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Playing for Pizza
by John GrishamMoving away from the legal world to American Football, Grisham keeps you mesmerised with twists and turns of plot and wonderful characterisation. An American classic from the No.1 bestselling master thriller writer.With a 17-point lead and just minutes to go, Rick Dockery provided what was arguably the worst single performance in the history of the NFL. Overnight, he became a national laughing stock and, of course, was immediately dropped by the Browns and shunned by all other teams. But all Rick knows is football, and he insists that his agent, Arnie, finds a team that needs him. Against enormous odds, Arnie finally locates just such a team and informs Rick that, miraculously, he can in fact now be a starting quarterback – for the mighty Panthers of Parma, Italy.Rick reluctantly agrees to play for them – at least until a better offer comes along – and heads off to Italy. He knows nothing about Parma (not even where it is), has never been to Europe, and doesn't speak or understand a word of Italian. The land of opera, fine wines, extremely small cars, romance and football americano certainly holds a few surprises for Rick Dockery.
Playing for Pride: Down By A Run, The Team Needs To Play Its Best... Can Laurie Come Through For Her Team? (Laurie Bird Preston)
by Timothy TocherA New Sport with New Rules—Can Laurie Come Through for Her Team?With the girls&’ softball season about to start, fifth-grader Laurie Bird Preston can&’t decide what to do. Her friends are trying out for the team, but Laurie knows she&’s no softball player—basketball is her sport. She helped lead her middle school&’s girls&’ basketball team to a state championship just a few weeks earlier. What fun will she have playing a sport she&’s no good at and might not even like? But with patience, practice—and help from her friends and an eccentric old woman with a mysterious past—Laurie might just learn that she doesn&’t have to be the best player to be part of the team.
Playing for the Hoops: The George McCluskey Story
by Aidan Donaldson"How did George McCluskey become one of Celtic F.C.’s most memorable football players? What binds the fans and players and creates this strong sense of belonging? And what does the Irish diaspora have to do with Celtic F.C.? George McCluskey was one of the key strikers for the Hoops in the ‘70s and ‘80s, a successful time in the club’s history. He did not only score for his team, but changed the entire game in favour of Celtic more than once. In this account of his life story told by his close friend Aidan Donaldson and his son Barry McCluskey, George McCluskey is praised as the embodiment of the Celtic spirit. His individual history is intertwined with the history and mentality of the club. However, George McCluskey did not only influence Celtic F.C. but also other clubs he played for and the people he has met during his life. This book takes you on a journey through the development of the club from its very beginning, as well as exploring the evolution of football in general. How did we get from football legends like George McCluskey to football celebrities like David Beckham? What did professional football look like back then, what constitutes it nowadays? This timely book will appeal not only to Celtic supporters, but to anyone interested in the development of professional football. His exuberant celebration depicted on the cover of the book remains iconic in the eyes of Celtic supporters today. His Cup winning goal led inadvertently to a riot and the banning of alcohol in Scottish football grounds."
Playing for Uncle Sam: The Brits' Story of the North American Soccer League
by David TossellA coach transported to the field in a hearse as he played dead. An English manager taken at gunpoint to an Argentinian jail after trying to sign that country's World Cup captain. The hero of 1966 who talked his team out of going on strike on the eve of a title decider. All are part of the British professionals' story of life in the North American Soccer League (NASL) in the 1970s and early '80s, when star turn and unsung journeyman alike had the chance to play alongside Pelé, Cruyff, Beckenbauer and Eusebio in the greatest galaxy of world stars ever assembled in one league. Playing for Uncle Sam recalls the British players and coaches who were part of an organisation that changed the face of football with its shoot-outs, offside rule and wacky marketing methods.It began with Stoke City and Wolverhampton Wanderers spending a bizarre summer posing as the Cleveland Stokers and Los Angeles Wolves in 1967. The late '70s saw the NASL, run by a former Welsh international, reach its peak, drawing crowds of 70,000 and featuring names like Banks, Moore, Hurst and Ball. Rodney Marsh pitched his tent in America by declaring famously that English football had become a grey game, while George Best used the NASL as an escape from the fishbowl of his life in Britain. Typically, the pair delighted and exasperated teammates and coaches in equal measure. Through approximately 60 interviews with members of the British contingent who accepted the offer of the Yankee dollar, Playing for Uncle Sam recalls one of the most fascinating episodes in football history: the remarkable rise and chaotic collapse of the NASL.
