An Illustrated Guide to Ballpark Banter, by James Charlton and Sally Cook; illustrations by Ross MacDonald. Chronicle Books, 148 pages, $14.95.
“Quaint” is the first word that came to me as I perused this amusing little volume. While the information herein is obviously not as fulsome any of the Dickson Baseball Dictionaries, it does cover the basics in the areas of hitting, pitching, fielding, and strategy.
As usual, the publisher does a nice job of offering an entertaining product. The definitions by themselves aren’t enough to warrant purchase, so the book is greatly enhanced by MacDonald’s old-timey line drawings, reminiscent of the backs of Topps cards from back in the day (see below).
This isn’t the sort you read for the information; the declaration on the back cover that “Whether you’re a lifelong fan or a rookie working up the ranks, this grand slam mix of definitions and anecdotes will have you talking like a pro” is marketing fluff. It’s pretty to think so, but no. By assumption, any lifelong fan of a certain maturity in years would already know all this material. Still How to Speak Baseball would make a nice, inexpensive gift for the baseball lover on your list.
is available on Amazon.com,
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