October Men: Reggie Jackson, George Steinbrenner, Billy Martin, and the Yankees' Miraculous Finish in 1978 [Englisch] [Gebundene Ausgabe]

I'm not sure what to make of this book. As a work of history it is useless - much better histories of that era of the Yankees have already been written. As entertainment is is also weak - Sparky Lyle's "Bronx Zoo" was much better in this regard. I was hoping for a engaging read, but instead found myself forcing myself to bull my way through it for fear of wasting my money and in the hope that it would get better. It didn't. Baseball fans - spare yourself the pain and save your money.

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.

I read the review stating that Roger Kahn's "October Men" is in the tradition of "Boys of Summer" and I ask in wonder if that writer read the earlier work. The first third of "Boys" is Kahn's memoir of growing up in Brooklyn as a Dodger fan, then covering the great team of 1952-53; but the heart of the book is his story of revisiting these men in middle age as they cope with life's challenges. Kahn himself said it's not a book about baseball but about "time and what time does to us all." A true classic, and deservedly so.

That being said, the focus of "October Men" is on the wild, raucous Yankees of 1977-78. Although there are notations on what's happened to many of those Yanks in the quarter century that's passed, the spotlight is clearly on those two wild seasons. And that's just fine. It's a great story, and Kahn brings all his observational and descriptive skills to bear in telling it with insight, humor, and narrative power. Anyone who lived through that era should enjoy having it brought back to life so vividly; and for those youngsters who may wonder what all the fuss was about involving George and Billy and Reggie and Thurman and crew, there's no better introduction to their story.