Eight Men Out: The Black Sox and the 1919 World Series

Its a reader

This books very good. Loved the first 40 or so pages. Gets even better.

Eight Men Out...A Grand Slam of a Story!

Eight Men Out was a compelling book about the controversial 1919 World Series. Elliot Asinoff tells of the behind the scenes action in great detail and truly makes it all come to life in the reader's mind. It all begins with eight men on the Chicago White Sox planning to throw the series to Cincinnati, after struggling with underpayment and mal-treatment by their owner for so long. The eight men: Eddie Cicotte, Arnold "Chick" Gandil, "Shoeless" Joe Jackson, Charles "Swede" Risberg, Oscar "Happy" Felsch, Claude "Lefty" Williams, George "Buck" Weaver, and Fred McMullin, allied with gamblers around the country to earn a profit from the scandalous stunt. The book goes beyond the actual series as well, and reminisces the fix, exposure, impact, trials, and aftermath of the historical event. Themes such as integrity, greed, and justice are prominent throughout the recounting of the crime. Asinoff does a wonderful job bringing out your inner emotions towards the shocking event. You feel a certain empathy towards the players, fans, and the country, who all lost an abundance so long ago. I thoroughly enjoyed the way Asinoff made you feel as if you were right there, back 92 years ago, and living every bit of it as if it were today. The book was thrilling and I loved the great amount of detail Asinoff included. When reading, the story always kept my interest, though at times, there were instances when it seemed to be lengthy, stating details that were perhaps unnecessary to the overall story. In addition, it became a bit of a challenge to keep the many people involved organized. All in all though, this was genuinely one of the best books I've ever read! Learning about the monumental event in the history of baseball was a delight. It lead to so many aspects of baseball today. I would, without a doubt, recommend Eight Men Out. Baseball fans would definitely appreciate the dynamic recounting of the transgression, yet I would firmly recommend it to any reader that enjoys a well written, thorough, and vivid book too. Asinoff legitimately created a literary work of art in Eight Men Out. He generates an appreciation from the reader, towards how far the pastime of baseball has magnificently come.

The Eight Men that made the Impossible Possible

Eight Men Out is a book that vividly describes the events of the 1919 World Series and the events that followed. Eliot Asinof describes, in life like detail, the meetings about how the baseball players and the gamblers were going to fix the games, each game of the World Series and specific plays that lost the White Sox the series, the exposure of the fix and how that impacted the American past time. Many may wonder why a team would purposely lose the World Series when they have the opportunity to win the title and go down in history. The reason is what corrupts countless people in America, greed and money. These ball players the best in the American league were paid the lowest salaries of any other baseball team. So when the gamblers offer them 10,000 dollars each to throw the Series they were inclined to accept.

Some major themes in this book are greed, cheating, and guilt. These all play a huge part in the plot of the story, in that order. The message that is the most obvious is that greed and money is not worth the guilt and penalty that always follows.
I really liked the way that Asinof told the story. I only know the basics of baseball and I had no trouble understanding the terms Asinof used. Also I generally don't encounter gamblers or famous baseball players so this book gave me a realistic look into the lives of people that I can only imagine. I also like the fact that this book is a page turner, there is never a dull moment. There are so many twists and turns that you can't even guess what is going to happen next. One thing I didn't like so much was the length of the book it defiantly was not the easiest read.

I would strongly recommend this book to anyone that is into sports, gambling or is simply looking for a good nonfiction read. I usually am not the biggest fan of nonfiction but the way this book was told, made it seem like a fantasy. The events that happen seem far from realistic. The fact that this book seemed like fiction helped me to get through the book without feeling like I was reading a history book. Overall I absolutely loved this book.

American Story of Baseball and Corruption

Eight Men Out is a true story of eight men on the 1919 White Sox team. The team goes to the World Series, but decides to intentionally lose the series. They do this for a number of reasons, but number one on that list being they are underpaid by their owner, Comiskey. By throwing the games, they intend to receive money form the gamblers, who will be placing large sums on their loss, but only end up receiving a fraction of what they were promised.
Major themes of the story include greed, guilt, fame, cheating, jealousy, and revenge. The whole story line has to do with money, crime, and baseball. Even though this story took place almost a hundred years ago, it sounds like something very modern and up to date with the society we live in now.
This really is an intriguing book that teaches you about history and baseball. I believe that it really shows how life in America and professional sports has changed in less than one hundred years. It does take a while to get into the story line, and all the names of the players, gamblers, and owners can get confusing, but overall, the book is a good read. The book starts before the first game of the World Series, introducing characters and setting up a story line, and then follows these characters all the way through to the end of their criminal trial, which is several years after the series is actually played.
The attitude of the book is very mysterious and peculiar, which is partly why you just want to keep reading. There is never a dull moment and just when you think you know what is going to happen, the story takes a shocking turn, normally for the worse. The story really makes you think about professional sports and the impact they can have on a country. This is the first major sporting even since the end of World War I, and the fact that is rigged devastates the country and shows the value of these players.
Something that I really enjoyed about the book would be the way that Asinof tells the story. It is written in third person omniscient point of view. Asinof gets into all of the character's minds and reveals what is really going on inside, while he also has one character talk about another as you would in everyday conversation.
I would differentially recommend this book to anyone who is interested in baseball, history, crime and punishment, or anyone who just wants a good book to read! The amazing story line mixed with the point of view, accompanied by the history aspect is sure to please any reader.

