Review by Choice Review
Anyone interested in baseball will welcome this photo-history of the development of America's ballparks. Using more than 250 photographs and authentic architectural sketches, Gershman traces the evolution of baseball fields from open pastures to domed stadia. The history of baseball is written in timelines that list world events alongside those in baseball. Gershman has compiled an accurate and detailed account of the development of ballparks with attention given to American history, local politics, socioeconomic development, and real estate development. All the great parks from Wrigley Field to Comiskey to the lesser known (such as Baker Bowl and South End Grounds) are described along with photographs that assist the reader in tracing the growth of parks used when playing the game. The chapter dealing with domed and new stadia is well done. The final chapter about the remodeling of the classic old parks is exceptional. The bibliography is current and will be very helpful for further studies. Recommended. General; undergraduate. F. D. Handler St. Bonaventure University
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review
For those who love baseball, ballparks possess a special magic. Coming up from the concession area, the brilliant emerald green of Chicago's Wrigley Field will cause a heart to flutter every time. Gershman, a baseball historian, imbues this history of major league "diamonds" with what amounts to reverence for the special ambience that a good park contributes to a fan's enjoyment of the game. He begins with the New York Knickerbockers' first match at Elysian Field in Hoboken, New Jersey, later the site of a coffee factory. He moves through the years to Crosley Field, Ebbets Field, the Polo Grounds, Comiskey Park, and Tiger Stadium, among others. At each stop, he offers a description, a few photographs, a history, and some anecdotes. He also takes readers through the most modern of parks, such as Camden Yards in Baltimore and Toronto's Skydome. What could easily have been a dreary, one-dimensional recitation of facts and figures becomes instead an evocative journey through time and space. The numerous illustrations help us on our way. ~--Wes Lukowsky
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
The first modern concrete and steel stadium, Philadelphia's Shibe Park, was opened in 1909. Following in quick succession were more ballparks with their distinct personalities, among them the Polo Grounds in Manhattan, Boston's Fenway Park, Wrigley Field in Chicago and Brooklyn's Ebbets Field. In the '60s and '70s, Houston's Astrodome and similarly constructed stadiums, which Gershman describes as ``concrete doughnuts,'' sprang up from Philadelphia to Seattle. Gershman is brutal in some assessments, likening the Metrodome in Minneapolis to a ``circus tent on steroids'' and Seattle's Kingdome to ``a Tomahawk missile launch site.'' But, he suggests, the opening last year of Baltimore's enormously popular Camden Yards signals a move to recapture the flavor of an era past. In fact, the model for the Milwaukee Brewers projected park bears a remarkable resemblance to Ebbets Field. The 250 black-and-white photographs that Gershman ( The Score Board Book of Baseball Cards ) has assembled are exceptional. Many are rare, including one spine-tingler of Babe Ruth looking down the right field line at the old Polo Grounds. We get to see ballparks under construction (Yankee Stadium and Fenway Park), and are shown how some of these were remodeled to take the shape they hold in the memories of many readers. This book is for those who can recall the thrill of seeing their first big league game as a kid, and would like to revisit that special place again. Author tour. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
From the genesis of baseball's first recorded game at Elysian Fields, to the radical departure of the Houston Astrodome, to the splendor of Camden Yards, Gershman takes the reader on a journey through the venues that have housed America's favorite pastime. The most interesting chapters treat the early parks, explaining that they were constructed along trolley lines for easy access and that many were not built for baseball but were adapted for the sport. Also enlightening are the segments on the ``Jewel Boxes,'' like Boston's Fenway Park--with its famed retaining wall, the ``Green Monster''--and the analysis of modern facilities, such as the awe-inspiring megaplex Skydome. The lack of a crisp writing style is overshadowed by the large number of photographs and sketches. Recommended for general sports collections.-- Jeffrey Gay, Bridgewater P.L., Mass. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Choice Review
Review by Booklist Review
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Review by Library Journal Review