Playing The Game?: Cricket's Tarnished Ideals : From Bodyline to Present
by Mark PeelOf all games, cricket has long prided itself on its ethical traditions, but to modern skeptics the idea of cricket encapsulating a higher morality is actually something of a myth. Playing the Game? looks at the changing ethics of cricket, from its gentlemanly roots right up until the present day. After decades of sledging, intimidatory bowling, blatant gamesmanship and dissent, the MCC adopted "The Spirit of Cricket" in 2000 in an attempt to reclaim the game's original ethos-but was it already too late? While the concept is a noble one, its impact has so far been limited, as award-winning cricket scribe Mark Peel explains. As well as looking back to the infamous Bodyline series of 1932/33, Peel also investigates the effects of Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket; takes the ICC to task on their failure to quell rowdy behavior and gamesmanship; examines the double standards of Western cricketing nations towards Pakistan; and delves into the recent ball-tampering affair that has tainted Aussie cricket.
Playing Games: An introduction to the philosophy of sport through dialogue
by Randolph FeezellWhat is sport? Why does sport matter? How can we use philosophy to understand what sport means today? This engaging and highly original introduction to the philosophy of sport uses dialogue – a form of philosophical investigation – to address the fundamental questions in sport studies and to explore key contemporary issues such as fair play, gender, drug use, cheating, entertainment and identity. Providing a clear, informative and accessible introduction to the philosophy of sport, every chapter includes current sporting examples as well as review questions and guides to further reading. The dialogue form enables students to engage in debate and raise questions, while encouraging them to think from the perspectives of athlete, coach, spectator and philosopher. The issues raised present real and complex ethical dilemmas that relate to a variety of sports from around the world such as soccer, athletics, baseball, basketball, hockey and tennis. No other book brings this rich subject to life through the use of dialogue, making this an indispensable companion to any course on the philosophy or ethics of sport.
Playing Games: An introduction to the philosophy of sport through dialogue
by Randolph FeezellWhat is sport? Why does sport matter? How can we use philosophy to understand what sport means today? This engaging and highly original introduction to the philosophy of sport uses dialogue – a form of philosophical investigation – to address the fundamental questions in sport studies and to explore key contemporary issues such as fair play, gender, drug use, cheating, entertainment and identity. Providing a clear, informative and accessible introduction to the philosophy of sport, every chapter includes current sporting examples as well as review questions and guides to further reading. The dialogue form enables students to engage in debate and raise questions, while encouraging them to think from the perspectives of athlete, coach, spectator and philosopher. The issues raised present real and complex ethical dilemmas that relate to a variety of sports from around the world such as soccer, athletics, baseball, basketball, hockey and tennis. No other book brings this rich subject to life through the use of dialogue, making this an indispensable companion to any course on the philosophy or ethics of sport.
Playing Hard Ball: County Cricket and Big League Baseball
by E.T. SmithPLAYING HARD BALL is a unique sports book, a cultural comparison of two national games - cricket, English in origin and American baseball - written from the viewpoint of a top-class practitioner of both codes. Ed Smith - the young Cambridge University and Kent batsman - has spent the winters since 1998 in Spring Training with the New York Mets baseball team. It has enabled Ed to contrast and compare arguably the two most iconic of sports from the inside. In fact, baseball had a thriving following in Britain until the Great War: Derby County's former stadium was called the Baseball Ground; Tottenham Hotspur was at first a baseball club. Apart from learning two very different techniques, Ed learned that the sports' ultimate heroes, the Babe and the Don - Babe Ruth and Don Bradman - might as well have come from different planets, whilst baseball's pristine Hall of Fame in Cooperstown is a far cry from the ramshackle cricket museum at Lord's. Ed Smith's PLAYING HARD BALL draws on these intriguing comparisons to paint a two-sided portrait of sports most illustrous 'hitting games'.
