Best Game Ever: Giants vs. Colts, 1958, and the Birth of the Modern NFL

( 17 )

Pick Up in Store

Reserve and pick up in 60 minutes at your local store

Paperback (First Trade Paper Edition)
$11.08
BN.com price
$14.00 List Price (Save 21%)
Marketplace (New and Used)
from
$0.99
$14.00 List Price (Save 93%)
Usually ships within 1-2 business days
All (29)  
Used (17)  
New (12)  
Close
Sort by
Page 1 of 3
Showing 1 – 10 of 29 (3 pages)
$0.99
(Save 93%)
Seller since 2007

Feedback rating:

(11543)

Condition:

New — never opened or used in original packaging.

Like New — packaging may have been opened. A "Like New" item is suitable to give as a gift.

Very Good — may have minor signs of wear on packaging but item works perfectly and has no damage.

Good — item is in good condition but packaging may have signs of shelf wear/aging or torn packaging. All specific defects should be noted in the Comments section associated with each item.

Acceptable — item is in working order but may show signs of wear such as scratches or torn packaging. All specific defects should be noted in the Comments section associated with each item.

Used — An item that has been opened and may show signs of wear. All specific defects should be noted in the Comments section associated with each item.

Refurbished — A used item that has been renewed or updated and verified to be in proper working condition. Not necessarily completed by the original manufacturer.

Very Good
2009 Paperback Item is in very good condition.

Ships from: Wilmington, MA

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • Canadian
  • International
  • Standard, 48 States
  • Standard (AK, HI)
  • Express, 48 States
  • Express (AK, HI)
$0.99
(Save 93%)
Seller since 2009

Feedback rating:

(780)

Condition: Good
Acceptable Book is in good reading condition. Cover has wear at edges and corners, and may have creases. Spine has wear at edges and may have creases.

Ships from: Washington, DC

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • Canadian
  • Standard, 48 States
  • Standard (AK, HI)
  • Express, 48 States
  • Express (AK, HI)
$0.99
(Save 93%)
Seller since 2005

Feedback rating:

(18888)

Condition: Very Good
2009-04-14 Trade Paperback Very Good Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 303 p. Contains: Illustrations.

Ships from: Sparks, NV

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • Canadian
  • International
  • Standard, 48 States
  • Standard (AK, HI)
  • Express, 48 States
  • Express (AK, HI)
$1.99
(Save 86%)
Seller since 2009

Feedback rating:

(4466)

Condition: Good
Light shelving wear with minimal damage to cover and bindings. Pages show minor use. Help save a tree. Buy all your used books from Green Earth Books. Read. Recycle and ... Reuse! Read more Show Less

Ships from: Portland, OR

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • Canadian
  • International
  • Standard, 48 States
  • Standard (AK, HI)
  • Express, 48 States
  • Express (AK, HI)
$1.99
(Save 86%)
Seller since 2010

Feedback rating:

(235)

Condition: Acceptable
Book is in good reading condition. Cover has wear at edges and corners, and may have creases. Spine has wear at edges and may have creases.

Ships from: Washington, DC

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • Canadian
  • International
  • Standard, 48 States
  • Standard (AK, HI)
  • Express, 48 States
  • Express (AK, HI)
$1.99
(Save 86%)
Seller since 2009

Feedback rating:

(7705)

Condition: Good
Book shows minor use. Cover and Binding have minimal wear and the pages have only minimal creases. A tradition of southern quality and service. All books guaranteed at the ... Atlanta Book Company. Our mailers are 100% recyclable. Read more Show Less

Ships from: Atlanta, GA

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • Canadian
  • International
  • Standard, 48 States
  • Standard (AK, HI)
  • Express, 48 States
  • Express (AK, HI)
$1.99
(Save 86%)
Seller since 2008

Feedback rating:

(12670)

Condition: Good
A copy that may have been read, minimal to no highlighting/underlining of text, no missing pages. May have a remainder mark. Spine may show signs of wear. Could be a library copy.

Ships from: East Patchogue, NY

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • Canadian
  • International
  • Standard, 48 States
  • Standard (AK, HI)
  • Express, 48 States
  • Express (AK, HI)
$1.99
(Save 86%)
Seller since 2008

Feedback rating:

(2164)

Condition: Good
GOOD with average wear to cover, pages and binding. We ship quickly and work hard to earn your confidence. Orders are generally shipped no later than next business day. We offer a ... no hassle guarantee on all our items. Read more Show Less

Ships from: Tualatin, OR

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • Canadian
  • International
  • Standard, 48 States
  • Standard (AK, HI)
  • Express, 48 States
  • Express (AK, HI)
$2.75
(Save 80%)
Seller since 2012

Feedback rating:

(177)

Condition: Good
Ships within 24 hrs of your order. Open Mon - Fri. Good condition books have minimal highlighting, minimal wear and tear.

