The Southpaw

"The Southpaw" begins the great four book series on the career of New York Mammoth pitcher Henry Wiggen. Full of comedy, memorable characters and all the trials of a rookie in the major leagues. This is truly one of the best pieces of baseball fiction ever written, along with Philip Roth's "The Great American Novel", and I didn't want it to end. If you're a baseball fan you can't go wrong with this hilarious and loving tribute to the game.

This is the first of the Henry Wiggin stories. The most famous being Bang the Drum Slowly. I have not before read any of these stories, but I will now make it a point of reading the other three. The story reads like an autobiography of a rookie pitcher in his first season with the New York team. This style predates the several nonfiction books of athletes writing about a season in their career. Although the time period is several decades ago, the material is still relevant for any true baseball fan. The main character is shown through his writings as developing from a single minded adolescent into a maturing adult. The story is especially good in having two strong females who are not stereotypical characters. The supporting characters are believable and fun in a Damon Runyon like way. I strongly recommend this book as an example of sports fiction at its best.

The story of Henry Wiggen and the New York Mammoths is one of the most enjoyable novels I have ever read. You will not want this story to end as Henry finds his way from small town to big city and to the big leagues. This simply and beautifully written novel is filled with timeless truths about life and baseball. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

The first Henry Wiggen novel is the best of them all. While not as well known as Bang the Drum Slowly, which is its sequel and which certainly deserves the praise it has received, The Southpaw is a wise, touching, and very funny book about a young man's coming of age in post-war America. All of the big themes of American life are here in a short, first person novel written in dialect (so hard to do well, here so effortless) about a young pitcher's journey to the major leagues -- race, class, ambition, envy, fame, friendship, love. All treated deftly, and with good humor. Finally, Henry Wiggen is as fresh and attractive as any character in recent American fiction. Read all of the Wiggen books, but start here.