Playing Hard To Get
by Monica MurphyEveryone's a player on The Golden Eagles football team . . . From TikTok sensation and New York Times bestselling author of Lancaster Prep Monica Murphy comes the first instalment in her scorching sports romance series, The Players. Knox Maguire is the star player on the football team and the King of campus. Everyone loves him but no one pays attention to me. When I become his English tutor, things are kept strictly business. Yet Knox is impossible to resist. Next thing I know, we're getting hot and heavy in the library. When Knox admits he can't stop thinking about me, I have a realization. I can't stop thinking about him either. Instead of keeping my distance, I pull him in closer. Until somehow, we're spending all of our time together and I find myself falling for him. Hard. But is this star athlete playing a game with my heart . . .Tropes/themes: 1. Cross the line 2. Spicy Books3. Boy Obsessed 4. Sports Romance 5. College
Playing in Time: Essays, Profiles, and Other True Stories
by Carlo RotellaFrom jazz fantasy camp to running a movie studio; from a fight between an old guy and a fat guy to a fear of clowns—Carlo Rotella’s Playing in Time delivers good stories full of vivid characters, all told with the unique voice and humor that have garnered Rotella many devoted readers in the New York Times Magazine, Boston Globe, and Washington Post Magazine, among others. The two dozen essays in Playing in Time, some of which have never before been published, revolve around the themes and obsessions that have characterized Rotella’s writing from the start: boxing, music, writers, and cities. What holds them together is Rotella’s unique focus on people, craft, and what floats outside the mainstream. “Playing in time” refers to how people make beauty and meaning while working within the constraints and limits forced on them by life, and in his writing Rotella transforms the craft and beauty he so admires in others into an art of his own. Rotella is best known for his writings on boxing, and his essays here do not disappoint. It’s a topic that he turns to for its colorful characters, compelling settings, and formidable life lessons both in and out of the ring. He gives us tales of an older boxer who keeps unretiring and a welterweight who is “about as rich and famous as a 147-pound fighter can get these days,” and a hilarious rumination on why Muhammad Ali’s phrase “I am the greatest” began appearing (in the mouth of Epeus) in translations of The Iliad around 1987. His essays on blues, crime and science fiction writers, and urban spaces are equally and deftly engaging, combining an artist’s eye for detail with a scholar’s sense of research, whether taking us to visit detective writer George Pelecanos or to dance with the proprietress of the Baby Doll Polka Club next to Midway Airport in Chicago. Rotella’s essays are always smart, frequently funny, and consistently surprising. This collection will be welcomed by his many fans and will bring his inimitable style and approach to an even wider audience.
Playing in Time: Essays, Profiles, and Other True Stories
by Carlo RotellaFrom jazz fantasy camp to running a movie studio; from a fight between an old guy and a fat guy to a fear of clowns—Carlo Rotella’s Playing in Time delivers good stories full of vivid characters, all told with the unique voice and humor that have garnered Rotella many devoted readers in the New York Times Magazine, Boston Globe, and Washington Post Magazine, among others. The two dozen essays in Playing in Time, some of which have never before been published, revolve around the themes and obsessions that have characterized Rotella’s writing from the start: boxing, music, writers, and cities. What holds them together is Rotella’s unique focus on people, craft, and what floats outside the mainstream. “Playing in time” refers to how people make beauty and meaning while working within the constraints and limits forced on them by life, and in his writing Rotella transforms the craft and beauty he so admires in others into an art of his own. Rotella is best known for his writings on boxing, and his essays here do not disappoint. It’s a topic that he turns to for its colorful characters, compelling settings, and formidable life lessons both in and out of the ring. He gives us tales of an older boxer who keeps unretiring and a welterweight who is “about as rich and famous as a 147-pound fighter can get these days,” and a hilarious rumination on why Muhammad Ali’s phrase “I am the greatest” began appearing (in the mouth of Epeus) in translations of The Iliad around 1987. His essays on blues, crime and science fiction writers, and urban spaces are equally and deftly engaging, combining an artist’s eye for detail with a scholar’s sense of research, whether taking us to visit detective writer George Pelecanos or to dance with the proprietress of the Baby Doll Polka Club next to Midway Airport in Chicago. Rotella’s essays are always smart, frequently funny, and consistently surprising. This collection will be welcomed by his many fans and will bring his inimitable style and approach to an even wider audience.