Ships from: Downingtown, PA

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • Standard, 48 States
  • Standard (AK, HI)
  • Express, 48 States
  • Express (AK, HI)
$2.99
(Save 79%)
Seller since 2010

Feedback rating:

(682)

Condition: Good

Ships from: Monroe Township, NJ

Usually ships in 1-2 business days

  • Canadian
  • International
  • Standard, 48 States
  • Standard (AK, HI)
  • Express, 48 States
  • Express (AK, HI)
Page 1 of 3
Showing 1 – 10 of 29 (3 pages)
Close
Sort by
NOOK Book (eBook)
$9.13
BN.com price
$11.00 List Price (Save 17%)

Available on NOOK devices and apps

  • Nook Devices
  • NOOK
  • NOOK Color
  • NOOK Tablet
  • Tablet/Phone
  • NOOK for iPad
  • NOOK for iPhone
  • NOOK for Android
  • NOOK for Android (Tablet)
  • NOOK Kids for iPad
  • PC/Mac
  • NOOK Study
  • NOOK for PC
  • NOOK for Mac

Need a NOOK? Explore Now

Overview

"On December 28, 1958, the New York Giants and Baltimore Colts met under the lights of Yankee Stadium for that season's NFL Championship game. Football, growing in popularity amid America's post-war economic boom, was still greatly overshadowed by the country's favored pastime - baseball - but the 1958 championship proved to be the turning point for pro football. In The Best Game Ever, Mark Bowden delivers a brilliant narrative on the 1958 NFL Championship game, the story behind the key players, and the effect the contest had on the modern game of football and today's NFL." "Played on a freezing Sunday evening in front of 64,000 fans and millions of television viewers around the country, the championship would go down as the greatest in football history. On the field and roaming the sidelines were seventeen future Hall of Famers, including Colts stars Johnny Unitas, Raymond Berry, and Gino Marchetti, and Giants greats Frank Gifford, Sam Huff, and assistant coaches Vince Lombardi and Tom Landry. The championship was a battle of the league's best offense - the Colts - versus its best defense - the Giants. It squared the blue-collar Baltimore team, many of whom worked off-season jobs selling liquor or taking shifts at Bethlehem Steel, against the glamour boys of the Giants squad who often appeared in TV commercials and were seen around town at trendy spots like Toots Shor's mingling with the likes of politicians and Broadway stars." "An estimated forty-five million viewers - at that time the largest crowd to have ever watched a football game - tuned in to see what would become the first sudden-death contest in NFL history. The Colts led at halftime, 14-3, but a courageous goal-linestand by the Giants in the beginning of the third quarter fueled a second-half comeback. The Giants took a three-point lead in the fourth quarter on a Frank Gifford touchdown. With two minutes left in regulation, Baltimore had possession deep in its own territory, and the ball in the hands of the still unproven quarterback Johnny Unitas." The Best Game Ever is a brilliant portrait of how a single game changed the history of American sports. Published to coincide with the fiftieth anniversary of the championship, it is destined to be a sports classic.

Editorial Reviews

Jonathan Yardley
Early in his career Bowden covered professional football for the Philadelphia Inquirer, an experience that serves him well here. His explanations of shifts in the teams' offensive and defensive strategies are lucid, and he knows enough about the extreme physical and mental demands the game exacts to convey a strong sense of the players' exhaustion and determination as the contest ground toward its conclusion. He isn't entirely immune to journalistic cliche and at times overwrites, but generally his prose is competent and clear. Whether the book will be of interest to readers who aren't football fans is a question I can't answer, but The Best Game Ever is sure to become an instant Sacred Text in Baltimore.
—The Washington Post
From The Critics

