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How We Did It: The Subban Plan for Success in Hockey, School and Life
by Karl Subban Scott ColbyThe ultimate hockey dad, Karl Subban is a former school principal and father of five, including three sons--P.K., Malcolm and Jordan--who have been drafted to the NHL. Karl's inspirational and moving story follows the hockey journey from house league to the big leagues and shows how to grow the unlimited potential that is in every child.In his thirty-plus years of coaching, teaching and parenting, Karl Subban has proved to be a leader with the gift of inspiring others. He has dedicated his life to helping young people grow their potential--to be better at what they do, and to be better people. Originally from Jamaica, Karl Subban, along with his wife, Maria, have raised five accomplished children. Their oldest son is P.K. Subban, who won the Norris trophy for top defenceman in the NHL and whose trade from the Canadiens to the Nashville Predators shocked the hockey world. Their two daughters are teachers, one a university basketball star and the other a talented visual artist. Their two youngest sons, Malcolm and Jordan, have been drafted and signed by the Bruins and the Canucks. As a child, Karl dreamed of being a star cricket player--but when he moved to Canada at age 12, hockey and basketball became his new passions. At university, when he realized his NBA hoop dreams would not come to be, Subban found his true destiny as an educator, devoting his life to bringing out the best in his students and his children. From the backyard hockey rink to the nail-biting suspense of draft days, Karl Subban shares tales of his family's unique hockey journey. Mixing personal stories with lessons he learned as a coach and principal--lessons about goal-setting, perseverance and accomplishment--How We Did It will allow other parents, teachers, coaches and mentors to apply the same principles as they help the young people in their lives to identify, develop and live their dreams.
Rowdy: The Roddy Piper Story
by Colt Baird Toombs Ariel Teal ToombsThe biggest pro wrestling bio since Bret Hart's Hitman: legendary Rowdy Roddy Piper's unfinished autobiography, re-conceived and completed by his children, actress/musician Ariel Teal Toombs and wrestler Colt Baird Toombs.In early 2015, Roderick Toombs, aka Rowdy Roddy Piper, began researching his own autobiography with a trip through Western Canada. He was re-discovering his youth, a part of his life he never discussed during his 61 years, many spent as one of the greatest talents in the history of pro wrestling. Following his death due to a heart attack that July, two of his children took on the job of telling Roddy's story, separating fact from fiction in the extraordinary life of their father. Already an accomplished wrestler before Wrestlemania in 1985, Roddy Piper could infuriate a crowd like no "heel" before him. The principal antagonist to all-American champion Hulk Hogan, Piper used his quick wit, explosive ring style and fearless baiting of audiences to push pro wrestling to unprecedented success. Wrestling was suddenly pop culture's main event. An actor with over 50 screen credits, including the lead in John Carpenter's #1 cult classic, They Live, Piper knew how to keep fans hungry, just as he'd kept them wishing for a complete portrait of his most unusual life. He wanted to write this book for his family; now they have written it for him.From the Hardcover edition.
For the Glory: Olympic Legend Eric Liddell's Journey of Faith and Survival
by Duncan HamiltonMost people will know Eric Liddell as an Olympic gold medalist and a focal character in Chariots of Fire. Famously, the Scot would not run on Sunday, leading to ridicule and, some might say, his teammate winning the 100 metres in the 1924 Paris Olympics. But for Liddell, running was always second to his true calling, his faith. After surprisingly winning the 400-metre gold in Paris, he dedicated himself to missionary work. He and his family settled in one of the poorest provinces in China. When he saw war with Japan on the horizon, Liddell put his children and pregnant wife on a boat to Canada, while he stayed behind, his conscience compelling him to remain amongst the desperate Chinese. Liddell was eventually interned at a Japanese work camp, where he became the moral centre of an unbearable world. He was the hardest worker, he counselled many of the other prisoners, he often gave up his own meagre portion of meals, and he organized games for the children. He even raced again. But for his ailing, malnourished body, it soon proved too much. In the spirit of The Boys in the Boat and Unbroken, For the Glory is both a compelling narrative of athletic heroism and a gripping story of faith in the darkest circumstances.
Full Count: Four Decades of Blue Jays Baseball
by Jeff BlairFrom one of Canada's top baseball writers and radio hosts: a retrospective of the Toronto Blue Jays on the 20th anniversary of Joe Carter's World Series-winning home run--and a look ahead to what promises to be their most successful season since. A must-have for all Blue Jays fans, and a great read for Toronto and Canadian sports fans in general. In Full Count, Jeff Blair takes us back to the days when the Toronto Blue Jays were "the Cadillac of franchises," and shows us exactly what they did right to become baseball's premier club. Then he explores the disappointing aftermath, when the league's fourth-largest market became an also-ran: seemingly destined to languish behind the big-spending Yankees and Red Sox and free-wheeling Rays--until the offseason of 2012. Full Count will appeal not only to casual fans wanting re-live Blue Jays history, but also to the serious baseball fan who wants to know the real details and business decisions that drove the team to the pinnacle, then to mediocrity, and now (hopefully) back to the top once again.
