger Stadium explores in gorgeous detail the inescapable pull of college football—the cocky smiles behind the face masks, the two-a-day drills, the emotionally charged bus rides to the stadium, the curfew checks, the film-study sessions, the locker room antics, and the yawning void left in one’s soul the moment the final whistle sounds. To understand why it’s so painful to give up the game, you must first understand the intimacy of the huddle. “It ends for everybody,” writes John Ed Bradley, “and then it starts all over again, in ways you never anticipated. Marty Dufresne sits in his wheelchair listening to the Tiger fight song . . . Ramsey Darder endures prison by playing the games over in his head . . . Big Ed Stanton never took up the game of golf, and yet he rides the streets of Bayou Vista in a cart nearly identical to Coach Mac’s, recalling the one time the old man invited him for a ride.” Far more than a memoir, It Never Rains in Tiger Stadium is a brutally honest, profoundly moving look at what it means to surrender something you love.


Book Synopsis It Never Rains in Tiger Stadium by : John Ed Bradley

Download or read book It Never Rains in Tiger Stadium written by John Ed Bradley and published by ESPN. This book was released on 2009-02-17 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “A lyrical memoir . . . about his teammates, his coaches, his parents and the magnetic power of football in Louisiana.”—NPR “The best sports book of the year.”—Sports Illustrated Inspired by a classic essay about a visit to a dying coach, It Never Rains in Tiger Stadium explores in gorgeous detail the inescapable pull of college football—the cocky smiles behind the face masks, the two-a-day drills, the emotionally charged bus rides to the stadium, the curfew checks, the film-study sessions, the locker room antics, and the yawning void left in one’s soul the moment the final whistle sounds. To understand why it’s so painful to give up the game, you must first understand the intimacy of the huddle. “It ends for everybody,” writes John Ed Bradley, “and then it starts all over again, in ways you never anticipated. Marty Dufresne sits in his wheelchair listening to the Tiger fight song . . . Ramsey Darder endures prison by playing the games over in his head . . . Big Ed Stanton never took up the game of golf, and yet he rides the streets of Bayou Vista in a cart nearly identical to Coach Mac’s, recalling the one time the old man invited him for a ride.” Far more than a memoir, It Never Rains in Tiger Stadium is a brutally honest, profoundly moving look at what it means to surrender something you love.

The Road to Wherever

The Road to Wherever

Author: John Ed Bradley

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)

Published: 2021-05-11

Total Pages: 224

ISBN-13: 0374314063

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A middle grade road novel about a boy stuck on a summer trip with his offbeat auto-mechanic cousins—a humor- and heart-filled journey that leads the boy to an unexpected confrontation with some broken-down parts of himself. After eleven-year-old June Ball’s dad disappears without so much as a goodbye note, June’s mother sends him on the road with his adult cousins, mechanics Thomas and Cornell Ball. The Balls are “Ford Men”; their calling in life is to restore old Ford cars—and only Ford cars—that no longer run. And so begins a summer traveling the highways and byways of America, encountering busted-up Fairlanes, Thunderbirds, and Rancheros. They also encounter the cars’ owners, who sometimes need fixing up, too. June doesn’t understand his cousins’ passion for all things Ford. But at every turn, June realizes that this journey is about more than giving neglected classic cars some much-needed TLC—there’s room to care for the broken parts of humans, too. A story of adventure, longing, and growing up from adult novelist, journalist, and All-SEC center for the LSU Tigers, John Ed Bradley.


Book Synopsis The Road to Wherever by : John Ed Bradley

Download or read book The Road to Wherever written by John Ed Bradley and published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR). This book was released on 2021-05-11 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A middle grade road novel about a boy stuck on a summer trip with his offbeat auto-mechanic cousins—a humor- and heart-filled journey that leads the boy to an unexpected confrontation with some broken-down parts of himself. After eleven-year-old June Ball’s dad disappears without so much as a goodbye note, June’s mother sends him on the road with his adult cousins, mechanics Thomas and Cornell Ball. The Balls are “Ford Men”; their calling in life is to restore old Ford cars—and only Ford cars—that no longer run. And so begins a summer traveling the highways and byways of America, encountering busted-up Fairlanes, Thunderbirds, and Rancheros. They also encounter the cars’ owners, who sometimes need fixing up, too. June doesn’t understand his cousins’ passion for all things Ford. But at every turn, June realizes that this journey is about more than giving neglected classic cars some much-needed TLC—there’s room to care for the broken parts of humans, too. A story of adventure, longing, and growing up from adult novelist, journalist, and All-SEC center for the LSU Tigers, John Ed Bradley.