Who would have thought!

Eight Men out is an exhilarating story about how the White Sox's rigged the 1919 World Series. They took a bribe from gamblers to loose the World Series, which produced one of the greatest baseball scandals of all time. The players fell into this scandal because they weren't getting paid an adequate amount of money, which caused them to be frantic for wealth. I liked this book because I believe that it illustrates how the players were so anxious to support their families and to have a secure life, that they were not just hungry for more money. One of the themes in eight men out was how to not just go the easy route in life. For example, the players who took part in this scandal to enhance their lives got trapped in the end. I didn't like how it wasn't fair to the other players who weren't part of the scandal that worked so hard, to get to the World Series for it to be fixed. One incentive to not read this book is that if you're not into baseball it might be dreadfully boring for you and lengthy. I would give this book and overall rating of a five out of five because it was a great read and especially appealing to me to learn about this scandal because I'm fond of baseball.

A Good Look Into What Really Happened in the 1919 World Series

The book "Eight Men Out" is about the 1919 baseball World Series and how eight players of the Chicago Black Sox throw the series. What I mean by throw is that they take money from gamblers to make sure they lose. The gamblers do this so that they can earn money because they know how the games turn out. The only ones who get the money are the gamblers because they forget about the players because they want all their money. In the end, the players turn themselves in because they knew it was the wrong thing to do, but, they really don't get in trouble. They end up being able to play in the major leagues again but only a few go back, most of them want nothing to do with baseball ever again. The eight players that were involved were Claude "Lefty" Williams, Fred McMullin, Charles "Swede" Risberg, "Shoeless" Joe Jackson, George "Buck" Weaver, Oscar "Happy" Felsch, Eddie Cicotte, and Arnold "Chick" Gandil. The main gambler behind the whole operation was Arnold Rothstein. Some major themes in this book are payback and giving up. The payback deal is the whole reason behind the throwing of the World Series. The team's owner, Charles Comiskey, isn't treating the players the way he should. His players are the reason that they are even in the World Series and one of the best teams in that era of baseball. So, they hook up with a few New York gamblers to get back at the way Comiskey has been treating them. The other theme, giving up, is a big one to me. To do this to your teammates, your coach, and your town is wrong. It's a sign of weakness and a sign that they just really don't care anymore. Back in the day, anyone would give up everything they had to play in the major leagues. I really liked this book because it gives you a look into how sports and how life was book in the day. Anyone would do anything for money. Also, I am a huge fan of baseball and this gave me a different look into the game. It's not always the cleanest game ever; I learned that some people do play dirty. A few dislikes was how the players got off so easy. They could go back into the major leagues, they didn't go to jail, and they didn't have to pay any fines. To me, that isn't fair at all! Another dislike was how their coach reacted. The coach was William "Kid" Gleason and he always had a bad attitude. At the end of the book, he wants nothing to do with his players. I would imagine that he would at least tell them that their idea was bad and that he was there if they needed anything. At least that's how my coaches act. Someone should read this book if they're really into baseball or if they want to read a book that is suspenseful. My overall rating of this book is that I really liked it and would give it an A-.

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The Infamous Black Sox Scandal

The best overall narrative of the infamous Black Sox scandal: The 1919 World Series fix. Asinof breaks down the scandal into chronological chapters that flow nicely for the story. His writing is superb in some parts, especially the play-by-play details of the games, and it includes many direct quotes from newspapers, interviews, documents, testimony, etc. However, though the narrative is non-fiction, it is sympathetic to the players and it seems embellished or exaggerated in some parts. Since Asinof confronted silence from many who were involved, he had to fill in narrative gaps. Still, it's a very good read for both curious sports fans and avid baseball lovers.

the epic tale of the 1919 world series

after reading eight men out i was really glad i made the choice cause even though it is a non-fiction book the author made it seem like you were on the side line watching every out.Also Eliot Asinof described every play and events leading up to the tragic game. finally the best part of the book for me was when he told you about how each of the players were picked,what their job was and how they suppose to make mistakes so that the out come would happen just right. finally one last point that make eight men out a good book to read if you are in to sports is probably the fact that the author didn't just start right a way with the game but lead you through before and after the series.so if you are in to history and baseball one book that you should try would be eight men out.