Home and Away: Writing The Beautiful Game
by Karl Ove Knausgaard Fredrik EkelundFrom the always astonishing Karl Ove Knausgaard--a brilliantly unusual book to delight both reading sports fans and the literary world. Bridging the two worlds of soccer and great writing, in the tradition of Lewis's Moneyball, Hornby's Fever Pitch or Buford's Among the Thugs, Knausgaard provides us with a die-hard fan's impassioned, personal, quirky, entertaining musings on that fundamental relationship between sports and life.I remember every single World Cup starting with the one in 1978, what I was doing, how I was living, who I was, and the world in which it took place. But I have always just watched them on TV, never in reality, and I want it to stay that way--so that´s the starting point for this book, isn't it? Life against death, yes against no, Brazil against Argentina. Karl Ove is sitting at home in Sweden watching the World Cup on TV (and falling asleep), with his wife, four small children and the dog; his good pal Fredrik is away in Brazil, playing beautiful football on the beach and watching the match. In this lively, argumentative, unique long-form email correspondence between them, written back and forth across the world, what begins as musings on the famous 2014 World Cup becomes (naturally) an exploration of the essential questions of life, with soccer as the catalyst for an inspiringly entertaining exchange of thoughts and ideas encompassing everything from the elusive nature of personal happiness, competitiveness, politics, insider knowledge about international football, art and literature, all rivetingly dissected with brilliance, verve and humour.
Empieza el campeonato!
by Luigi GarlandoOcho niños. Una Pasión: el futbol. Un sueño: ¡ser los mejores! Ya hemos llegado al ecuador del campeonato, ¡y los Cebolletas están a solo un punto del líder! Pero su mayor reto no va a ser conseguir el primer puesto, sino superar los problemas internos. Desde que Fidu dejó el futbol, nada es lo que era: a Dani le disgusta estar bajo los tres palos, Tomi tiene celos de Becan y las gemelas se despistan continuamente... Por suerte, Gaston Champignon les va a recordar la lección básica del deporte en equipo: lo más importante es mantenerse unidos.
Open Water Swimming Manual: An Expert's Survival Guide for Triathletes and Open Water Swimmers
by Lynne CoxLynne Cox has set open water swimming records across the world, and now she has focused her decades-long experience and expertise into this definitive guide to swimming. Cox methodically addresses what is needed to succeed at and enjoy open water swimming, including choosing the right bathing suit and sunscreen; surviving in dangerous weather conditions, currents, and waves; confronting various marine organisms; treating ailments, such as being stung or bitten, and much more. Cox calls upon Navy SEAL training materials and instructors' knowledge of open water swimming and safety procedures to guide her research. In addition, first-hand anecdotes from SEAL specialists and stories of Cox's own experiences serve as both warnings and proper practices to adopt. Open Water Swimming Manual provides a wealth of knowledge for all swimmers, from seasoned triathletes and expert swimmers to beginners exploring open water swimming for the first time. It is, as well, the first manual of its kind to make use of oceanography, marine biology, and to weave in stories about the successes and failures of other athletes, giving us a deeper, broader understanding of this exhilarating and fast growing sport.From the Trade Paperback edition.
Messi: A Biography
by Leonardo FaccioFor soccer enthusiasts and sports fans in general, an in-depth look at the life of the beautiful game&’s greatest star, Argentine footballer Lionel Messi.Whether you call it soccer, football, fútbol, or the &“beautiful game," it is the most popular sport in the world, and Argentine footballer Lionel Messi stands as one of its finest players—not only of his time, but of all time. Admired around the globe for his athleticism, skill, and fierce competitiveness, Messi has, at the age of 24, already shattered records at one of the most storied clubs in the world, FC Barcelona. Now, in this comprehensive biography, Messi fans can learn more about his life and career. Argentine journalist Leonardo Faccio describes how Messi, as a talented youth player in Buenos Aires, left his home for Spain in search of the medical help his family could not afford to treat his rare hormone deficiency. Small of stature, but possessing tremendous natural gifts, Messi developed into a star at Barcelona&’s famed Masia soccer school. In this book, Faccio has written not only a biography of an enigmatic celebrity, but a meditation on athletic genius, drawing on interviews with Messi himself, as well as with everyone from his family, teammates, childhood friends—even his favorite butcher. In-depth and intimate, soccer fans who enjoy watching Messi come alive on the field will delight as he comes alive on the page.
