Description: Examining baseball not just as a game but as a social, historical, and political force, this collection of sixteen essays looks at the sport from the perspectives of race, sexual orientation, economic power, social class, imperialism, nationalism, and international diplomacy. Together, the essays underscore the point that baseball is not just a form of entertainment, but a major part of the culture and power struggles of American life as well as the nation's international footprint.
Brief description: Ron Briley is assistant headmaster and teaches history at Sandia Preparatory School in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he has taught for more than thirty years. His baseball essays have been published in the annuals for the Cooperstown Symposium and in such journals as Baseball History and Nine. He is the author of several books and lives in Albuquerque.
Review Quotes: "Editor Briley has done a fine job of choosing and arranging the essays into a strong lineup...baseball intersects with many aspects of culture but none more important than politics, and Briley and his contributors have made a noteworthy contribution to the subject"-Nine.