Playing in Time: Essays, Profiles, and Other True Stories
by Carlo RotellaFrom jazz fantasy camp to running a movie studio; from a fight between an old guy and a fat guy to a fear of clowns—Carlo Rotella’s Playing in Time delivers good stories full of vivid characters, all told with the unique voice and humor that have garnered Rotella many devoted readers in the New York Times Magazine, Boston Globe, and Washington Post Magazine, among others. The two dozen essays in Playing in Time, some of which have never before been published, revolve around the themes and obsessions that have characterized Rotella’s writing from the start: boxing, music, writers, and cities. What holds them together is Rotella’s unique focus on people, craft, and what floats outside the mainstream. “Playing in time” refers to how people make beauty and meaning while working within the constraints and limits forced on them by life, and in his writing Rotella transforms the craft and beauty he so admires in others into an art of his own. Rotella is best known for his writings on boxing, and his essays here do not disappoint. It’s a topic that he turns to for its colorful characters, compelling settings, and formidable life lessons both in and out of the ring. He gives us tales of an older boxer who keeps unretiring and a welterweight who is “about as rich and famous as a 147-pound fighter can get these days,” and a hilarious rumination on why Muhammad Ali’s phrase “I am the greatest” began appearing (in the mouth of Epeus) in translations of The Iliad around 1987. His essays on blues, crime and science fiction writers, and urban spaces are equally and deftly engaging, combining an artist’s eye for detail with a scholar’s sense of research, whether taking us to visit detective writer George Pelecanos or to dance with the proprietress of the Baby Doll Polka Club next to Midway Airport in Chicago. Rotella’s essays are always smart, frequently funny, and consistently surprising. This collection will be welcomed by his many fans and will bring his inimitable style and approach to an even wider audience.
Playing in Time: Essays, Profiles, and Other True Stories
by Carlo RotellaFrom jazz fantasy camp to running a movie studio; from a fight between an old guy and a fat guy to a fear of clowns—Carlo Rotella’s Playing in Time delivers good stories full of vivid characters, all told with the unique voice and humor that have garnered Rotella many devoted readers in the New York Times Magazine, Boston Globe, and Washington Post Magazine, among others. The two dozen essays in Playing in Time, some of which have never before been published, revolve around the themes and obsessions that have characterized Rotella’s writing from the start: boxing, music, writers, and cities. What holds them together is Rotella’s unique focus on people, craft, and what floats outside the mainstream. “Playing in time” refers to how people make beauty and meaning while working within the constraints and limits forced on them by life, and in his writing Rotella transforms the craft and beauty he so admires in others into an art of his own. Rotella is best known for his writings on boxing, and his essays here do not disappoint. It’s a topic that he turns to for its colorful characters, compelling settings, and formidable life lessons both in and out of the ring. He gives us tales of an older boxer who keeps unretiring and a welterweight who is “about as rich and famous as a 147-pound fighter can get these days,” and a hilarious rumination on why Muhammad Ali’s phrase “I am the greatest” began appearing (in the mouth of Epeus) in translations of The Iliad around 1987. His essays on blues, crime and science fiction writers, and urban spaces are equally and deftly engaging, combining an artist’s eye for detail with a scholar’s sense of research, whether taking us to visit detective writer George Pelecanos or to dance with the proprietress of the Baby Doll Polka Club next to Midway Airport in Chicago. Rotella’s essays are always smart, frequently funny, and consistently surprising. This collection will be welcomed by his many fans and will bring his inimitable style and approach to an even wider audience.
Playing It My Way: My Autobiography
by Sachin Tendulkar'I don't think anyone, apart from Don Bradman, is in the same class as Sachin Tendulkar.' -Shane WarneThis is cricket icon, Sachin Tendulkar's life story in his own words - his journey from a small boy with dreams to becoming a cricket god. His amazing story has now been turned into a major film, A Billion Dreams, in which he stars. The greatest run-scorer in the history of cricket, Sachin Tendulkar retired in 2013 after an astonishing 24 years at the top. The most celebrated Indian cricketer of all time, he received the Bharat Ratna Award - India's highest civilian honour - on the day of his retirement. Now Sachin Tendulkar tells his own remarkable story - from his first Test cap at the age of 16 to his 100th international century and the emotional final farewell that brought his country to a standstill. When a boisterous Mumbai youngster's excess energies were channelled into cricket, the result was record-breaking schoolboy batting exploits that launched the career of a cricketing phenomenon. Before long Sachin Tendulkar was the cornerstone of India's batting line-up, his every move watched by a cricket-mad nation's devoted followers. Never has a cricketer been burdened with so many expectations; never has a cricketer performed at such a high level for so long and with such style - scoring more runs and making more centuries than any other player, in both Tests and one-day games. And perhaps only one cricketer could have brought together a shocked nation by defiantly scoring a Test century shortly after terrorist attacks rocked Mumbai. His many achievements with India include winning the World Cup and topping the world Test rankings. Yet he has also known his fair share of frustration and failure - from injuries and early World Cup exits to stinging criticism from the press, especially during his unhappy tenure as captain. Despite his celebrity status, Sachin Tendulkar has always remained a very private man, devoted to his family and his country. Now, for the first time, he provides a fascinating insight into his personal life and gives a frank and revealing account of a sporting life like no other.