Falling for the Backup (Novella)
by Toni AleoToni Aleo's sexy new eBook original novella featuring the Nashville Assassins will have you believing in the power of love at first sight . . . and second sight . . . and third. After serving as a dutiful bridesmaid in the wedding from hell, Aynslee Shaw just wants to slink home to Nashville and forget the whole trip. That is until the hottest guy she's ever seen is seated next to her on the flight and charms her with his easy laugh and killer smile. But just when she thinks things are getting good, he vanishes, leaving Aynslee wondering, was that guy the one? And did she just let him slip through her fingers? Former superstar goalie Jordan Ryan is back on the ice--finally. After a crippling knee injury that had him wondering if he'd ever play pro hockey again, he's got his full attention on rebuilding his career. So a pretty--okay, beautiful--girl on a plane shouldn't be a distraction. But Jordan is very, very distracted. And when Aynslee crosses his path again, he's not sure any job in the world is worth missing his second chance with a woman like her.Praise for Toni Aleo's Nashville Assassins romances "Aleo melts the ice and hits it into the net with her Assassins series."--Award-winning author Jami Davenport "Taking Shots is really the whole package. You get romance, humor, steamy sex, drama, and then it all wraps up with a great conclusion. I am amazed that this is Toni's first book. She has come out in a huge way. I can't wait to read more from her. Don't hesitate for a moment to grab this book."--Guilty Pleasures Book Reviews "A little steamy, a little heartbreaking, and a whole lot of fanning yourself are in order this time around, readers. Are your cheeks feeling a little pink yet? Get used to the feeling."--Dreaming in the Pages, on Trying to Score "Empty Net is an honest, heartwarming, endearing story. . . . Toni Aleo doesn't just write a story. She gives you the ability to experience the journey of her characters right along with them. Her stories are enveloped with passion, emotion, humor, love; and let me tell you, that girl knows how to write a sex scene that just makes you sweat!"--Guilty Pleasures Book Review "Sexy and riveting . . . the perfect combination of love and lust."--USA Today bestselling author Heidi McLaughlin, on Blue Lines "Funny, charming, sweet, sexy . . . [Falling for the Backup] has everything you want in a story."--Blushing Reader Includes a special message from the editor, as well as an excerpt from the Loveswept title Empty Net.
Serve to Win
by Novak Djokovic William DavisIn 2011, Novak Djokovic had what sportswriters called the greatest single season ever by a professional tennis player: He won ten titles, three Grand Slams, and forty-three consecutive matches. Remarkably, less than two years earlier, this champion could barely complete a tournament. How did a player once plagued by aches, breathing difficulties, and injuries on the court suddenly become the #1 ranked tennis player in the world? The answer is astonishing: He changed what he ate. In Serve to Win, Djokovic recounts how he survived the bombing of Belgrade, Serbia, rising from a war-torn childhood to the top tier of his sport. Then he reveals the diet that transformed his health and pushed him to the pinnacle. While Djokovic loved and craved bread and pasta, and especially the pizza at his family's restaurant, his body simply couldn't process wheat. Eliminating gluten--the protein found in wheat--made him feel instantly better, lighter, clearer, and quicker. As he continued to research and refine his diet, his health issues disappeared, extra pounds dropped away, and his improved physical health and mental focus allowed him to achieve his two childhood dreams: to win Wimbledon, and to become the #1 ranked tennis player in the world. Now Djokovic has created a blueprint for remaking your body and your life in just fourteen days. With weekly menus, mindful eating tips for optimal digestion, and delicious, easy-to-prepare recipes, you'll be well on your way to shedding extra weight and finding your way to a better you. Djokovic also offers tips for eliminating stress and simple exercises to get you revved up and moving, the very same ones he does before each match. You don't need to be a superstar athlete to start living and feeling better. With Serve to Win, a trimmer, stronger, healthier you is just two weeks away.From the Hardcover edition.hysical and mental performance."--Maria SharapovaFrom the Hardcover edition.
Blue Lines: The Assassins Series
by Toni AleoOpposites do more than just attract in Toni Aleo's latest Nashville Assassins novel about a very bad boy and the good girl he can't resist. The instant Piper Allen sees Erik Titov, she wants him--wants his rock-hard body, sure, but the strength and mystery that lie behind that superstar hockey jock demeanor, too. So when he sidles up to her at a bar and slinks his arm around her waist, she's lost. What follows is the wildest night of her life . . . followed by inevitable heartbreak the next morning. And then, a few weeks later, a very big surprise: two blue lines on a pregnancy test. Only a check to the head could make Erik fall for a nice girl like Piper. But since their crazy-sexy night together, he's been trying to forget about her alluring body by falling into bed with every woman in Nashville, and it's not working. So when Piper shows up at his house with a baby-bomb to drop, it doesn't take much for Erik to suggest the nuclear option: marriage. While it's supposed to be all for show, the second they say "I do," the ice between them starts to melt into sizzling steam.Praise for Toni Aleo's Nashville Assassins romances "Aleo melts the ice and hits it into the net with her Assassins series."--Award-winning author Jami Davenport "Taking Shots is really the whole package. You get romance, humor, steamy sex, drama, and then it all wraps up with a great conclusion. I am amazed that this is Toni's first book. She has come out in a huge way. I can't wait to read more from her. Don't hesitate for a moment to grab this book."--Guilty Pleasures Book Reviews "A little steamy, a little heartbreaking, and a whole lot of fanning yourself are in order this time around, readers. Are your cheeks feeling a little pink yet? Get used to the feeling."--Dreaming in the Pages, on Trying to Score "Empty Net is an honest, heartwarming, endearing story. . . . Toni Aleo doesn't just write a story. She gives you the ability to experience the journey of her characters right along with them. Her stories are enveloped with passion, emotion, humor, love; and let me tell you, that girl knows how to write a sex scene that just makes you sweat!"--Guilty Pleasures Book Review "Sexy and riveting . . . the perfect combination of love and lust."--USA Today bestselling author Heidi McLaughlin, on Blue Lines "Funny, charming, sweet, sexy . . . [Falling for the Backup] has everything you want in a story."--Blushing Reader Includes a special message from the editor, as well as excerpts from these Loveswept titles: Taking Shots, Trying to Score, and Empty Net.