Death to the BCS

Death to the BCS

Author: Dan Wetzel

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2010-10-14

Total Pages: 148

ISBN-13: 1101465972

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A team of award-winning sports reporters takes down the Great Satan of college sports: the Bowl Championship Series. Every college sport picks its champion by a postseason tournament, except for one: Division I-A football. Instead of a tournament, fans are subjected to the Bowl Championship Series, an arcane mix of polling and mathematical rankings that results in just two teams playing for the championship. It is, without a doubt, the most hated institution in all of sports. A recent Sports Illustrated poll found that more than 90 percent of sports fans oppose the BCS, yet this system has remained in place for more than a decade. Built upon top-notch investigative reporting, Death to the BCS at last reveals the truth about this monstrous entity and offers a simple solution for fixing it. Death to the BCS includes findings from interviews with power players, as well as research into federal tax records, Congressional testimony, and private contracts, revealing: ?The truth behind the "Cartel"-the anonymous suits who run the BCS and who profit handsomely by protecting it ?The flawed math and corruption that determine which teams participate in the national championship ?How the system hurts competition by perpetuating "cupcake" schedules ?How "mid-major" teams are systematically denied a chance to play for the championship ?How a comprehensive sixteen-team playoff plan can solve the problem while enhancing profitability The first book to lay out the unseemly inner workings of the BCS in full detail, Death to the BCS is a rousing manifesto for bringing fairness back to one of our most beloved sports.


Book Synopsis Death to the BCS by : Dan Wetzel

Download or read book Death to the BCS written by Dan Wetzel and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2010-10-14 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A team of award-winning sports reporters takes down the Great Satan of college sports: the Bowl Championship Series. Every college sport picks its champion by a postseason tournament, except for one: Division I-A football. Instead of a tournament, fans are subjected to the Bowl Championship Series, an arcane mix of polling and mathematical rankings that results in just two teams playing for the championship. It is, without a doubt, the most hated institution in all of sports. A recent Sports Illustrated poll found that more than 90 percent of sports fans oppose the BCS, yet this system has remained in place for more than a decade. Built upon top-notch investigative reporting, Death to the BCS at last reveals the truth about this monstrous entity and offers a simple solution for fixing it. Death to the BCS includes findings from interviews with power players, as well as research into federal tax records, Congressional testimony, and private contracts, revealing: ?The truth behind the "Cartel"-the anonymous suits who run the BCS and who profit handsomely by protecting it ?The flawed math and corruption that determine which teams participate in the national championship ?How the system hurts competition by perpetuating "cupcake" schedules ?How "mid-major" teams are systematically denied a chance to play for the championship ?How a comprehensive sixteen-team playoff plan can solve the problem while enhancing profitability The first book to lay out the unseemly inner workings of the BCS in full detail, Death to the BCS is a rousing manifesto for bringing fairness back to one of our most beloved sports.

A Payroll to Meet

A Payroll to Meet

Author: David Whitford

Publisher: U of Nebraska Press

Published: 2013-09-01

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 0803248857

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"Examines the largest case of corruption in the history of collegiate athletics, the thirty-year practice of illegal payoffs to football players at Southern Methodist University in Texas, and the subsequent "death penalty" handed down by the NCAA"--


Book Synopsis A Payroll to Meet by : David Whitford

Download or read book A Payroll to Meet written by David Whitford and published by U of Nebraska Press. This book was released on 2013-09-01 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Examines the largest case of corruption in the history of collegiate athletics, the thirty-year practice of illegal payoffs to football players at Southern Methodist University in Texas, and the subsequent "death penalty" handed down by the NCAA"--

A Case for Solomon

A Case for Solomon

Author: Tal McThenia

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2013-08-13

Total Pages: 21

ISBN-13: 1439158606

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True crime.


