Jonesing for the Fifth
581962
No surprise, this book was awesome! My favorite so far, though it is hard to pick a favorite. They are all so very deliciously good. The Fourth made it feel like the story was "more real" than before, if that's possible. She draws you in and I love all the mind games and of course, all the characters! She mixes just the right amount of down time, action, love, and magic. And with every book, you seem to get to know the characters more than what you thought possible. There were a couple of times I laughed out loud or thought "oh no". And the ending, well, all I can say without giving it away is, hurry up and write the Fifth!!!
1132905
How many times can Drew Barrimore be kissed on a baseball field? This is another one of her comic gems in which she plays the frustrated girlfriend of some weird guy. Jimmy Fallon is perfect as the Sox-obsessed fan trying to change his life for a woman. I was really surprised by his acting, especially during a scene where he tells Lindsey his true feelings.

Dotted with real-life Boston footage and games, this movie is not only a fun storyline, but it's great to watch history being made. The Farley brothers obviously love Boston and the Sox and certainly hit the jack-pot in their series win last year.

Cute and fun, with many laughs (I really liked the supporting cast) this is a great movie for a light-night.
49224
Jones knocks it out of the park again. Spinning another fast pace & witty tale that ended way too soon for this reader. I can't wait for the next installment.
3429021
I was gonna give it four but then I thought...what the heck! Let's go with five! Five is only one more than four, but it's an important one.
2107960
If you've liked previous editions, you'll enjoy this one, too. Same formula, and a seemingly inexhaustible supply of human-interest stories from the sports world. Choosing a favorite or two is tough, but I love the bittersweet ones, such as about one of baseball's great "bonus baby" players who never panned out, or about the insane distance bicycle racer.

I'm delighted to see an article from a blog breaking through the "print barrier" in the series. I'm a little disappointed that so many stories came from the NY Times, as well as a couple of plain things from the Washington Post.  A little more edge and a little less conventionality has been nice in other editions.
3450084
All wolves of the Beyond get a sixer from me ... if I could give them one. Another nicely done YA.
3968337
Other reviewers have noted Mr. Jones' wonderful touch and melodic sense.  But let's hear it for the sidemen, George Mraz on bass and Dennis Mackrel on drums.  My focus is on Mackrel and his function in the trio.
  This is the album that opened my ears to a truly melodic way to drum.  Some drummers have "solos," where the other musicians walk off the stage, the drummer plays, and then when he or she feels finished the other musicians get their cue.  With this trio, the drummer plays a chorus (or two) just like the other soloists.  Hum the tune through Mackrel's solos and you'll hear him playing a variation on the melody.  Jones occasionally chords and comps, just as he does when others solo.  And when the chorus is over, the trio joins back in.  In other words, he's treated as a musician; his solos improvise on the melody.
  I recall Peter Erskine addressing the topic - although I can't remember where I read it, and I'm paraphrasing.  He related that when the band walks off during the drum solos the drummer is treated as "not a musician."  Even trading fours can be considered this way.  But soloing, improvising on the melody through the chorus, now that's class.  And this CD, with THREE musicians, Jones, Mraz, and Mackrel, is truly a class act.
4406598
I am delighted that the Mrs. Jeffries books are being reprinted as anthologies.  So many of them are hard to find.  My only issue with this particular book is the title.  The books are set in Victorian England.  "Pleads the Fifth" refers to the Fifth Amendment of the US Constitution.  Mrs. Jeffries has no idea what you're talking about.
274351
It is #3 in a series of nine to be found on Kindle. Think of this as a nine course meal that should be enjoyed in the proper order for full enjoyment, beginning with the before dinner wine. (Harry loves wine.) Start with "Emma" for the beginning of Harry Neal and Cat's relationship and progress through "Angie," "Annie's Dream," "Harry's Lament," "Short Round," Sister's,"  "Sophie's Gambit," and "Harry's Game" to finish with "Dead Dead Dead, The Little Girl Said." The first eight are really novellas and the last is a full length mystery novel. The author says the first three, in particular, should be read in order. I've arranged the others as I would and did read them.
If you like cat mysteries but have had enough of librarians, book store owners, antique shop owners, professors and middle aged ladies snuggling up to the town constable, cats who are bigger than the average cat, tougher than the average cat, speak English, are clairvoyant, walk through walls or are generally smarter than their human companions, you are ready for and will love Bentley Dadmun's Harry and Cat. Harry is a believable guy who is facing geezerhood and has told the world to shove it. Cat is just cat. I'll say no more to spoil the reading experience.
Trust me, take it from the top, get to know Harry and Cat book by book and you may find yourself, as I did, finishing up this literary feast at 4:18 AM in the morning saying, "Damn, that was fun!"
Dan Winters
Hampton, Virginia
2081378
The story begins to flesh out, now introducing a clear set of protagonists in the varsity team to go up against the main crew of the portables.