Newton's Football
by Allen St. John Ainissa G. RamirezIn the bestselling tradition of Freakonomics and Scorecasting comes a clever and accessible look at the big ideas underlying the science of football. Did you hear the one about the MacArthur genius physicist and the NFL coach? It's not a joke. It's actually an innovative way to understand chaos theory, and the remarkable complexity of modern professional football. In Newton's Football, journalist and New York Times bestselling author Allen St. John and TED Speaker and former Yale professor Ainissa Ramirez explore the unexpected science behind America's Game. Whether it's Jerry Rice finding the common ground between quantum physics and the West Coast offense or an Ivy League biologist explaining--at a granular level--exactly how a Big Mac morphs into an outside linebacker, Newton's Football illuminates football--and science--through funny, insightful stories told by some of the world's sharpest minds. With a clear-eyed empirical approach--and an exuberant affection for the game--St. John and Ramirez address topics that have long beguiled scientists and football fans alike, including: * the unlikely evolution of the football (or, as they put it, "The Divinely Random Bounce of the Prolate Spheroid") * what Vince Lombardi has in common with Isaac Newton * how the hardwired behavior of monkeys can explain a head coach's reluctance to go for it on fourth-down * why a gruesome elevator accident jump-started the evolution of placekicking * how Teddy Roosevelt saved football using the same behavioral science concept that Dreamworks would use to save Shrek * why woodpeckers don't get concussions * how better helmets actually made the game more dangerous Every Sunday the NFL shares a secret with only its savviest fans: The game isn't just a clash of bodies, it's a clash of ideas. The greatest minds in football have always possessed an instinctual grasp of science, understanding the big ideas and gritty realities that inform the game's rich past, as well as its increasingly uncertain future. Blending smart reporting, counterintuitive creativity, and compelling narrative, Newton's Football takes gridiron analysis to the next level, giving fans a book that entertains, enlightens, and explains the game anew.Advance praise for Newton's Football "It was with great interest that I read Newton's Football. I'm a fan of applying of science to sport and Newton's Football truly delivers. The stories are as engaging as they are informative. This is a great read for all football fans."--Mark Cuban"Equal parts Isaac Newton and Cam Newton, this book is as thoroughly entertaining and engrossing as a fall Sunday afternoon on the couch."--L. Jon Wertheim, executive editor of Sports Illustrated and bestselling co-author of Scorecasting "Nothing is more bipartisan than America's love for football. And Newton's Football will unite readers of all stripes by merging science and sports in a fresh and fascinating fashion. Read this book and you'll never again watch a game the same way."--Chris Mooney, New York Times bestselling author of The Republican War on Science"A fascinating melding of science and sport, at once lively and illuminating, rich with knowledge of the game and arresting explanations of its winning strategies."--Daniel J. Kevles, Yale UniversityFrom the Hardcover edition.
Silent No More: Victim 1's Fight for Justice Against Jerry Sandusky
by Michael Gillum Dawn Daniels Aaron FisherVictim 1, at fourteen years of age, spoke up against Jerry Sandusky in the Penn State scandal, and now for the first time tells his story.Aaron Fisher was an eager and spirited eleven-year-old when legendary Penn State football coach Jerry Sandusky recruited him into his Second Mile children's charity. Offering support at a critical time in Aaron's life, Sandusky gave him gifts and attention, winning the boy's trust even as he isolated him from his family and peers. Before long, Sandusky's attention escalated into sexual assault. When Aaron summoned the courage to speak up, he found himself ostracized and harassed by the very people who were supposed to protect him. The investigation set off by his coming forward would drag on for three years--and would launch the biggest scandal in the history of sports.In Silent No More, Aaron Fisher recounts his harrowing quest to bring Sandusky's crimes to light--from the intense feelings of guilt that kept him from speaking up earlier and the fear he felt at accusing a man who was a pillar of the community and a hero to the largest alumni network in the world, to the infuriating delays in the arrest and conviction of his abuser. He catalogs the devastating personal toll the case took on him: the shattered relationships, panic attacks, and betrayal of trust that continued to haunt him even after the charges went public in the fall of 2011. But he also speaks of his mother's desperate efforts to get him out of harm's way, the invaluable help of psychologist Michael Gillum, and the vindication he felt at inspiring numerous other victims to step forward . . . and at knowing that, thanks to him, there would be no future victims of Jerry Sandusky.In the end, Aaron Fisher won his fight to expose the truth, achieving some measure of closure. Told in the honest and unforgettable voices of Aaron; his mother, Dawn; and his psychologist, Mike, this inspiring book completes Aaron's transformation from a nameless casualty into a resounding voice for change.From the Hardcover edition.