Bowden (Black Hawk Down; Guests of the Ayatollah) tells the story of the 1958 National Football League championship game between the Baltimore Colts and the New York Giants, a legendary game that proved to be a harbinger of the enormous popularity of pro football over the next 50 years. Bowden writes that the game featured the greatest assemblage of talent ever on one field, including 17 future Hall of Fame inductees. He frames the picture with a wide lens, but then focuses on the roles and lives of a few key players, particularly the Colts' obsessive and methodical wide receiver Raymond Berry and the iconic quarterback Johnny Unitas, as well as the Giants' powerful linebacker Sam Huff. The game, played in frigid Yankee Stadium three days after Christmas, stretched into the evening, garnering the largest television audience in the history of the sport to that time. Bowden begins his entertaining and informative narration in the third quarter, and then delves into backstory on the league, players and the buildup, before returning to the gridiron to conclude with a detailed account of the final plays and an epilogue. (June)

Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780802144126
  • Publisher: Grove/Atlantic, Inc.
  • Publication date: 5/6/2009
  • Edition description: First Trade Paper Edition
  • Pages: 340
  • Sales rank: 340,349
  • Product dimensions: 5.40 (w) x 8.20 (h) x 0.90 (d)

Meet the Author

Mark Bowden is the author of seven books, including Black Hawk Down and Guests of the Ayatollah. He reported at The Philadelphia Inquirer for twenty years and is a national correspondent for The Atlantic Monthly.

Read an Excerpt

The Colts’ head coach Weeb Ewbanks loosened his vocal chords and gave the motivational speech of his life.

“Nobody knows you guys, and we’re in a good place to get known, New York City, so we’re going to have to win this game,” he told his players. He pulled out some handwritten notes from his pocket. “Nobody wanted you guys,” he said. Then he went around the locker room, singling out most of the starting players. To John Unitas: “Pittsburgh didn’t want you but we picked you off the sandlots.” To Milt Davis, “Detroit didn’t want you, but I’m glad we got you.” Most of his players had been cut or rejected somewhere along the line, and Weeb cited every slight. To Big Dadddy Lipscomb: “The Rams didn’t want you. We picked you up for the one hundred dollar waiver price. You have come a long way. When you start rushing the passer more you will become one of the greatest tackles the game has ever seen.” To Raymond Berry: “Nobody wanted you in the draft. You are a self-made end.” To Lenny Moore: “You can be as good as you want to be. That’s what they said when we drafted you, but the idea was presented we might have a hard time getting you to practice.” To Gino Marchetti: “In ten years of pro coaching, you are the finest end I have ever seen. They said you are the greatest end in the league and that you just couldn’t get any better, but you continue to get better every week and you will today.”

The coach also talked about himself. He noted that he had not been the Colts’ first choice for the head coaching job when they had gone looking in 1954, and they all knew how close he and his staff had come to being fired after the 1955 season. The message was, they were a team of self-made men, playing against the glamour boys of the NFL, the only team that had beaten them in a game that mattered that season.

Linebacker Don Shinnick led the team in the Lord’s Prayer, and then they set off for the field like men with a score to settle, not just with the Giants, but with the world.

Customer Reviews
Average Rating 4
( 17 )

Rating Distribution

  • ( 11 )
  • ( 2 )
  • ( 1 )
  • ( 1 )
  • ( 2 )
If you've bought this product, tell the world how you liked it.
Write a Review
Sort by: Showing all of 17 Customer Reviews
  • Anonymous

    Posted August 22, 2011

    The best game ever played

    Its awesome book

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  No   Report this review
  • Posted September 16, 2010

    The Best Book Ever?

    Maybe, it is an outstanding read!

    Was this review helpful? Yes  No   Report this review
  • Posted January 30, 2010

    Great

    Is a wonderful read for the football fan.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  No   Report this review
  • Posted July 11, 2009

    more from this reviewer

    Father's day gift

    My dad enjoyed the boook

    Was this review helpful? Yes  No   Report this review
  • Posted December 21, 2008

    the Colts are the Best in '58

    the Best Game Ever is a great read for the sports buff. The book gives me the impression I am actually watching the game & enjoying some of the best NFL players ever. I remember watching the game as a youngster & the book is like a pleasant flashback to the good ole days of TV & NFL. A delightful read & a piece of NFL history as well. After the read, one can understand why NFL football is American's favorite sport.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  No   Report this review
  • Anonymous

    Posted September 23, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted December 2, 2009

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted January 28, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted November 23, 2009

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted December 15, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 14, 2009

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted October 17, 2009

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted November 28, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted November 14, 2009

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted July 21, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted November 18, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted September 28, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

Sort by: Showing all of 17 Customer Reviews

If you find inappropriate content, please report it to Barnes & Noble
Why is this product inappropriate?
Comments (optional)
500 character limit