A People's History of Sports in the United States: 250 Years of Politics, Protest, People, and Play

David Zirin's masterfully researched and well-written "A People's History of Sports in the United States" is essential reading for anyone interested in sports and its relationship to society. My only gripe with the book is that I wish it were 150 pages longer, with more in-depth analysis of the events described. Nonetheless, this is a compelling read. From the Revolutionary War to the events at Jena, Louisiana (the lynching jokes and fights that got African American students in trouble), "A People's History" reveals that sports in this country isn't simply a red, white, and blue, non-political game, but a landscape where revolutionaries have thrived, both in competition and in their attempts at social change. A must read.

Games are never just games. Even when children play, they are mastering the skills and cultural messages they will need to become successful adults. Yet in America, we cling to a cultural myth that sports are apolitical. We have the news channel CNN and the sports channel ESPN, and they are supposed to be entirely separate and distinct. In this enlightening book, sportswriter Dave Zirin debunks this myth, exposing the politics, business interests, and cultural forces that have shaped modern sports. Zirin traces the history of sports from the lacrosse-playing days of the Choctaw Indians all the way to the modern steroid scandals and the behind-the-scenes politics of the international Olympic Games. Throughout, he focuses on how race-related conflicts have helped to shape modern athletics. The host of a popular blog called "The Edge of Sports" (edgeofsports.com) and a regular contributor to the L.A. Times and the Nation magazine, Zirin has an engaging style that will appeal to sports fans, history buffs, and anyone else who wants their eyes opened. The favorable reviews and high sales certainly suggest that this book will help reduce the myth of sports as apolitical. (See the publisher's website, newpress.com, for links to recent publicity, which includes a favorable plug in Time Magazine.) Author Jeff Chang promises that after reading this book "you'll never see sports the same way again"; author Jim Bouton (Ball Four) goes even further by predicting that this is "the opening shot in the battle to reclaim sports." Not only is the book enlightening, it is also a fun read full of engaging stories that you can share with friends and family while you are waiting for the game to begin. And if by game time you haven't yet convinced them that politics is embedded in sports, Zirin recommends an exercise that will unmask the "coercive patriotism" surrounding them: Have them try staying seated while the national anthem is being played, and they are being told to stand to support the troops in Iraq.

Sports fans will find tales of the true origins of the modern games we hold so dear, and history buffs will discover the connection - sometimes wonderful, sometimes nefarious, sometimes BOTH - between politics and sports. For those who love sports, AND for those who don't, this book will be an eye-opener. A brisk, page-turning book... and FUN to read!

In case anyone was wondering if the power and promise wunderkind Dave Zirin's initial offerings were a fluke -- this incredible book show's that Dave is here to stay!!! A People's History of Sport's is the product of a relentless and brilliant mind determined to the human side of the 'sports industrial complex.' As Dave tells this story, the narrative trancends the limits of a sports book -- it becomes a testiment to the power of the human spririt to rise above the barriers of oppression and exploitation. Bravo Dave! I plan to by copies for everyone on my holiday gift list!

I am a sports fan and someone who cares about the politics of social change. This book brought these worlds together in a way that has me rethinking how I understand both the history of sports and the history of the United States. Each story told might be worth its own book but I will take with me the stories of Moses Fleetwood Walker, the African American baseball player in the 19th century who saw his career die with the end of reconstruction, and the way the famed US women's soccer team threatened to strike in 1996 - on the advice of Billie Jean King - for equal pay. This is a must read - an antidote to the narrow politics of election season.