Other books that might interest you

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  Eight Men Out - The Black Sox...

  Eliot Asinof

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  First published in 1963, Eliot Asinof's Eight Men Out has become a timeless classic of a scandalous world series.The headlines proclaimed the 1919 fix of the World Series and attempted cover-up as "the most gigantic sporting swindle in the history of America!" Eliot Asinof has reconstructed the entire scene-by-scene story of the fantastic scandal in which eight Chicago White Sox players arranged with the nation's leading gamblers to throw the Series in Cincinnati. Mr. Asinof vividly describes the tense meetings, the hitches in the conniving, the actual plays in which the Series was thrown, the Grand Jury indictment, and the famous 1921 trial. Moving behind the scenes, he perceptively examines the motives and backgrounds of the players and the conditions that made the improbable fix all too possible. Here, too, is a graphic picture of the American underworld that managed the fix, the deeply shocked newspapermen who uncovered the story, and the war-exhausted nation that turned with relief and pride to the Series, only to be rocked by the scandal. Far more than a superbly told baseball story, this is a compelling slice of American history in the aftermath of World War I and at the cusp of the Roaring Twenties.

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  The Byerley Turk - The True...

  Jeremy James

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  This is the true story of the most remarkable horse in history. In 1678, a beautiful mahogany bay Karaman colt is foaled in a stable on a feudal landholding in the Balkans. Yet this is no ordinary colt: this is a colt with a destiny. 
  He is destined to become the magnificent Byerley Turk, the first Foundation Sire of the thoroughbred line. From his early days the young horse is hard-schooled in the disciplines of war. In 1683, in diamond and ruby-studded harness in the ranks of the glittering Ottoman sipahi, he fights as a charger at the Siege of Vienna.
  Seized as an exotic prize from the Siege of Buda three years later, he is ridden across Europe to the Royal Barracks of King James II in Hounslow, England, where he is acquired in 1687 by Captain Robert Byerley. In 1690, as a charger in the ranks of King William's army, he faces sabre and cannon at the Battle of the Boyne, but not before romping past the winning post at Downroyal and snatching the King's Plate.
  After two years of bitter campaigning in Ireland he is shipped back to England, where his owner, now Colonel of his regiment, retires him to Goldsborough Hall in Yorkshire.
  Here the horse is put to Stud and begins a long well-earned retirement. He died at the age of 25 in 1703.
  No stone marks his grave. Until now his story has never been told. But on racecourses throughout the world today, his blood thunders on.

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  Instant rock climbing - Tips and...

  Infinite Ideas

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  This handy little guide is packed with tips and techniques for anybody who’s been climbing for a short while and wants to improve their technique. Clearly the best place to practise climbing skills is on a climbing wall or (harnessed securely) on a rock face, but we hope these ideas will give you some tips on what kit to invest in, help you improve your technique next time you climb and simply inspire you to go for it. We can’t promise that reading these ideas will see you climbing ropeless up mountains in the style of Tom Cruise in MI2 (we certainly wouldn’t recommend it) but we do hope you find them entertaining, inspiring and informative. Happy scrambling!

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  A Woman's Guide to Football -...

  Paula Duffy

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  Hail Mary, Sports Widows! Get off the bench and into the game with a relationship kick off that will lead you straight into the end zone. In less than an hour, you can learn all the football basics you need to help you connect with your favorite guy. Join in the fun as Paula Duffy, lifelong sports enthusiast and founder of Incidental Contact, a sports learning site for women, entertains you with the basic rules of the game, information on the players and what they do, and common terms used by announcers as well as how to use what you've learned to get and keep a guy's attention as you "Talk Sports."  A firm believer that a little sports knowledge can go a long way, Duffy says "sports talk is the most easily learned and best way to break the ice in any context...at home, in business or at play. I am here to debunk the myth that men don't like to talk. Men do like to talk...sports."   So ladies, your fumbling days are over. It's time to move out of the stands and onto the playing field to grab that tight end you want to get to meet, or a boyfriend or husband you want to know better.

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  It Happened Like This - A Life...

  Adrienne Lindholm

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  In an authentic and honest voice, writer Adrienne Lindholm recounts her move to Alaska as a young woman eager to begin her career in environmental and wildlife studies. She finds herself initially out of her depth among her peers, many of whom are also "Outsiders," new to the state, but who seem more experienced, more confident. Eventually she finds her way, immersing herself in the rigors of wilderness adventures and building a community of outdoorsy friends to sustain her. Soon she falls in love with JT and gradually, at times painfully, they build a life together and decide to start a family amidst the wild.Adrienne celebrates the many ways in which Alaska, and her outdoor adventures there, inspired self-discovery, as well as revealing her difficult and intimate journey into motherhood. Her love story encompasses the outline of massive mountains on the horizon, viewed for the first time; a caribou moving through an alder forest; the effort to climb a glaciated peak; and the peace that settles when contemplating a quiet Arctic lake. At times, her love—for JT, but also for nature and life—also feels savage, like when she charges onto a glacier alone, or when she shoots, kills, and skins her first animal.

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  Game of Edges - The Analytics...

  Bruce Schoenfeld

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  The story of how a new generation of tech-savvy franchise owners is reshaping every aspect of professional sports.In the last two decades, innovation, data analysis, and technology have driven a tectonic shift in the sports business. Game of Edges is the story of how sports franchises evolved, on and off the field, from raggedly run small businesses into some of the most systematically productive companies around.In today’s game, everyone from the owners to the marketing staff is using information—data—to give their team an edge. For analysts, an edge is their currency. Figuring out that bunting hurts your offense? That’s an edge. So is discovering metrics that can predict the career arc of your free agent shooting guard. Or combing through a decade of ticket-buying data to target persuadable fans.These small, incremental steps move a sports franchise from merely ordinary to the leading edge. Franchises today are more than just sports; they integrate a whole suite of other businesses—television and digital content, gambling and real estate, fashion and apparel, entertainment, catering and concessions, and much more. But an optimized franchise can’t afford to be sentimental. Teams must do what the numbers say, reducing the element of chance, limiting those random moments of athletic heroism that make sports thrilling to watch. Optimization also means the franchise’s main goal isn’t championships anymore; it’s keepingyou, the viewer, engaged with the product.Drawing on extensive interviews with franchise owners, general managers, executives, and players, Bruce Schoenfeld introduces dynamic leaders who are radically reimagining the operations of these decades-old teams—and producing mind-boggling valuations. He joins the architects of the Golden State Warriors dynasty for an exclusive reception before tip-off. He stands among the faithful at Anfield, watching Liverpool’s analytics guru assess a prized midfielder. And he watches the president of the Chicago Cubs break ground on a new DraftKings gambling parlor at Wrigley Field, not ten miles from the site of the original Black Sox betting scandal. Essential reading for anyone interested in sports, business, or technology, Game of Edges explores a world where winning the game is only the beginning.

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