Muchnick, Irvin. Chris & Nancy: The True Story of the Benoit Murder-Suicide and Pro Wrestling’s Cocktail of Death, The Ultimate Historical Edition. ECW Books, 2021. Pp. 280. $26.95 CAD paperback. Reviewed by Łukasz Muniowski Chris Benoit was my favorite wrestler. Chris Benoit murdered his wife and son, and then took his own life. These two truths…
Kaliss, Gregory J. Beyond the Black Power Salute: Athlete Activism in an Era of Change. University of Illinois Press, 2023. Pp. 280. $24.95 paper. Reviewed by Łukasz Muniowski Inspired by Colin Kaepernick’s 2016 protest, Gregory J. Kaliss digs through the history of African-American activism, skipping past decades of “colorblind icons, like Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods,…
Elder, Adam. New Kids in the World Cup: The Totally Late ‘80s & Early ‘90s Tale of the Team That Changed American Soccer Forever. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2022. Pp. 360. $34.95 hardcover and e-book. Reviewed by Łukasz Muniowski The US men’s national team was one of the 13 teams that appeared in the original World…
O’Neil, Sean. Spirit and Sport: Religion and the Fragile Athletic Body in Popular Culture. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 2022. Pp. 210. $50.00 paperback and e-book. Reviewed by Łukasz Muniowski Sean O’Neil introduces himself in the Preface to his book as “an ordained Christian minister and a bishop” (p. xi). And both occupations set the tone for…
Bogues, Tyrone with Jacob Uitti. Muggsy: My Life from a Kid in the Projects to the Godfather of Small Ball. Triumph Books, 2023. Pp. 256. $28 paper. Reviewed by Łukasz Muniowski Asked whether there would ever be another Larry Bird, Bird himself answered that the proper question should be whether there would ever be another Muggsy…
Secular, Steven. The Digital NBA: How the World’s Savviest League Brings the Court to Our Couch. University of Illinois Press, 2023. Pp. 240. $27.95 paper. Reviewed by Łukasz Muniowski Steven Secular’s book is a combination of two approaches, intertwining first-hand observations and academic works about media studies and geopolitics, most notably globalization. Prompted to write the…
Squadron, Alex. Life in the G: Minor League Basketball and the Relentless Pursuit of the NBA. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2023. Pp. 288. $34.95 hardcover and e-book. Reviewed by Łukasz Muniowski As Alex Squadron himself points out, the NBA G League is “a place nobody wants to be,” yet every season basketball players crowd to get…
Crawford, Russ. Women’s American Football: Breaking Barriers On and Off the Gridiron. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2022. Pp. 408. $34.95 hardcover and e-book. Reviewed by Łukasz Muniowski As pointed out by Russ Crawford at the beginning of the first book devoted solely to women’s American football, “Women and girls on more than 150 teams play tackle…
Hornbaker, Tim. The Last Real World Champion: The Legacy of “Nature Boy” Ric Flair. Toronto: ECW Press, 2023. Pp. 392. $29.95 CAD paperback and e-book. Reviewed by Łukasz Muniowski Ric Flair has been involved in wrestling for over 50 years. Following his recent appearance on AEW Rampage, it seems that, as long as his body allows, he…
Cornwell, Lisa. Troublemaker: A Memoir of Sexism, Retaliation, and the Fight They Didn’t See Coming. New York: Triumph Books, 2023. Pp. 256. $30 paperback and e-book. Reviewed by Łukasz Muniowski In the first sentence of the foreword to Troublemaker, Hillary Clinton informs the reader that this is not a book about golf and it can…
Thompson, Evan. A Complete History of the Major League Baseball Playoffs – Volume 1: Pre-Divisional Tiebreakers Through 1976. BookBaby (self-published). Pp. 460. $34.95 (paperback). Reviewed by Richard A. Macales By the mid-1960s Major League Baseball was in trouble. BIG TROUBLE! Attendance had tanked. Batting statistics and runs scored––which fans generally prefer over great pitching––“hit” record…
By Andrew McGregor Next year college football — and all of major college sports — will look radically different. During the last few months conference realignment has dramatically reshaped the landscape, shifting traditional powers, disrupting rivalries, and eschewing geographic logic in the quest for media dollars and relevance. This is hardly new. Conference realignment has…
Dyed in Crimson: Football, Faith, and Remaking Harvard’s America. University of Illinois Press, 2023. Pp. 290. Acknowledgments, bibliography, conclusion, index, introduction, notes. $28 paperback. Reviewed by Bob D’Angelo Anti-Semitism in the United States is not new, but it has been bubbling to the surface again with alarming frequency. According to FBI statistics, American Jews account…
Baugh, Peter. Force of Nature: Joe Sakic, A Star-Studded Team, and How the Colorado Avalanche Built a Stanley Cup Winner. New York: Triumph Books, 2022. Pp. 288. $19.99 paperback and e-book. Sometimes everything you need to know about a book is right there in the title and subtitle. Oftentimes authors try to make their books…
Dolich, Andy, and Newhouse, Dave. Goodbye, Oakland: Winning, Wanderlust and a Sports Town’s Fight for Survival. Chicago: Triumph Books. 2023. Pp. 256. No index or chapter notes. $28 (hardcover). Reviewed by Richard A. Macales “There are three sides to every story: your side, my side, and the truth. And no one is lying. Memories shared…
Sport in American History 