Rating: 
Summary: January-through-December Men
Review: I've read a lot of Roger Kahn, but by no means all of his work. However, when some wag columnist on ESPN.com rated this book a "0" last year, I knew I would have to step up and defend it. The "0" rating didn't seem to be so much a reflection on the quality of the book, but rather a shot across the bow at an older style of baseball writing. Well, I've read the new postscript to Michael Lewis' "Moneyball". What is the man so annoyed about? He wrote the bestselling baseball book of 2003, and he spends 20 pages in the new edition sniping at (and naming) his critics. When that's on the menu, let me read the dinosaur instead.That said, "October Men" is not a "10" either. The back cover blurb promises "the first in-depth look" at the '78 Yankees. Let's amend that to "the tenth in-depth look". A lot has been written about the Steinbrenner/Martin Yankees -- Kahn even lists all the other books, and rates them. Most of the anecdotes in "October Men" have been told before. Still, the whole book manages to be rather charming. Kahn spends the first few chapters describing his favorite baseball moments going back to 1903. He writes a lot about the early years of the key players in the saga (Martin, Steinbrenner, Jackson), and spends a few chapters on the 1977 Yankees as well. Editorially, this book could have been tighter. Kahn twice refers to the same W.P. Kinsella story, twice describes Lou Piniella as "the best slow outfielder in baseball", and twice has Yankees VP Al Rosen scowling at Roy Cohn on October 2, 1978. He also can't decide whether that date was Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur. Kahn's writing style manages to be persuasive. Unlike the newer breed of baseball writers, he is more apt to drop literary allusions and verses from poetry. No surprise; Kahn's mother was an English teacher -- in fact, was my father's English teacher -- so all this is familiar. It's not enough for Kahn to say that the media is the Fourth Estate; he gives us the origin of the line, too. He also expounds on what it means to "cross the Rubicon", thus making Julius Caesar, for the first time ever, a central player in a baseball narrative. In the end, Kahn's goal is to transform what's now known as "The Bucky Dent Game" into a sweeping look at all of the currents in 1978 leading to that moment. The problem is, Kahn has done better before. His reconstruction of the 1920s for his Jack Dempsey biography (speaking of which, Dempsey is referred to about eleven times in "October Men") gives an overview of everything else about the 1920s, as if he was there. He's less concerned with talking about the "real" 1978, apart from a few stray Jimmy Carter references. This is not the paean to Ronald Reagan that was "Miracle", infusing a year (1980) with political overtones that weren't recognized at the time. Nor is this a sociological portrait of the end of an era, as was Michael Shapiro's "The Last Good Season" about Brooklyn in 1956. This is just a look at what it was like to read New York City newspapers in 1978. Kahn even takes his own Michael Lewis-style potshots at the other writers of the day, including the villainous Dick Young, and makes himself a central player in a few key scenes in the book (as a confidante of Jackson, Martin, and Al Rosen). Bottom line: can you learn more about the '78 Yankees from this book than you can from watching the Bucky Dent game on ESPN Classic or the YES Network? Yes, you can (although you should watch the game, too). Is "October Men" the kind of book that will no longer be written in ten years time? Yes, it is. Is it worth reading now? Yes, it is.
Rating:
Summary: January-through-December Men
Review: I've read a lot of Roger Kahn, but by no means all of his work. However, when some wag columnist on ESPN.com rated this book a "0" last year, I knew I would have to step up and defend it. The "0" rating didn't seem to be so much a reflection on the quality of the book, but rather a shot across the bow at an older style of baseball writing. Well, I've read the new postscript to Michael Lewis' "Moneyball". What is the man so annoyed about? He wrote the bestselling baseball book of 2003, and he spends 20 pages in the new edition sniping at (and naming) his critics. When that's on the menu, let me read the dinosaur instead. That said, "October Men" is not a "10" either. The back cover blurb promises "the first in-depth look" at the '78 Yankees. Let's amend that to "the tenth in-depth look". A lot has been written about the Steinbrenner/Martin Yankees -- Kahn even lists all the other books, and rates them. Most of the anecdotes in "October Men" have been told before. Still, the whole book manages to be rather charming. Kahn spends the first few chapters describing his favorite baseball moments going back to 1903. He writes a lot about the early years of the key players in the saga (Martin, Steinbrenner, Jackson), and spends a few chapters on the 1977 Yankees as well. Editorially, this book could have been tighter. Kahn twice refers to the same W.P. Kinsella story, twice describes Lou Piniella as "the best slow outfielder in baseball", and twice has Yankees VP Al Rosen scowling at Roy Cohn on October 2, 1978. He also can't decide whether that date was Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur. Kahn's writing