While this release contains two volumes, the material covered doesn't come off as incredibly dense. On the contrary, the first volume covered in this release covers a majority of a baseball game against the new rivals, establishing just who we should be rooting for and who we should be looking out for. The game is played out in typical shonen style, with the action happening alongside non-participants, who are happy to walk readers through just exactly what is going on. Scenes with Aoba and the old man watching the game are reminiscent of Trixie and Speed's family watching on the sidelines during a race in "Speed Racer," though on a slightly less campy level, if only for the fact that the author throws in some self-aware jokes throughout the manga every now and then, almost mocking his own readers for anticipating some of the trite manga plot points we've grown to expect--which can either be a good or bad thing depending on your preferences.

Character interactions between Ko and Aoba this time around are very minimum, though with the way Aoba is always used as eye-candy for each chapter cover page, readers can only assume that something will happen between the two eventually. Whether or not such will happen sooner or later, though, isn't left clear. If anything, signs point at this shonen keeping focus on the baseball, while giving back seat to the romance. As for Ko's two portable friends, I've yet to truly see them as good guys, since we've yet to have any explanation as to their own stories during the time skip. Still, it's the things that are left out that make me anticipate the next volume.
3036576
For some reason I really liked it but not as much as the others although I am looking forward to the fifth
3152175
This book is a 360 degree overview of life in the minor leagues as exemplified by four teams in Kentucky, not merely the players or the games, but the wives, families, stadiums, managers, coaches, owner shenanigans to raise money, travel and housing horrors, you name it. If you ever wanted to start in baseball from the bottom up, especially if you were from some Caribbean baseball culture, or if you just wanted to know how it would feel to be there or part of it, this is your book.

It pulls no punches, it can be a hard life, and few make it to the majors. The feel one gets from the book, though, at least for the spectators, is that it can be way more fun than the major leagues.

As a recent letter to the Cleveland Plain Dealer put it:"We had the greatest enjoyment while attending the Lake Erie Captains game this past Sunday. They know how to treat the customer. So many neat things were done for the fans and children: The kids running the bases after the game. Singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" in Yiddish (it was Jewish Heritage Day), and their nicest act was letting all of the physically challenged children play ball with the Captains players on the field. You had to be there."

This book is the next best thing to being there and behind the scenes, too.
2807507
I guess this is a great game to relive on tape.  It seesawed back and forth.  The Yanks were in control until the easy DP ball hit Kubek in the adam's apple.  He had to leave and Hal Smith followed with a three run home run to turn the game around.  In the top of the ninth the Yanks scored and they were trailing 9-8 with runners on first and third.  Mantle was on first and Berra was at the plate.  Yogi hit a hard line drive to frist the Rocky Nelson scooped up and was going to turn into a game ending and series winning double play.  He was so close to the bag that he stepped on the bag first and Mantle was frozen just a few feet off the bag because he thought Nelson would catch it on a fly and double him off the bag. After Nelson made the play at first he whirled around to throw to the shortstop to get Mantle out.  Well in was no longer a force play and if they didn't tag Mantle out quickly the tying run was coming in from third base.  Mantle reacted by diving back safely into first to tie the game.  That was all they could muster but it looked like if they could get the Pirates out in the 9th they would surely win in extra innings even though they were in Pittsburgh.

I was in my 8th gade social studies class and my teacher let me listen on the radio.  I got so excited that I dropped the radio.  I couldn't get the game back and I thought I had broke it.  When we finally got it back on the game was over.  Mazeroski was the first batter in the bottom of the ninth and he hit Terry's second pitch (I think) over Berra's head in left field and the ivy cover wall for the game winning home run.  It took me a while to figure out what happened but it was the greatest let down of my life.

This may have been the best World Series game ever because each team got breaks and capitalized on them.  Neither team gave up and it went right down to the bottom of the ninth with all the drama left in the hands of Mazeroski and Terry.

As I never really saw the game it is neat to see it for the first time.  The Mazeroski home run I had seen manu times and the ground ball to Kubek was shown often too.  But the rest of the game I only heard on radio and only for the late innings of the game.

This was also Casey Stengel's last game as a Yankee manager.  Ralph Houk took the helm in 1961 and that Yankee team was dominant and brought the World Championship back to the Bronx where Yankee fans felt it belonged.  Even Mantle said that this was a series they should have won!

Others have pointed to error made in the commentary about the series.  I can overlook that because I know most of the facts behind the game.  But the shear drama and scoring make it great anyway.
3376780
Darynda Jones is a good author.  She has a lot to say and gets it through to you in her writing.  Keep up the good work, Darynda.  Looking forward to reading "Sixth.....".
2862080
I have always loved to watch baseball, but I'm going to love it even more this season, thanks to the insight I've gained from reading this colorful, entertaining book. "The Baseball Codes" assembles a dizzying array of stories, from the recent past and from long ago, spelling out all the different unwritten rules of the game.