Book Synopsis A Case for Solomon by : Tal McThenia

Download or read book A Case for Solomon written by Tal McThenia and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2013-08-13 with total page 21 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: True crime.

Call Me By My Name

Call Me By My Name

Author: John Ed Bradley

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2015-05-05

Total Pages: 288

ISBN-13: 1442497947

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From former football star and bestselling author John Ed Bradley comes a searing look at love, life, and football in the face of racial adversity. "Heartbreaking," says Laurie Halse Anderson, author of Speak. Growing up in Louisiana in the late 1960s, Tater Henry has experienced a lot of prejudice. His town is slow to desegregate and slower still to leave behind deep-seated prejudice. Despite the town's sensibilities, Rodney Boulett and his twin sister Angie befriend Tater, and as their friendship grows stronger, Tater and Rodney become an unstoppable force on the football field. That is, until Rodney sees Tater and Angie growing closer, too, and Rodney's world is turned upside down. Teammates, best friends--Rodney's world is threatened by a hate he did not know was inside of him. As the town learns to accept notions like a black quarterback, some changes may be too difficult to accept. "John Ed Bradley skillfully shines a beam of humanity through the prism of the game, revealing to us the full spectrum of its colors, from love to hate, bigotry to tolerance, and devotion to betrayal. Anyone who ever played high school football or loved someone who has should read this book." --Tim Green, retired NFL player and bestselling author


Book Synopsis Call Me By My Name by : John Ed Bradley

Download or read book Call Me By My Name written by John Ed Bradley and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2015-05-05 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From former football star and bestselling author John Ed Bradley comes a searing look at love, life, and football in the face of racial adversity. "Heartbreaking," says Laurie Halse Anderson, author of Speak. Growing up in Louisiana in the late 1960s, Tater Henry has experienced a lot of prejudice. His town is slow to desegregate and slower still to leave behind deep-seated prejudice. Despite the town's sensibilities, Rodney Boulett and his twin sister Angie befriend Tater, and as their friendship grows stronger, Tater and Rodney become an unstoppable force on the football field. That is, until Rodney sees Tater and Angie growing closer, too, and Rodney's world is turned upside down. Teammates, best friends--Rodney's world is threatened by a hate he did not know was inside of him. As the town learns to accept notions like a black quarterback, some changes may be too difficult to accept. "John Ed Bradley skillfully shines a beam of humanity through the prism of the game, revealing to us the full spectrum of its colors, from love to hate, bigotry to tolerance, and devotion to betrayal. Anyone who ever played high school football or loved someone who has should read this book." --Tim Green, retired NFL player and bestselling author

Duck Thief & Other Stories

Duck Thief & Other Stories

Author: David Langlinais

Publisher: University of Louisiana

Published: 2015

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781935754640

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David Langlinais weaves textured, evocative tales of family and outdoorsmanship, of the human struggle to find identity in an ever-changing landscape. Duck Thief and Other Stories--set mostly in Louisiana's southern parishes--is reminiscent of Ellen Gilchrist, with stories rich in the native culture and French patois. Langlinais's voice is clear, straight-forward and seemingly effortless. Pride, race, death, mental illness, infidelity--no subject is off-limits. Cajun narratives, as well as those taking place in big-city Texas, shine a light on characters trying to find their way through the world, to make sense of situations that make no sense at all.


Book Synopsis Duck Thief & Other Stories by : David Langlinais

Download or read book Duck Thief & Other Stories written by David Langlinais and published by University of Louisiana. This book was released on 2015 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: David Langlinais weaves textured, evocative tales of family and outdoorsmanship, of the human struggle to find identity in an ever-changing landscape. Duck Thief and Other Stories--set mostly in Louisiana's southern parishes--is reminiscent of Ellen Gilchrist, with stories rich in the native culture and French patois. Langlinais's voice is clear, straight-forward and seemingly effortless. Pride, race, death, mental illness, infidelity--no subject is off-limits. Cajun narratives, as well as those taking place in big-city Texas, shine a light on characters trying to find their way through the world, to make sense of situations that make no sense at all.