Illegal Motion
by Donna KauffmanNICK--A Dream-Weaving Devil Who Could Charm a Lady Out of Her Clothes ... He was desperate enough to try anything to clear his name, but football star Nick Logan figured he could intimidate or charm the truth out of Willa Trask--until he was burned by the sparks that flamed between him and the beautiful redhead! He'd hired her to rehabilitate his injured knee, vowing to discover if she'd helped frame him--but instead of an ice princess, he found in her a wanton witch who touched his soul. Did He Want Her, or Just Revenge? His lethal grin made her composure vanish, while Nick's sheer power made Willa feel utterly female. With no choice but surrender, she melted in his arms, convincing him of her innocence ... and her need to be loved. As Willa struggled to heal his wounded spirit and his warrior's body, Nick knew they were destined to be lovers. But would baiting his trap for the bad guys make him forget to hold on to her heart?
The Little Book of Talent: 52 Tips for Improving Your Skills
by Daniel CoyleThe Little Book of Talent is a manual for building a faster brain and a better you. It is an easy-to-use handbook of scientifically proven, field-tested methods to improve skills--your skills, your kids' skills, your organization's skills--in sports, music, art, math, and business. The product of five years of reporting from the world's greatest talent hotbeds and interviews with successful master coaches, it distills the daunting complexity of skill development into 52 clear, concise directives. Whether you're age 10 or 100, whether you're on the sports field or the stage, in the classroom or the corner office, this is an essential guide for anyone who ever asked, "How do I get better?""The Little Book of Talent should be given to every graduate at commencement, every new parent in a delivery room, every executive on the first day of work. It is a guidebook--beautiful in its simplicity and backed by hard science--for nurturing excellence."--Charles Duhigg, bestselling author of The Power of Habit "It's so juvenile to throw around hyperbolic terms such as 'life-changing,' but there's no other way to describe The Little Book of Talent. I was avidly trying new things within the first half hour of reading it and haven't stopped since. Brilliant. And yes: life-changing."--Tom Peters, co-author of In Search of ExcellenceFrom the Hardcover edition.
Running with the Kenyans: Discovering the Secrets of the Fastest People on Earth
by Adharanand Finn"A dusty road stretches into the distance like a pencil line across the arid landscape. Lions, rhino, and buffalo roam the plains on either side. But I haven't come to Kenya to spot wildlife. I've come to run." Whether running is your recreation, your religion, or just a spectator sport, Adharanand Finn's incredible journey to the elite training camps of Kenya will captivate and inspire you. Part travelogue, part memoir, this mesmerizing quest to uncover the secrets of the world's greatest runners--and put them to the test--combines practical advice, a fresh look at barefoot running, and hard-won spiritual insights. As a boy growing up in the English countryside, Adharanand Finn was a natural runner. While other kids struggled, he breezed through schoolyard races, imagining he was one of his heroes: the Kenyan long-distance runners exploding into prominence as Olympic and world champions. But as he grew up, pursued a career in journalism, married and had children, those childhood dreams slipped away--until suddenly, in his mid-thirties, Finn realized he might have only one chance left to see how far his talents could take him. Uprooting his family of five, including three small children, Finn traveled to Iten, a small, chaotic town in the Rift Valley province of Kenya--a mecca for long-distance runners thanks to its high altitude, endless running paths, and some of the top training schools in the world. Finn would run side by side with Olympic champions, young hopefuls, and barefoot schoolchildren . . . not to mention the exotic--and sometimes dangerous--wildlife for which Kenya is famous. Here, too, he would meet a cast of colorful characters, including his unflappable guide, Godfrey Kiprotich, a former half marathon champion; Christopher Cheboiboch, one of the fastest men ever to run the New York City Marathon; and Japhet, a poor, bucktoothed boy with unsuspected reservoirs of courage and raw speed. Amid the daily challenges of training and of raising a family abroad, Finn would learn invaluable lessons about running--and about life. Running with the Kenyans is more than one man's pursuit of a lifelong dream. It's a fascinating portrait of a magical country--and an extraordinary people seemingly born to run.
It's Not About the Pom-Poms
by Amy Sohn Laura VikmanisA forty-year-old cheerleader? When Laura Vikmanis, a single mom in Ohio, told friends that she wanted to be an NFL cheerleader, they said it would never happen. But she proved them all wrong. . . . Laura Vikmanis has got spirit . . . and pom-poms, too! But before she stepped onto the field as the oldest cheerleader in the National Football League, she was sidelined by a bad marriage and the many responsibilities of stay-at-home motherhood. She finally got the courage to leave her husband and to ask herself something she had never asked before: What do I want to do? Remembering her teenage love of dance, she signed up for a pole-dancing fitness class, where she met a former cheerleader for the Cincinnati Bengals. When the woman suggested that Laura audition to be a "Ben-Gal," Laura laughed her off but soon realized that the audition process could be a way of healing herself--and regaining her confidence. Her boots were made for walking--but also for stomping on a football field. She tried out for the team next to girls young enough to be her daughters. Girls with tighter abs, fuller hair, no kids, and no crow's-feet. After much adversity and multiple auditions, she finally made the team, becoming the oldest cheerleader in the League. It's Not About the Pom-Poms follows Laura's inspiring, funny, and eye-opening journey from demoralized divorcée to high-kicking Cincinnati Ben-Gal. Readers will cheer her on as she rediscovers her passion for dancing, takes hip-hop classes with twelve-year-olds, loses twenty-five pounds, discovers her abs, finds love again, and becomes a new kind of role model to her daughters. Laura also provides an inside look into the fascinating world of NFL cheerleaders--the grueling workouts, bad pay, twice-weekly weigh-ins, but, most important, the lifelong bond between the women, who do it all for the glory. Leading with her heart, Laura Vikmanis faces adversity with her head held high as she learns in mid-life to take a flying leap. Powerful and uplifting, It's Not About the Pom-Poms shows that, no matter your age, it's never too late to go, fight, and win!From the Hardcover edition.
