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Second Wind, The Memoirs of an Opinionated Man by Bill Russell and Taylor Branch; 1979; 265 pages; Random House, New York, NY; 0-394-50385-6; Checked out through Multnomah County Library, Inter library loan from Pacific University Library; 3/11-3/14

Why did I pick this up?  Jerry West mentioned it in his autobiography and I had wanted to know more about this enigmatic who was one of the all time great basketball players who refused to sign autographs, or to attend his own number retirement ceremony or his enshrinement in the Hall of  Fame.

What is the story?   Bill was the youngest of two boys in his family, he came from a family who recognized the value of an education.  His mother died when he was 12 and his kept the boys with him in Oakland, CA and raised them.  Bill played high school and was recruited to the University of San Francisco and then drafted by the Celtics.  He is very upfront about why he believes and acts as he does, he calls them as he as sees them and is almost always true to himself.  He does not necessarily go with what is expected of him as a black man or as an athlete.  He is a person that I would like to talk with and never talk basketball but share ideas and thoughts with him.

Did I like it?  Yes, it was extremely interesting to read and find out why he had made some of the choices that he has made and stuck with, choices that were usually not extremely popular with those who thought they had a claim on him.  I would like to read something newer to see how or if he has changed at all.  This was written in the late 70′s.

Grade-A

What is with the title of the review?  Bill Russell would stand out from the crowd for many reasons, his height, his color, his basketball prowess,his moral stands and his philosophy of life.  He also talks about climbing Mt. Rainier and being above the clouds.

Long Way to Go, Black & White in America by Jonathan Coleman; $26.50; 464 pages; 1997; Atlantic Monthly Press, Boston, MA; 0871136929; Checked out from Multnomah County Library, Inter Library Loan from George Fox College; 3/6-3/11

Why did I pick this up?  Jonathan Coleman was the co-author of Jerry Wests’ autobiography and I had heard of the book as a seminal work about race.

What is the story?  Over 7 years during the 1990s’ Coleman interviewed several people in Milwaukee, Wisconsin about the state of race relations in their city.  He attended many different meetings and spoke with people in many different positions official and unofficial.  He talked to people who believed there had been progress and others who believed that any progress was superficial.  He talked and observed many meetings and interactions.  The author didn’t really draw any conclusions, but several of the people he interviewed did.

Did I like it?  It was an interesting snapshot of a time in Milwaukee.  I didn’t feel that it was an authoritative work on race.  It did offer some opinions some that I agreed with and some that I did not. One that was repeated many times is that white people are the ones that must end racism because they are the ones with the power.

Grade-B

What is with the title of the review?  During the time Coleman was interviewing people, Jeffrey Dahmer was killing people and that became infused with race, because of the actions of some of the police officers.

Love Amid The Ashes by Mesu Andrews; 2011; $14.99; 407 pages; Revell, Grand Rapids, MI;978-0-8007-3407-7; Checked out from Multnomah County Library, Troutdale; 3/3-3/6

Why did I pick this up? The author is going to be at a meeting held at the bookstore and I wanted to see what she wrote in her debut novel.

What is the story? This is a retelling of the story of Job from the Old Testament as seen through the eyes of Dinah, a daughter of Jacob and sister of Joseph.  It is an interesting take on the story that starts before the story in the Bible and continues beyond the end of the story as told.  It is an epic tale and contains everything one would expect in a biblical epic.

Did I like it? Yes, after an initial slow start it began to get better and became very engaging.

Grade-B

What is with the title of the review? There used to be a TV show hosted by Walter Cronkite that I remember as being a program that recreated historical events as if you were there.  That is what this book is like, taking a historical event and fleshing it out.

Black Order by James Rollins; 2006;$24.95; 684 pages; 0-06-112083-9; HarperLargePrint, New York, NY; Checked out from Multnomah County Library, Library Outreach Service; 3/1-3/3

Why did I pick this up? I am reading my way through this series and it continues to be exciting.

What is the story? Copenhagen, South Africa and Nepal are only the beginning of the action that involves Norse runes, Nazi, Genetics and Quantum Physics and a Bible that used to belong to Charles Darwin.  The Sigma Force fights against some aging Nazis and another organization that want to speed up evolution and bring on a master race that will rule the world.  Cue Mad Scientist laugh.

Did I like it? Yes, it is a cool mixture of action, history and technology.  Rollins is a great writer who manages to effectively combine technology, religion and history.  I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

Grade-A

What is with the title of the review? Several of the characters act like mad scientists and that is a definite mad scientist laugh.

Out of My League, A Rookie’s Survival in the Bigs by Dirk Hayhurst; 2012; $24.95; 406 pages; Citadel Press, New York, NY; 978-0-8065-3485-5; Purchased from Amazon.com; 2/28-3/1

Why did I pick this up? I met Dirk during the 2008 season depicted here, while he was playing with the Portland Beavers.  I took him books and would discuss them with him after games.  We very seldom talked about baseball and I really liked his first book, The Bullpen Gospels.

What is the story? Dirk makes it to Triple A, plans on getting married and is worried about making the major leagues, also he has to deal with a severely dysfunctional family.  He is juggling many worries, mental and physical as he tries to get the ball consistently across the plate without the batters hitting it out of the park.  As in his previous book, Dirk looks behind the curtain to see beyond the effect and look for the causes.   He is very insightful and rather rough on himself.

Did I like it? Yes, because Dirk looks behind the curtain and within himself to see what is really going on.  This book is more focused on baseball than the previous volume.

Grade-B

What is with the title of the review? Dirk is like Toto in Wizard of Oz, pulling back the curtain on what looks like magic to most of us.