Clementine Hunter

Clementine Hunter

Author: Art Shiver

Publisher: LSU Press

Published: 2012-09-17

Total Pages: 225

ISBN-13: 0807148806

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Clementine Hunter (1887--1988) painted every day from the 1930s until several days before her death at age 101. As a cook and domestic servant at Louisiana's Melrose Plantation, she painted on hundreds of objects available around her -- glass snuff bottles, discarded roofing shingles, ironing boards -- as well as on canvas. She produced between five and ten thousand paintings, including her most ambitious work, the African House Murals. Scenes of cotton planting and harvesting, washdays, weddings, baptisms, funerals, Saturday night revelry, and zinnias depict experiences of everyday plantation life along the Cane River. More than a personal record of Hunter's life, her paintings also reflect the social, material, and cultural aspects of the area's larger African American community. Drawing on archival research, interviews, personal files, and a close relationship with the artist, Art Shiver and Tom Whitehead offer the first comprehensive biography of this self-taught painter, who attracted the attention of the world. Shiver and Whitehead trace Hunter's childhood, her encounters at Melrose with artists and writers, such as Alberta Kinsey and Lyle Saxon, and the role played by eccentric François Mignon, who encouraged and promoted her art. The authors include rare paintings and photographs to illustrate Hunter's creative process and discuss the evolution of her style. The book also highlights Hunter's impact on the modern art world and provides insight into a decades-long forgery operation that Tom Whitehead helped uncover. This recent attention reinforced the uniqueness of Hunter's art and confirmed her place in the international art community, which continues to be inspired by the life and work of Clementine Hunter.


Book Synopsis Clementine Hunter by : Art Shiver

Download or read book Clementine Hunter written by Art Shiver and published by LSU Press. This book was released on 2012-09-17 with total page 225 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Clementine Hunter (1887--1988) painted every day from the 1930s until several days before her death at age 101. As a cook and domestic servant at Louisiana's Melrose Plantation, she painted on hundreds of objects available around her -- glass snuff bottles, discarded roofing shingles, ironing boards -- as well as on canvas. She produced between five and ten thousand paintings, including her most ambitious work, the African House Murals. Scenes of cotton planting and harvesting, washdays, weddings, baptisms, funerals, Saturday night revelry, and zinnias depict experiences of everyday plantation life along the Cane River. More than a personal record of Hunter's life, her paintings also reflect the social, material, and cultural aspects of the area's larger African American community. Drawing on archival research, interviews, personal files, and a close relationship with the artist, Art Shiver and Tom Whitehead offer the first comprehensive biography of this self-taught painter, who attracted the attention of the world. Shiver and Whitehead trace Hunter's childhood, her encounters at Melrose with artists and writers, such as Alberta Kinsey and Lyle Saxon, and the role played by eccentric François Mignon, who encouraged and promoted her art. The authors include rare paintings and photographs to illustrate Hunter's creative process and discuss the evolution of her style. The book also highlights Hunter's impact on the modern art world and provides insight into a decades-long forgery operation that Tom Whitehead helped uncover. This recent attention reinforced the uniqueness of Hunter's art and confirmed her place in the international art community, which continues to be inspired by the life and work of Clementine Hunter.

