The Heart of the Order by Thomas Boswell

sweaver · 07-11-2002, 02:47 PM

One of those "lyrical writers," of the ilk of Roger Angell and Red Smith, Boswell is one of those guys who just knows how to put a paragraph together. This book collects many of his best from the period 1984-1988, as baseball goes through upheavals of greats and dynasties.

The writings are not chronological, but rather are grouped by themes: Heroes includes profiles of Joe DiMaggio, Ozzie Smith, and Brooks Robinson. Hubris includes two humorous pieces. The Heart of the Order looks at various players in short pieces, grouped by position--DH, Carl Yastrzemski, LF Pedro Guerrero, as so on. Five Octobers excerpts Boswell's writings on the postseasons of the five-year period, in a very effective style. Managing (Life) looks at Earl Weaver, Dick Howser and Sparky Anderson. Inside the Inside are pieces on the "inside" game. The Flame of Fame looks at Reggie Jackson, Steve Carlton and Don Sutton, Pete Rose, Dwight Gooden, and Roger Maris. Changing Times, The End, and Afterword all refer, in one way or another, to how the game has changed, and how it hasn't.

Boswell is one of the finest writers who writes about baseball, and his work is part of what has made it fashionable for the "intelligentsia" to be baseball fans. This is both good and bad, but reading Boswell is always a pleasure.

VNV Nation · 07-11-2002, 09:38 PM

I like Boswell a great deal, although his attempts at being an analyst have not been so hot.

pwdennis · 07-12-2002, 12:50 AM

HEART OF THE ORDER is one of my favorite baseball books. Ithas a lot of "heart" and it is a good read

satchel · 07-12-2002, 07:40 PM

I love Boswell's baseball writing. I haven't read this particular book but it's on my list. A few years ago (when I was just becoming a serious fan) someone gave me a copy of "How Life Imitates the World Series" and I was hooked.

Craig S. · 07-13-2002, 08:50 PM

You nailed it - he's one of those guys who not only knows baseball, but who knows how to write. Finding someone who knows both the game and the craft of writing, as we know, is all too rare.

This is a great book.

07-11-2002, 02:47 PM	#1
sweaver Netshrine Cleanup Hitter Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: The Mountain State Posts: 8,883	The Heart of the Order by Thomas Boswell One of those "lyrical writers," of the ilk of Roger Angell and Red Smith, Boswell is one of those guys who just knows how to put a paragraph together. This book collects many of his best from the period 1984-1988, as baseball goes through upheavals of greats and dynasties. The writings are not chronological, but rather are grouped by themes: Heroes includes profiles of Joe DiMaggio, Ozzie Smith, and Brooks Robinson. Hubris includes two humorous pieces. The Heart of the Order looks at various players in short pieces, grouped by position--DH, Carl Yastrzemski, LF Pedro Guerrero, as so on. Five Octobers excerpts Boswell's writings on the postseasons of the five-year period, in a very effective style. Managing (Life) looks at Earl Weaver, Dick Howser and Sparky Anderson. Inside the Inside are pieces on the "inside" game. The Flame of Fame looks at Reggie Jackson, Steve Carlton and Don Sutton, Pete Rose, Dwight Gooden, and Roger Maris. Changing Times, The End, and Afterword all refer, in one way or another, to how the game has changed, and how it hasn't. Boswell is one of the finest writers who writes about baseball, and his work is part of what has made it fashionable for the "intelligentsia" to be baseball fans. This is both good and bad, but reading Boswell is always a pleasure.

07-12-2002, 12:50 AM	#3
pwdennis NetShrine All-Century Team Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Winter Springs, FL Posts: 2,503	HEART OF THE ORDER is one of my favorite baseball books. Ithas a lot of "heart" and it is a good read __________________ "I would submit that if the world survives for a million years, perhaps its finest hour may be that in the last half of the 20th century, when the power to blow up the world rested in the hands of a few men in two very unsophisticated and suspicious countries, we didn't do it, and one American, Richard Nixon, moved the cold war away from permanent confrontation toward victory. How could any wrong that he did compare with that?" - John Sears

07-12-2002, 07:40 PM	#4
satchel NetShrine All-Century Team Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 2,601	I love Boswell's baseball writing. I haven't read this particular book but it's on my list. A few years ago (when I was just becoming a serious fan) someone gave me a copy of "How Life Imitates the World Series" and I was hooked. __________________ Rare mold, old vomit - An anagram rejected by Tom Riddle

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07-11-2002, 09:38 PM	#2
VNV Nation Membership Suspended 11/19/02 Join Date: May 2002 Location: VNV Nation Posts: 2,952	I like Boswell a great deal, although his attempts at being an analyst have not been so hot.

07-13-2002, 08:50 PM	#5
Craig S. Guest Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Ohio Posts: 6,330	You nailed it - he's one of those guys who not only knows baseball, but who knows how to write. Finding someone who knows both the game and the craft of writing, as we know, is all too rare. This is a great book.

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