The Secret Race: Inside the Hidden World of the Tour de France
by Daniel Coyle Tyler Hamilton"The holy grail for disillusioned cycling fans . . . The book's power is in the collective details, all strung together in a story that is told with such clear-eyed conviction that you never doubt its veracity. . . . The Secret Race isn't just a game changer for the Lance Armstrong myth. It's the game ender."--Outside NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * WINNER OF THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARDThe Secret Race is the book that rocked the world of professional cycling--and exposed, at long last, the doping culture surrounding the sport and its most iconic rider, Lance Armstrong. Former Olympic gold medalist Tyler Hamilton was once one of the world's top-ranked cyclists--and a member of Lance Armstrong's inner circle. Over the course of two years, New York Times bestselling author Daniel Coyle conducted more than two hundred hours of interviews with Hamilton and spoke with numerous teammates, rivals, and friends. The result is an explosive page-turner of a book that takes us deep inside a shadowy, fascinating, and surreal world of unscrupulous doctors, anything-goes team directors, and athletes so relentlessly driven to win that they would do almost anything to gain an edge. For the first time, Hamilton recounts his own battle with depression and tells the story of his complicated relationship with Lance Armstrong. This edition features a new Afterword, in which the authors reflect on the developments within the sport, and involving Armstrong, over the past year. The Secret Race is a courageous, groundbreaking act of witness from a man who is as determined to reveal the hard truth about his sport as he once was to win the Tour de France. With a new Afterword by the authors. "Loaded with bombshells and revelations."--VeloNews"[An] often harrowing story . . . the broadest, most accessible look at cycling's drug problems to date."--The New York Times " 'If I cheated, how did I get away with it?' That question, posed to SI by Lance Armstrong five years ago, has never been answered more definitively than it is in Tyler Hamilton's new book."--Sports Illustrated "Explosive."--The Daily Telegraph (London)
Hand-Me-Down Dream (Essay): Father, Son, and the Burden of Basketball
by George DohrmannIn this eBook exclusive essay, Pulitzer Prize-winning sports journalist George Dohrmann follows a father and son separated by prison bars--but bonded by their pursuit of basketball glory. The dream of playing big-time basketball never came true for Bruce Nelson, so he passed it on to his son Roberto. His every waking moment as a father was devoted to securing Roberto a Division I scholarship. Oftentimes he worried that his son's lack of competitive fire might put that dream in jeopardy--when in fact it was Bruce's own actions that would do so. When Bruce is forced to monitor Roberto's progress from behind penitentiary walls, his influence recedes--and so too does Roberto's commitment to the aspirations they once shared. In a story that combines deep insight into family relationships with the deft storytelling that distinguished his award-winning Play Their Hearts Out, George Dohrmann follows Roberto as he addresses his life's most difficult decisions in the absence of his best friend and most constant companion. In doing so, Dohrmann sheds new light on the larger story of basketball dreams and the pressures they place on young athletes. Includes an excerpt from George Dohrmann's Play Their Hearts Out, winner of the PEN/ESPN Award for Literary Sportswriting and the Award for Excellence in the Coverage of Youth Sports. Praise for Play Their Hearts Out "Often heartbreaking, always riveting."--The New York Times Book Review "Tremendous."--The Plain Dealer "Indispensable."--The Wall Street Journal "A tour de force of reporting, filled with deft storytelling and vivid character studies."--The Washington Post "One of the finest sports books of all time."--Harper's Magazine "Amazing stuff . . . the Friday Night Lights of youth basketball."--Leigh Montville, author of The Big Bam "A landmark achievement in basketball journalism."--Kirkus Reviews (starred review) NAMED ONE OF THE BEST SPORTS BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE LOS ANGELES TIMES * THE CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR * KIRKUS REVIEWS
Lefty
by Lawrence Goldstone Vernona GomezA baseball legend distinguished by his competitive nature, quick wit, and generous spirit, Lefty Gomez was one of a kind. Told for the first time, this is his remarkable story. Born to a small-town California ranching family, the youngest of eight, Vernon "Lefty" Gomez rode his powerful arm and jocular personality right across America to the dugout of the New York Yankees. Lefty baffled hitters with his blazing fastball, establishing himself as the team's ace. He vacationed with Babe Ruth, served as Joe DiMaggio's confidant, and consoled Lou Gehrig the day the "Iron Horse" removed himself from the lineup. He started and won the first-ever All-Star Game, was the first pitcher to make the cover of Time magazine, and barnstormed Japan as part of Major League Baseball's grand ambassadorial tour in 1934. Away from the diamond, Lefty played the big-city bon vivant, marrying Broadway star June O'Dea and hobnobbing