Dirty Rice

Dirty Rice

Author: Gerald Duff

Publisher: University of Louisiana

Published: 2012

Total Pages: 316

ISBN-13:

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In the midst of the Great Depression, minor league baseball thrives in small-town South Louisiana, where the Evangeline League, named in honor of Longfellow's heroine, draws hundreds to dirt fields and grandstands in places like Jeanerette, Abbeville, and Opelousas. In 1935 Gemar Batiste, a talented young pitcher from Texas, is recruited to try out for the Rayne Rice Birds, makes the roster, and immediately begins garnering fame for himself, his team, and the league. But Gemar is not the same as his teammates and opponents, and his skills on the diamond cannot erase those differences. He grew up on a reservation in Texas, an Alabama-Coushatta Indian dreaming of hurling strikes in the big leagues. During his season with the Rice Birds, Gemar is asked to play the stereotypical Indian and enticed to cheat, which goes against his view of the diamond as a sacred place of honor. Constantly challenged as he tries to protect his identity as an Alabama-Coushatta and uphold the integrity of the game, Gemar like the Evangeline League's namesake comes to embody loss, perseverance, and commitment. Much like minor league baseball itself, the story of Gemar Batiste's season in the Evangeline League is a work of satire, humor, tragedy, and triumph.


Book Synopsis Dirty Rice by : Gerald Duff

Download or read book Dirty Rice written by Gerald Duff and published by University of Louisiana. This book was released on 2012 with total page 316 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the midst of the Great Depression, minor league baseball thrives in small-town South Louisiana, where the Evangeline League, named in honor of Longfellow's heroine, draws hundreds to dirt fields and grandstands in places like Jeanerette, Abbeville, and Opelousas. In 1935 Gemar Batiste, a talented young pitcher from Texas, is recruited to try out for the Rayne Rice Birds, makes the roster, and immediately begins garnering fame for himself, his team, and the league. But Gemar is not the same as his teammates and opponents, and his skills on the diamond cannot erase those differences. He grew up on a reservation in Texas, an Alabama-Coushatta Indian dreaming of hurling strikes in the big leagues. During his season with the Rice Birds, Gemar is asked to play the stereotypical Indian and enticed to cheat, which goes against his view of the diamond as a sacred place of honor. Constantly challenged as he tries to protect his identity as an Alabama-Coushatta and uphold the integrity of the game, Gemar like the Evangeline League's namesake comes to embody loss, perseverance, and commitment. Much like minor league baseball itself, the story of Gemar Batiste's season in the Evangeline League is a work of satire, humor, tragedy, and triumph.

Roadside Baseball

Roadside Baseball

Author: Chris Epting

Publisher: Santa Monica Press

Published: 2009-04-01

Total Pages: 366

ISBN-13: 1595809112

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Capturing such quintessentially American pastimes as baseball and road trips in one fascinating work, this updated and expanded guide chronicles more than 500 important events in baseball history with detailed descriptions of the event and information on each location. Packed with historical data, trivia, photographs, and baseball lore, entries include the birthplaces of baseball legends, ballparks, museums and halls of fame, final resting places, and many locations that are no longer standing. From out-of-the-way spots to the most popular stadiums in the U.S. and Canada, no site is too small or insignificant to be included in this comprehensive directory. Entries include the Buckminster Hotel in Boston, where the Black Sox planned their fix of the 1919 World Series; the original little league field and museum in Williamsport, Pennsylvania; the birthplace of Jackie Robinson; the place where Mickey Mantle was discovered by a scout from the New York Yankees; and the site of the original Wrigley Field, erected in Los Angeles in 1925.


Book Synopsis Roadside Baseball by : Chris Epting

Download or read book Roadside Baseball written by Chris Epting and published by Santa Monica Press. This book was released on 2009-04-01 with total page 366 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Capturing such quintessentially American pastimes as baseball and road trips in one fascinating work, this updated and expanded guide chronicles more than 500 important events in baseball history with detailed descriptions of the event and information on each location. Packed with historical data, trivia, photographs, and baseball lore, entries include the birthplaces of baseball legends, ballparks, museums and halls of fame, final resting places, and many locations that are no longer standing. From out-of-the-way spots to the most popular stadiums in the U.S. and Canada, no site is too small or insignificant to be included in this comprehensive directory. Entries include the Buckminster Hotel in Boston, where the Black Sox planned their fix of the 1919 World Series; the original little league field and museum in Williamsport, Pennsylvania; the birthplace of Jackie Robinson; the place where Mickey Mantle was discovered by a scout from the New York Yankees; and the site of the original Wrigley Field, erected in Los Angeles in 1925.