The Yogi Book

An absolute perfect stocking stuffer for my lifelong Yankees fan!

This book has a lot of Yogi's famous sayings and how they first originated. While I was too young to see Yogi play, I've always admired him. Not just because of his apparent intent to destroy the English language with all of his malaprops, but also because of his Hall of Fame baseball career and his overall intelligence. When I was young and first heard some of his now famous quotes, I used to derive hours of giggles from them. Now that I am much older and hopefully wiser, I realize that Yogi makes a tremendous amount of sense with his observations. Essentially he's saying things in a short sentence that most of us spend an hour saying. For example, "When You Come To a Fork in the Road, Take it," he's saying if you have a great chance for something, go after it and don't look back. Or when he says "It Ain't Over Til It's Over," he's saying the game is never over until the final out or the clock runs out on you. Or "You Can Observe A Lot By Watching," he's telling his former Yankee players to pay attention to the game they're playing in! After having read this short but fascinating and at times hilarious book, I've gained a new respect for Yogi as one of the truly great minds and people major league baseball has ever been lucky enough to have. While his quotes may prompt English teachers to jump out windows, I hope we get to hear a lot more of them.

While Yogi may not have intended it, some of his statements are absolute gems in a business setting. For example, "When you reach the fork in the road, take it" is very useful in explaining the importance of making decisions. I use Yogi quotes all the time in speeches on serious subjects and they work very well.

I knew that Yogi was full of great sayings, and this book has them all! Not only does it tell you what Yogi said, but he explains the situation and the people involved. It's great reading, and there are insites on Yogi from his celebrity friends and family. You'll enjoy it!

Nobody is funnier than Yogi when it comes to stupid quotes. Although many of these quotes have been heard before, they are still funny. It's worth owning even if you don't like baseball.

Even people who don't care for baseball love Yogi Berra and his way with words. For years I've hoped that someone would do a book like this one, and here it is at last. Not only does it collect and present the best comments of baseball's great philosopher -- it provides background and context for every Yogi-ism. Those who complain that the book has big type and lots of pictures just don't get the point. Sometimes there's a lot in a little book, and this is one of those books. Highly, and delightedly, recommended. -- Richard B. Bernstein, Adjunct Professor of Law, New York Law School