Jim Bunning: Baseball and Beyond (Baseball in America)

Rating:
Summary: A No-Hitter, But Not a Perfect Game
Review: My name is Chad, and I'm a Philadelphia Phillies' fan. Yes, that's correct. I'm the one.

Having followed the Phillies my entire life, I was already a fairly big Jim Bunning fan. So, I went into reading this book slightly biased. Unfortunately, the book leaves a bit to be desired as far as a biography goes. I would say it's more of a baseball memoir.

There was very little about his private life, and his childhood and early life was practically skipped. However, the professional baseball chapters were, by far, the best. Bunning has an incredible knowledge of the game of baseball, and he was one of the smartest pitchers in the history of baseball. His hard work ethic could not be matched, and he truly did a lot for the game.

His pitching days are nicely summed up in the book. I was captivated by his recounting of the perfect game against the New York Mets. In all of the baseball chapters, the detail was phenominal. I could almost feel myself being at the game in person. The personal stories (i.e. - Ted Williams' 3 strikeouts)were nicely mixed in.

His minor league managerial career is also nicely documented, and I liked getting a behind-the-scenes look at what goes on in a professional baseball organization. I was amazed at the amount of politics involved in the front office.

I realize that the chapters on his politcal career had to be included, but they seemed a little long winded. There also seemed to be too much of a do-or-die situation involved every single time he ran for office. It was made out to be more dramatic than it probably was. In all honesty, the end of the book (the politics) got quite dry and I had some trouble staying completely interested like I was with the exciting baseball sections.

Overall, Jim Bunning's book is a pretty decent read. The flow for the first 3-quarters of the book is really smooth, and fairly exciting. The personal stories peppered throughout the book keeps you wanting to read on. It is a must for any fan of the game of baseball.

Rating:
Summary: A No-Hitter, But Not a Perfect Game
Review: My name is Chad, and I'm a Philadelphia Phillies' fan. Yes, that's correct. I'm the one.

Having followed the Phillies my entire life, I was already a fairly big Jim Bunning fan. So, I went into reading this book slightly biased. Unfortunately, the book leaves a bit to be desired as far as a biography goes. I would say it's more of a baseball memoir.

There was very little about his private life, and his childhood and early life was practically skipped. However, the professional baseball chapters were, by far, the best. Bunning has an incredible knowledge of the game of baseball, and he was one of the smartest pitchers in the history of baseball. His hard work ethic could not be matched, and he truly did a lot for the game.

His pitching days are nicely summed up in the book. I was captivated by his recounting of the perfect game against the New York Mets. In all of the baseball chapters, the detail was phenominal. I could almost feel myself being at the game in person. The personal stories (i.e. - Ted Williams' 3 strikeouts)were nicely mixed in.

His minor league managerial career is also nicely documented, and I liked getting a behind-the-scenes look at what goes on in a professional baseball organization. I was amazed at the amount of politics involved in the front office.

I realize that the chapters on his politcal career had to be included, but they seemed a little long winded. There also seemed to be too much of a do-or-die situation involved every single time he ran for office. It was made out to be more dramatic than it probably was. In all honesty, the end of the book (the politics) got quite dry and I had some trouble staying completely interested like I was with the exciting baseball sections.

Overall, Jim Bunning's book is a pretty decent read. The flow for the first 3-quarters of the book is really smooth, and fairly exciting. The personal stories peppered throughout the book keeps you wanting to read on. It is a must for any fan of the game of baseball.

Rating:
Summary: Campaign Press Release or Biography
Review: Perhaps my view can be attributed to the inherent skepticism of being a Philadelphia sports fan, but the tone of this book rings more like a political endorsement than biography. It's very thin on Bunning's early life, devotes very little space to his time with the Pirates and Dodgers, and spends an inordinate amount of time on the campaign trail. About the only time I got a sense of the real Jim Bunning was in the chapters devoted to his minor league managing career. As the Phutile Phillies were apt to do during Bunning's career, Dolson doesn't get enough run support and does an admirable job with very thin material.