Playing Outside: Activities, ideas and inspiration for the early years
by Helen BiltonMaking outdoor teaching and learning work in practice is now a key priority for all early years practitioners. Playing Outside provides clear and detailed guidance on all aspects of outdoor play illustrated with over 100 colour photographs. This bestselling book has been fully updated throughout to incorporate the Early Years Foundation Stage and includes completely new photographs, case studies and ideas for resources. To help promote physical activity, healty and well educated children this book provides: practical activities that cover all aspects of learning; photographs illustrating good practice and imaginative use of equipment; examples of work from a range of settings; help and advice on suppliers of equipment. Written for all practitioners working in schools, nurseries and pre-school settings, this book is essential reading for those who wish to provide inspiring outdoor play opportunities for the children in their care.
Playing Outside: Activities, ideas and inspiration for the early years
by Helen BiltonMaking outdoor teaching and learning work in practice is now a key priority for all early years practitioners. Playing Outside provides clear and detailed guidance on all aspects of outdoor play illustrated with over 100 colour photographs. This bestselling book has been fully updated throughout to incorporate the Early Years Foundation Stage and includes completely new photographs, case studies and ideas for resources. To help promote physical activity, healty and well educated children this book provides: practical activities that cover all aspects of learning; photographs illustrating good practice and imaginative use of equipment; examples of work from a range of settings; help and advice on suppliers of equipment. Written for all practitioners working in schools, nurseries and pre-school settings, this book is essential reading for those who wish to provide inspiring outdoor play opportunities for the children in their care.
Playing Partners: A Father, a Son, and Their Shared Addiction to Golf
by George PeperTeenagers are notorious for differences with their parents, but the author has been lucky to share a special friendship with his 18-year-old son, Scott.
Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Made a Nation
by John CarlinNow filmed as INVICTUS directed by Clint Eastwood, and starring Matt Damon and Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela. SHORTLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2008As the day of the final of the 1995 Rugby World Cup dawned, and the Springboks faced New Zealand's all-conquering All Blacks, more was at stake than a sporting trophy. When Nelson Mandela appeared wearing a Springboks jersey and led the all-white Afrikaner-dominated team in singing South Africa's new national anthem, he conquered the hearts of white South Africa. Playing the Enemy tells the extraordinary human story of how that moment became possible. It shows how a sport, once the preserve of South Africa's Afrikaans-speaking minority, came to unify the new rainbow nation, and tells of how - just occasionally - something as simple as a game really can help people to rise above themselves and see beyond their differences.
Playing the Field
by null Becky WardFun, sexy and full of heart, Playing the Field is perfect for fans of Icebreaker and The Cheat Sheet as well as shows like Welcome to Wrexham and Ted Lasso. TROPES: Grumpy/Sunshine, Forbidden Romance, Secret Dating, will-they-won't-they ––––––––––––––––––––––––––- He might be a player, but she'll teach him some new rules… When football-mad Lily's local club relocates to a city more than 50 miles away, she's just as devastated as all the other fans. Determined to keep the community's love of football alive, Lily, along with her dad and sister, sets up a brand-new club, Crawford United, with the dream of making it big. Everyone is shocked when notorious professional player Ben Pryce shows up out of the blue to help coach the new team. Despite being a top Premier League striker, he's been temporarily suspended from his team for an altercation with a fan – and his image is in serious need of a revamp. Within minutes Lily and Ben are clashing like rival teams on match day. But despite their differences, sparks fly – and it's not long before Lily's at risk of breaking her number one rule: no mixing business with pleasure. Ben may have a bad-boy reputation, but might there be more to him than meets the eye? Funny, sweet and oh-so-steamy, Playing the Field is perfect for fans of Icebreaker and The Cheat Sheet as well as shows like Welcome to Wrexham and Ted Lasso.
Playing the Moldovans at Tennis
by Tony Hawks'All I knew about Moldova were the names of eleven men printed on the inside back pages of my newspaper. None of them sounded to me like they were any good at tennis ...'An eccentric wager finds Tony Hawks, a man who loves an unusual challenge, bound for the little-known Eastern European state of Moldova. His mission: to track down members of the country's football team and persuade them to play him at tennis. The bizarre quest ultimately has little to do with tennis or football, but instead turns into an extraordinary journey involving the Moldovan underworld, gypsies, chronic power shortages, near kidnap, and a surprisingly tender relationship with his host family. Follow the fortunes of Tony in this hilarious and often moving adventure as it takes him from Moldova, onwards to Northern Ireland, leading to an exciting denouement in Nazareth - and the naked truth of the bet's final outcome ...