style manages to be persuasive. Unlike the newer breed of baseball writers, he is more apt to drop literary allusions and verses from poetry. No surprise; Kahn's mother was an English teacher -- in fact, was my father's English teacher -- so all this is familiar. It's not enough for Kahn to say that the media is the Fourth Estate; he gives us the origin of the line, too. He also expounds on what it means to "cross the Rubicon", thus making Julius Caesar, for the first time ever, a central player in a baseball narrative. In the end, Kahn's goal is to transform what's now known as "The Bucky Dent Game" into a sweeping look at all of the currents in 1978 leading to that moment. The problem is, Kahn has done better before. His reconstruction of the 1920s for his Jack Dempsey biography (speaking of which, Dempsey is referred to about eleven times in "October Men") gives an overview of everything else about the 1920s, as if he was there. He's less concerned with talking about the "real" 1978, apart from a few stray Jimmy Carter references. This is not the paean to Ronald Reagan that was "Miracle", infusing a year (1980) with political overtones that weren't recognized at the time. Nor is this a sociological portrait of the end of an era, as was Michael Shapiro's "The Last Good Season" about Brooklyn in 1956. This is just a look at what it was like to read New York City newspapers in 1978. Kahn even takes his own Michael Lewis-style potshots at the other writers of the day, including the villainous Dick Young, and makes himself a central player in a few key scenes in the book (as a confidante of Jackson, Martin, and Al Rosen). Bottom line: can you learn more about the '78 Yankees from this book than you can from watching the Bucky Dent game on ESPN Classic or the YES Network? Yes, you can (although you should watch the game, too). Is "October Men" the kind of book that will no longer be written in ten years time? Yes, it is. Is it worth reading now? Yes, it is.
Rating: 
Summary: An Instant Classic
Review: If you like your baseball with parasols and wateredlemonade, this it not your book. But if you love the real thing, hard whisky, tough characters and the fierce stuggle of a great baseball team not just to prevail but to triumph, then you are on to what may be the best book of the year. Roger Kahn showed us with "The Boys of Summer" that, as James Michener said, he was the best baseball writer in the country. Moving from the old Dodgers, to the Reggie Jackson Yankees he is if anything more eloquent and more vigorous. A joy!
Rating:
Summary: Another Roger Kahn Classic
Review: If you want a dry account of one season, the other reviewers are right: don't buy this book. But if you are a Yankee fan, a baseball fan, a student of human nature (including our foibles) and you like your stories with a bit of social context, then October Men is for you. Ever colorful and quick with the interesting aside and obscure detail, Kahn has done it again. I was fortunate enough to be present at a recent book store appearance by Mr. Kahn and he was his usual entertaining self. He is gregarious, engaging and always interesting, at times provocative. He writes as he speaks. With October Men, Mr. Kahn has given us a fascinating and thoroughly enjoyable read. Bravo, Roger! You're still the only chronicler of baseball who I find really worth going out of my way to buy the day the books hit the stands.
Rating:
Summary: "The Boys of Summer" for the next generation!
Review: Kahn once again affirms his brilliance. No one writes better about Baseball, particularly New York Baseball. This new work is, to my thinking, his best ever. Of course, there is enough drama, character (and characters) for everyone and his Daddy to be able to write about baseball in general, and the New York Yankees in particular. Kahn takes the challenge of this much material on, and comes up with a better book than I can recall about Baseball ever. It covers a great deal, but his writing style is SO enjoyable, that it moves incredibly rapidly. He writes a bit about the history of New York Baseball, Willie, Mickey and the Duke, Joe D., Stengel, Berra, Jackson, Gehrig and of course Ruth (as have many others). Only Kahn, however, puts the sale in terms of 2003 dollars (proving it to be by far the hugest baseball deal of all time). 'Goodbye grits, Hello Oysters Rockefeller'. Who has ever turned such a phrase? No one but Kahn, telling in these five words more than anyone else has written before about the deal which brought North Carolinian Jim 'Catfish' Hunter to the Yankees. Being a passionate fan of New York baseball for more than half a century, Kahn has a love and knowledge of baseball second to none. Few writers (only Roger Angell and David Halberstam come to mind as near competitors) are able to bring this passion from heart to paper. He also writes this story in a manner most comprehensive, bringing the reader into the context of the story by relating what is happening in New York and the country which impacts the Yankees' story (this may be an answer to the criticism of another reviewer who laments the mention of U.S. Presidents and N.Y. Mayors). In taking about troubles experienced by 'The Dark Prince', Billy Martin, Kahn notes that Herman Melville had written two busts: 'Redburn' and 'Mardi' before his epic Moby Dick. I don't know if Kahn had written any busts before, but regardless of what else Kahn had written before, this is as great! Any lover of The Greatest Game On Earth will love this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Poorly written, difficult to read
