A Brief History of American Sports
About the Book
Elliott J. Gorn and Warren Goldstein reveal how and why our games and pastimes were born, how they've grown, and why so many of us care so much about them. From the seedy Victorian underworld to the irrepressible Theodore Roosevelt to the incomparable Babe Ruth, to the heroism of Jackie Robinson, Billie Jean King, and Muhammad Ali, the authors take us inside the dramas--on and off the field--that have shaped American sports.For this new edition, the authors have analyzed the critical developments of the past twenty years, including skyrocketing player salaries and team profits, the "steroid era," the big business of college sports, cable and digital media, the true impact of Title IX, and the rise of Latino athletes.
A Brief History of American Sports shows us how looking at American history through the lens of sports yields new ways of seeing the past, and why, even when they drive us crazy, sports remain so much fun.
About the Author
Elliott J. Gorn is Joseph A. Gagliano Professor of History at Loyola University Chicago. He is the author of The Manly Art: Bare-Knuckle Prize Fighting in America, Mother Jones: The Most Dangerous Woman in America, and other books. Warren Goldstein chairs the Department of History at the University of Hartford. He is the author of the award-winning Playing for Keeps: A History of Early Baseball, William Sloane Coffin, Jr.: A Holy Impatience, and other books.Also by this author
Reviews
Blurbs
"The additional chapter in this revised edition examines with intelligent conciseness all the major issues of the moment--steroids, gender and sexual orientation, sports and "the big money," race and racialization in sports, and the ever-intensifying globalization of sports. A Brief History of American Sports is still a timely, succinct, yet comprehensive work."--Gerald Early, Merle King Professor of Modern Letters, Washington University, and author of A Level Playing Field: African Americans and the Republic of SportsPraise for the first edition:
"With A Brief History of American Sports, Elliott J. Gorn and Warren Goldstein remind us that the very serious world of play provides a precise mirror of American life and aspiration, a deep, at times painful, but always abiding portrait of who we are."--Ken Burns, documentary film director, and coauthor of Baseball: An Illustrated History
"If history were baseball, Gorn and Goldstein would get credit for a triple play: they have skillfully and imaginatively integrated sports into the framework of American culture and society, produced a pioneering work which should have enduring influence, and given us a scholarly history which is delightful to read. It's a terrific book in every way."--Lawrence W. Levine, University of California at Berkeley
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