Playing To Win
by Monica MurphyEveryone's a player on The Golden Eagles football team . . .From TikTok sensation and New York Times bestselling author of Lancaster Prep Monica Murphy comes the final instalment in her scorching sports romance series, The Players. Ace Townsend is the biggest player on campus – the sexy new quarterback on the football team. And someone I need to avoid. But that’s hard to do when I’m on the social media crew for the team. The more time I spend with Ace, the more I’m drawn to him. The problem? I signed a contract when I started with a ‘no dating athletes’ clause. They’re strictly off limits. I love my new job and don’t want to risk it, but I’m falling for Ace and he’s determined to win me at all costs. So, maybe the two of us being together is worth the risk.Tropes/themes: 1. Cross the line 2. Spicy Books3. Boy Obsessed 4. Sports Romance 5. College
Playing With Fire
by Nasser HussainNasser Hussain was acclaimed as England's best cricket captain since Mike Brearley. Under his leadership, a side more famous for its batting collapses and ability to seize defeat from the jaws of victory discovered its backbone. With coach Duncan Fletcher he put some steel into the side; they became a difficult team to beat.Hussain wore his heart on his sleeve: railing against complacency, defying critics of his place in the batting line-up and making a principled stand at the last World Cup when the ECB seemed incapable of it.Expect passion, integrity, insight and candour in his eagerly awaited autobiography.
Playing with Fire: Embracing Risk and Danger in Schools
by Mike FaircloughThere is a misconception, within the teaching profession and the general public, that Ofsted, the Health and Safety Executive and the establishment are against children being exposed to danger and that schools are prevented from giving children experiences which involve risk. Mike Fairclough, headmaster at West Rise Junior School, has blown that theory out of the water. In the superb Playing With Fire, Mike urges all schools to follow his lead, empowering other Heads and their schools to provide activities for their pupils which include an element of risk and danger. With entertaining and visual examples of his work at West Rise, including bee keeping, water buffalo breeding, shooting, archery, Forest School, paddle boarding, and skinning rabbits, Mike breezily demonstrates how teething problems and mistakes are part and parcel of risk-taking and should be embraced. The result is an empowering book that urges educators to cultivate their own resilience, courage and trust in the same way that we are hoping to foster those qualities within our students.
Playing with God: Religion and Modern Sport
by William J. BakerThe spectacle of modern sport displays all the latest commercial and technological innovations, yet age-old religious concerns still thrive at the stadium. Coaches lead pre-game and post-game prayers, athletes give God the credit for home runs and touchdowns, and fans wave signs with biblical quotations and allusions. Like no other nation on earth, Americans eagerly blend their religion and sports. Playing with God traces this dynamic relationship from the Puritan condemnation of games as sinful in the seventeenth century to the near deification of athletic contests in our own day. Early religious opposition to competitive sport focused on the immoderate enthusiasm of players and spectators, the betting on scores, and the preference for playing field over church on Sunday. Disapproval gradually gave way to acceptance when "wholesome recreation" for young men in crowded cities and soldiers in faraway fields became a national priority. Protestants led in the readjustment of attitudes toward sport; Catholics, Jews, Mormons, and Muslims followed. The Irish at Notre Dame, outstanding Jews in baseball, Black Muslims in the boxing ring, and born-again athletes at Liberty University represent the numerous negotiations and compromises producing the unique American mixture of religion and sport.
Playing With the Boys: Why Separate is Not Equal in Sports
by Eileen McDonagh Laura PappanoAthletic contests help define what we mean in America by "success." By keeping women from "playing with the boys" on the false assumption that they are inherently inferior, society relegates them to second-class citizens. In this forcefully argued book, Eileen McDonagh and Laura Pappano show in vivid detail how women have been unfairly excluded from participating in sports on an equal footing with men. Using dozens of powerful examples--girls and women breaking through in football, ice hockey, wrestling, and baseball, to name just a few--the authors show that sex differences are not sufficient to warrant exclusion in most sports, that success entails more than brute strength, and that sex segregation in sports does not simply reflect sex differences, but actively constructs and reinforces stereotypes about sex differences. For instance, women's bodies give them a physiological advantage in endurance sports, yet many Olympic events have shorter races for women than men, thereby camouflaging rather than revealing women's strengths.