Rick B. (bup) - , reviewed on 1/8/2011 + 165 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 2

The title calls it "The Greatest Season in Baseball History," and she makes an excellent case for it. And she's done her homework - the research far and wide that informs her narrative is really impressive. From a serial killer in Indiana to anarchist terrorism to race riots in Springfield, IL, to the presidential race, she provides context that makes the whole thing more understandable. Oh, she also seems to have read, and references, about 3,487 baseball books, and read ever document at the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Murphy also writes really well - she has many nice turns of phrase, some of which involve 50 cent words, some of which involve period slang, that create an intelligent but entertaining mishmosh read.

Finally, 1908 is great subject matter. The National League's 3-way race that has all three within a game of each other on the last day of the season, and it's been just about that tight for a month and a half - what better drama could you ask for? Oh, yeah, the Merkle game. Well, you got it. The Merkle game occurs in the midst of that.

Basically, if you're a baseball fan, and interested in its history at all, this is a must-read.

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