with a who's who of celebrities, including George Gershwin, Jack Dempsey, Ernest Hemingway, Marilyn Monroe, George M. Cohan, and James Michener. He even scored a private audience with the pope. And even when his pro ball career was done, Lefty wasn't. He became a national representative for Wilson Sporting Goods, logging over 100,000 miles a year, spreading the word about America's favorite game, and touching thousands of lives. In 1972 he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Three baseball fields are named for him, and to this day the top honor bestowed each year by the American Baseball Coaches Association is the Lefty Gomez Award. Now, drawing on countless conversations with Lefty, interweaving more than three hundred interviews conducted with his family, friends, competitors, and teammates over the course of a decade, and revealing candid photos, documents, and film clips--many never shown publicly--his daughter Vernona Gomez and her award-winning co-author Lawrence Goldstone vividly re-create the life and adventures of the irreverent southpaw fondly dubbed "El Señor Goofy." "I'd rather be lucky than good," Lefty Gomez once quipped--one of many classic one-liners documented here. In the end he was both. A star-studded romp through baseball's most glorious seasons and America's most glamorous years, Lefty is at once a long-overdue reminder of a pitcher's greatness and a heartwarming celebration of a life well-lived.
Stan Musial
by George VecseyWhen baseball fans voted on the top twenty-five players of the twentieth century in 1999, Stan Musial didn't make the cut. This glaring omission--later rectified by a panel of experts--raised an important question: How could a first-ballot Hall of Famer, widely considered one of the greatest hitters in baseball history, still rank as the most underrated athlete of all time?In Stan Musial, veteran sports journalist George Vecsey finally gives this twenty-time All-Star and St. Louis Cardinals icon the kind of prestigious biographical treatment previously afforded to his more celebrated contemporaries Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio. More than just a chronological recounting of the events of Musial's life, this is the definitive portrait of one of the game's best-loved but most unappreciated legends, told through the remembrances of those who played beside, worked with, and covered "Stan the Man" over the course of his nearly seventy years in the national spotlight.Stan Musial never married a starlet. He didn't die young, live too hard, or squander his talent. There were no legendary displays of temper or moodiness. He was merely the most consistent superstar of his era, a scarily gifted batsman who compiled 3,630 career hits (1,815 at home and 1,815 on the road), won three World Series titles, and retired in 1963 in possession of seventeen major-league records. Away from the diamond, he proved a savvy businessman and a model of humility and graciousness toward his many fans in St. Louis and around the world. From Keith Hernandez's boyhood memories of Musial leaving tickets for him when the Cardinals were in San Francisco to the little-known story of Musial's friendship with novelist James Michener--and their mutual association with Pope John Paul II--Vecsey weaves an intimate oral history around one of the great gentlemen of baseball's Greatest Generation. There may never be another Stan the Man, a fact that future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols--reluctantly nicknamed "El Hombre" in Musial's honor--is quick to acknowledge. But thanks to this long-overdue reappraisal, even those who took his greatness for granted will learn to appreciate him all over again.From the Hardcover edition.
Homesick and Happy
by Michael ThompsonAn insightful and powerful look at the magic of summer camp--and why it is so important for children to be away from home . . . if only for a little while. In an age when it's the rare child who walks to school on his own, the thought of sending your "little ones" off to sleep-away camp can be overwhelming--for you and for them. But parents' first instinct--to shelter their offspring above all else--is actually depriving kids of the major developmental milestones that occur through letting them go--and watching them come back transformed. In Homesick and Happy, renowned child psychologist Michael Thompson, PhD, shares a strong argument for, and a vital guide to, this brief loosening of ties. A great champion of summer camp, he explains how camp ushers your children into a thrilling world offering an environment that most of us at home cannot: an electronics-free zone, a multigenerational community, meaningful daily rituals like group meals and cabin clean-up, and a place where time simply slows down. In the buggy woods, icy swims, campfire sing-alongs, and daring adventures, children have emotionally significant and character-building experiences; they often grow in ways that surprise even themselves; they make lifelong memories and cherished friends. Thompson shows how children who are away from their parents can be both homesick and happy, scared and successful, anxious and exuberant. When kids go to camp--for a week, a month, or the whole summer--they can experience some of the greatest maturation of their lives, and return more independent, strong, and healthy.