Like any reviewer, I can't help but share some of the delicious stories from this delectable book:

* Mike Krukow, throwing at brushback specialist Joaquin Andujar in 1984, and missing him -- twice -- only to rush the plate "in a rare instance of the reverse mound-charge." Krukow, incredibly, was not ejected, and considered one more attempt, but feared another miss. He instead struck Andujar out - and Andujar fell apart on the mound, securing a Giants win. "We exposed his macho," Krukow said. "It was great."

* Phil Garner, who emerges as one of my favorite characters, doesn't subscribe to the rule that you don't steal bases with a big lead. While I appreciate the gentlemanly sentiment behind this rule, I also view it as ridiculous - these guys are clearly not gentlemen (witness chapters on beanballs), and they are trying to win games. Why should they stop trying? "I'm not going to go home at night thinking I shut a ballgame down and let you guys back in it to win it," Garner told old-school Sparky Anderson.

* Nolan Ryan - who emerges as a real villain, in my opinion, for his head-hunting tactics - learned the "bow-tie" pitch from Satchel Paige, meaning the art of throwing a fastball right by a player's neck. He's lucky he never killed anybody. He'd throw at guys just because he was mad they bunted on him. He knocked down Lenny Dykstra in the 1986 NLCS, both for bunting and for what he saw as excessive cheering after a hit. (What I loved in that story: Dykstra got up and lined a single. They called him Nails for a reason.)

One of the most critical parts of the Code is that ballplayers never admit to the existence of the Code. (Sort of like Fight Club.) Fortunately for us, however, ballplayers talked to Turbow. And talked. And talked. And each story, in Turbow's relentless reporting, gave way to more stories, until the reader is left feeling like he's got a seat in the corner of a major league clubhouse.
4620615
Take me out to the ball game.

I want to watch Dash Wallaces ass.

I love this book.  It has everything I love in my fictional, dream world.

Dashiell (Dash) Wallace is a hot commodity in baseball.  He is the star short stop for the Dodgers.  Like baseball players around the league he has superstitions that bring him luck; including women in every city.  He has a mentor that keeps his head on straight.  He has preparations and routines that he must follow before every season and every game.  However, there is one thing he never does have a girl at home.

A lot of that is going to change.  Jack Youder the second baseman who is Dashs mentor and stabilizer is getting older.  There is a good chance that the Dodgers are going to trade him.  Dash doesnt like change.  Enter Vivian Fostera school librariana fana home girl.  Vivian and Dash start out on the wrong foot but something keeps pulling them back together.  It is obvious that they want each other but it isn't so obvious that it can be a healthy relationship.  Dash doesnt due permanent either.  Vivian doesnt plan endings.

Im sorry, I don't like expiration dates. Im not saying I want more from you or anything like that, but its too risky for me. The whole thing. Promising anything past April I don't need a promise. Promise is the wrong word. Attempting. Trying. Thats risky. He wasn't committed to putting his jacket back on and I wasn't accepting it, so he stood there holding it between us. We have opposite ideas of risk, I said. Things last until they dont. I cant do this your way. Thanks for the lift home.

Dash he is a mess.  He is hot.  The women love him.  He is full of himself.  There is nothing more offensive than a man blessed with looks where he should have been given courtesy.  He has issues.  He loves playing baseball more than anything.  I love the way this character is developed.  At times he makes me angry at times but even when he makes me angry he is redeemable.  His goodness is close to the surface.

There are so many things that I like about these characters.  They are real.  Vivian is a strong, loving, and loyal woman.  She is alone after the breakup from her long time relationship.  She is working through her loss slowly. It is hard for her friends and her father to watch.  Vivian is committed to her father.  Their relationship is so beautiful and the more you find out about them the more you will love them.

The father daughter sub-plot is perfect.  Their relationship warms my heart completely.  One of my favorite scenes

He didn't blink, adopting me without my biological fathers interference. I didn't appreciate that properly until I was twelve, when hed brought a woman home to meet me. I didn't remember her name, but she had red hair and was younger than he was. She ignored me so noticeably that Dad excused himself, picked up my plate, and he and I ate dinner in the kitchen while she finished alone.

Re-reading that makes me smile.  In addition to their love for one another, they share a love of baseball.  In fact, it is her dads birthday gift that actually brings Dash into Vivians life and then the fun really begins.

CD Reiss is an excellent storyteller.  It is hard to write a story better than Jonathans and Monicas but Hardball is a very close second.  It is a completely different story from anything Ive read of hers.  That is so refreshing that she isn't stuck in formula.  Hardball is what I call an old fashion romance.  It is a quick, easy, and addictive read that you won't put down.  I highly recommend Hardball to everyone who enjoys a good love story.  It fits the bill.

ARC received for an honest review.
1873970
A really great, fun theme from the '80s that was done for an equally great, all-time team in the 1986 New York Mets.

If I had just one suggestion to pass along, it would be that the song could use a bit of remastering at a higher volume level... but other than that, no complaints, really!