Review: Roger Kahn once wrote a good book called "The Boys of Summer." He should have quit while he was ahead. October Men" is nothing short of an embarrassment. Attempting to write a sweeping story about the 1978 Yankee season that culminated in the "greatest playoff game ever," Kahn's overblown, arrogant writing style detracts from the book, and had me rolling my eyes in exasperation every few pages. The writing style is unusual and difficult to become engaged with, and what is especially perplexing is there are numerous points where he glosses over important moments of the season The absence of a fact checker is readily apparent, as is the absence of any serious editing; it appears Kahn just handed in a first draft and the publisher went with it. As such, the book is peppered with author's ridiculous comments and opinions on everything from politics to movies to Kahn's own amateurish psychological interpretations. What makes this even worse is that without these harebrained off-the-cuff comments, the story reads like a CPA's telling of baseball history - dull, perfunctory and minus any inspired writing. And his allusion that Willie Mays' great World Series catch of 1954 was off the bat of Bob lemon rather than Vic Wurtz made me want to throw the book across the room. Kahn's own insecurities are revealed no sooner than the book jacket. In his brief bio, we learn that "The Boys of Summer" was the best baseball book of all time, that he was nominated for various prizes, and his wife's middle name is "Colt." You would think a man of this advanced years would be less concerned about his own image. Apparently not. Kahn uses "October Men" as a weapon to bash those he personally dislikes and as a polish rag to lionize those he approves of. There are plenty of good baseball writers out there; realistically you don't have to go farther than David Halberstam. Or Crabbe Evers if you want to read baseball fiction. And if you want to read a really good insider's view of the 1978 Yankee season, Sparky Lyle's "The Bronx Zoo" does a much better job of giving the reader insight into the Yankees of the late 1970s. Only a diehard Yankee fan of that era will enjoy "October Men" and my guess is even those folks will say upon finishing it, that it was mostly a waste of time. Save your money for something better.
Rating:
Summary: Another Grand Slam for Roger Kahn
Review: Roger Kahn, who I consider the best baseball writer of all time, has done it again with October Men. In his gifted, wonderfully unique style, Kahn takes us through the zany 1978 season with the New York Yankees. But the book also gives us insightful backgrounds into the main Yankee characters and an interesting, informative historical perspective on the Yankee dynasty. By far this is his greatest work since The Boys of Summer (and he has had many great books since that 1971 classic) and is a MUST read -- not only for Yankee fans -- but for all sports fans in general. A truly great work from a truly great author.
Rating: 
Summary: Hasn't this been done before?
Review: The book itself is a great read but the problem is this topic was already done better in Sparky Lyle's Bronx Zoo and Graig Nettles' Balls (one of the most underrated baseball books ever). Plus from the subtitle I thought it would only be about that crazy 1978 season but it takes 190 pages to get the reader there.
Was the stuff on the origins of the Yankees really necessary to get to 1978?
I did like the profiles of George (learned he's into poetry...who knew?), Billy Martin (came from a broken home...now there's a surprise...NOT!) and Reggie Jackson (never remarried after his divorce).
Anyway, somehow given the fact that two excellent books on the '70s NYY came out around the same time, I don't get why a third is necessary over 25 years later. Personally, I'm now more interested in that Buster Olney book on the Torre dynasty Yankees and what made them tick.
Rating:
Summary: Good idea, but not much on the 1978 Yankees
Review: The Yankees are my all-time favorite team so when this book came out, I was excited to see some new take on that incredible comeback Yankee team of '78. Boy, was I disappointed. Not only does Kahn barely look at the 78 Yankees until well into the book, he spends most of the time promoting his connections to other famous people, bad-mouthing favorites like Billy Martin and Thurman Munson, and rattling on about rehashed stuff. Save your money!
Rating: 
Summary: Not worth 15 minutes
Review: This book is a huge disappointment. There is nothing new in it. The narrative is disjointed and starts with Yankee history, wanders over to President Carter, then back to Mayor Lindsay, adds a couple of cheap shots at other sportswriter (who Kahn objectively tells us are poor writers), knocks the Times, describes some mid-season games in excessive detail and continues on and on with bloated text, self-importance, self-righteousness without the semblance of structure, wit or storyline. The 1978 Yankees were a mess, but they were winners. This book, unfortunately, is just a mess.
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