How Lucky You Can Be: The Story of Coach Don Meyer
by Buster OlneyIn September 2008, Northern State University men#x19;s basketball coach Don Meyer stood on the brink of immortality. He was about to surpass the legendary Bobby Knight to become the all-time NCAA wins leader in men#x19;s basketball. Then, on a two-lane road in South Dakota, everything changed in an instant. InHow Lucky You Can Be, acclaimed sports journalist Buster Olney tells the remarkable story of the successive tragedies that befell Coach Meyer but could not defeat him. Laid low by a horrific car accident that led to the amputation of his left leg below the knee, Coach Meyer had barely emerged from surgery when his doctors informed him that he also had terminal cancer. In the blink of an eye, this prototypical 24/7 workaholic coach-who arrived at the gym most mornings before 6 a. m. -found himself forced to reexamine his priorities at the age of sixty-three. A model of reserve, Coach Meyer had sacrificed much of his emotional life to his program. His wife, Carmen, felt disconnected because of his habitual reticence, while his three children-all now well into adulthood-had long had to compete with basketball for his attention. With sensitivity and skill, Olney shows how Coach Meyer mined his physical ordeal for the spiritual strength to transform his life. In the months that followed his accident and diagnosis, he reached out to family, friends, and former players in a way he had never been able to do before, making the most of this one last opportunity to tell those close to him how he felt about them-and in turn he received an outpouring of affirmation that confirmed how deeply he had affected others. Sustained throughout an often painful recovery by his love of basketball, he would return to the court once more-with a newfound appreciation for the game#x19;s place in his life. The inspirational story of a life renewed by unimaginable hardship,How Lucky You Can Beproves that it#x19;s never too late to start making changes-and reminds us that fortune can smile upon us even in our most trying hours. From the Hardcover edition.
Imperfect: An Improbable Life
by Tim Brown Jim AbbottOn an overcast September day in 1993, Jim Abbott took the mound at Yankee Stadium and threw one of the most dramatic no-hitters in major-league history. The game was the crowning achievement in an unlikely success story, unseen in the annals of professional sports. In Imperfect, the one-time big league ace retraces his remarkable journey. <P><P>Born without a right hand, Jim Abbott as a boy dreamed of being a great athlete. Raised in Flint, Michigan, by parents who saw in his condition not a disability but an extraordinary opportunity, Jim became a two-sport standout in high school, then an ace pitcher for the University of Michigan. <P><P>But his journey was only beginning. As a nineteen-year-old, Jim beat the vaunted Cuban National Team. By twenty-one, he'd won the gold medal game at the 1988 Olympics and--without spending a day in the minor leagues--cracked the starting rotation of the California Angels. In 1991, he would finish third in the voting for the Cy Young Award. Two years later, he would don Yankee pinstripes and deliver a one-of-a-kind no-hitter. <P><P> It wouldn't always be so good. After a season full of difficult losses--some of them by football scores--Jim was released, cut off from the game he loved. Unable to say good-bye so soon, Jim tried to come back, pushing himself to the limit--and through one of the loneliest experiences an athlete can have. <P><P>But always, even then, there were children and their parents waiting for him outside the clubhouse doors, many of them with disabilities like his, seeking consolation and advice. These obligations became Jim's greatest honor. <P><P>In this honest and insightful memoir, Jim Abbott reveals the insecurities of a life spent as the different one, how he habitually hid his disability in his right front pocket, and why he chose an occupation in which the uniform provided no front pockets. With a riveting pitch-by-pitch account of his no-hitter providing the ideal frame for his story, this unique athlete offers readers an extraordinary and unforgettable memoir.From the Hardcover edition.
The Ledge
by Jim Davidson Kevin Vaughan"My eyes travel up the frozen walls. I figure it is eighty feet up to the sunlight. The walls above me climb up at about eighty degrees, then they go dead vertical, and then, higher up, they overhang. It is as if I am looking out from the belly of a beast, its jagged white teeth interlocking above me." In June 1992, best friends Jim Davidson and Mike Price stood triumphantly atop Washington's Mount Rainier, celebrating what they hoped would be the first of many milestones in their lives as passionate young mountaineers. Instead, their conquest gave way to catastrophe when a cave-in plunged them deep inside a glacial crevasse--the pitch-black, ice-walled hell that every climber's nightmares are made of.An avid adventurer from an early age, Davidson was already a seasoned climber at the time of the Rainier ascent, fully aware of the risks and hopelessly in love with the challenge. But in the blur of a harrowing free fall, he suddenly found himself challenged by nature's grandeur at its most unforgiving. Trapped on a narrow, unstable frozen ledge, deep below daylight and high above a yawning chasm, he would desperately battle crumbling ice and snow that threatened to bury him alive, while struggling in vain to save his fatally injured companion. And finally, with little equipment, no partner, and rapidly dwindling hope, he would have to make a fateful choice--between the certainty of a slow, lonely death or the seeming impossibility of climbing for his life.At once a heart-stopping adventure story, a heartfelt memoir of friendship, and a stirring meditation on fleeting mortality and immutable nature, The Ledge chronicles one man's transforming odyssey from the dizzying heights of elation and awe to the punishing depths of grief and hard-won wisdom. This book's visceral, lyrical prose sings the praises of the physical world's wonders, while searching the souls of those willing, for better or worse, to fully embrace it.From the Hardcover edition.