Eight Men Out; the American Game tainted by Dirty Money.

After reading this book for my school's summer reading assignment, I've been glad that I chose this book rather than another choice. This book told a very enjoyable story and it was interesting piecing together all the events that lead up to the White Sox scandal.
This book was full of styles and ideas that I liked. For one, I thought it was very interesting how the author sets up phone calls to the players, but does not reveal who is on the other line. It develops a sense of mystery in the story and really gets the reader intrigued and thinking. The author's word choice was also very elaborate. He made simple sentences with little meaning into key sentences that set up the story quite nicely.
There weren't many things in this book that I didn't like, but there are a few that I would change. For example, the author at times seemed to take too long describing something irrelevant to the story. He spent paragraphs and even sometimes pages describing things like where the ballplayers are from and what it was like back home. Though it was interesting reading this, I found it hard to relate it to the actually story and it bugged me a little bit.
This is a story that I would definitely recommend to other readers! It's quite detailed and gets the reader thinking deep into the text and really analyzing the situations in the book. There are moments in this book that I feel everyone can relate too. There's emotional pain, fame, greed, jealousy, cheating, and other topics that we face every day as well. Besides, who doesn't like a good baseball story?
I personally have never read something like this. I would consider it as more of a document of the past rather than a story. The author doesn't sugarcoat anything; he tells it how it happened. I respect that about him and it makes the book seem even more genuine and authentic.
My overall rating of this book would be 4.5 out of 5. There was rarely a dull moment in this book, and the action that took place was very exciting and got the reader anticipating every move. With the exception of the slow and irrelevant sections, this was almost a perfect book. I had a great time reading it, and I hope my review inspires you to read it as well. (:

What a great story

Asinof took the world series scandal and turned into a great non-fiction story. You get insight on every player, and a day by day recolection of events leading up to, and during the world series, game by game. Then you learn the aftermath of the whole thing; how long it took, the people it effected, and then the final outcome. It is a great read, and there couldn't be a better way to learn the true story of the 1919 World Series.

Eight Men Out

I had to buy this book for a research project at school. I chose this book because I already had background information of baseball, because my brother played for years. I began the book and had a positive thought, but it was very boring. The information of the story was all there. It was filled with information and was great for a research book (you can't expect a ton of entertainment from a book you have to get to do a school project) and the chronological set up of the book was quite helpful, but overall it was very boring and slow. It showed how any of the greatest ball players can go down just like the rest of them. For information it is wonderful, but for enjoyment, if you are not a hardcore baseball fan this is not a book I would recommend for you.

SLOW! BORING! GOOD FOR RESEARCH! INFORMATIVE!

I loved Eight Men Out

The book, Eight Men Out, was very entertaining. It showed how even the best baseball playeres could be taken advantage of by signing contracts.

Eight Men Out: The Black Sox and the 1919 World Series

The manager of the White Sox¿s team, Kid Clominskey treated the 1919 World Series team like they were worthless. They were the greatest baseball players of their time, and the were treated like they were nothing. Have you ever been treated like you were worthless and did something about it that could have changed you life forever. Eight players from the team were making 6,000 dollars a year, which was nothing for great baseball players¿ back then. They were getting mad because the team manager was doing nothing about it so they decided to loss the World Series games on purpose. They met with gamblers all over the east coast and ¿The Fix¿ was on. The players were asking for 100,000 dollars, which they would split between the eight of them. Will the players get caught or will they get away with it? This book is a historical nonfiction novel, which takes into account how the fix got started and how it ended up for the players. I really like this book because it is historical and it has to do with sports. If you don¿t like sports (baseball) or historical nonfiction then this book is not for you. It also has a semi-hard vocabulary because there are a lot of baseball and sports jargon in this novel. People have been debated over this situation ever since it ended. Did the players do the right thing, because they had to do it for their families? I personally think that the players did the right thing because their manager wasn¿t helping them out, so it was their last resort. They did it for their families and that is why I think they did the right thing. This novel is a great read. It will keep you on the edge of your seat, because you don¿t know whether they with get got. It will make you start to think about what you are doing and are you doing it for the right reason.

Great Book and a Very True Story

The Eight Men Out book is a very good story of the real life when the White Sox threw the World Series in 1919 because of gamblers paying the players. This later became know as the Black Sox Scandal. The book is fun to read and easy to keep up with. It shows the lifestyle of the people around this time and also the lives of professional atheletes such as Shoeless Joe Jackson and Buck Weaver. If you like baseball or even like sports I think you would enjoy reading this book. If you read the book and enjoy it I recommend also watching the movie.

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