Yogi Berra: Eternal Yankee

by Allen Barra Narrated by Norman Dietz

Overview

Yogi Berra is one of the most popular former athletes in American history and the most quoted American since Abraham Lincoln. Part comedian, part feisty competitor, Berra is also the winningest player in baseball history, with fourteen pennants, ten World Series, and three MVPs.



In this revelatory biography, Allen Barra presents Yogi's remarkable life as never seen before, from his childhood in "Dago Hill," the Italian-American neighborhood in St. Louis; to his leading role on the 1949-1953 Yankees, the only team to win five consecutive World Series; to the travails of the 1964 pennant race; through his epic battles and final peace with George Steinbrenner. This biography, replete with countless "Yogi-isms," offers hilarious insights into many of baseball's greatest moments. From calling Don Larsen's perfect game to managing the 1973 "You Gotta Believe" New York Mets, Yogi's life and career are a virtual cutaway view of our national pastime in the twentieth century.

Editorial Reviews

"Ninety percent of this game is half mental." Hall of Fame catcher and manager Yogi Berra always had a way with words. This modest former New York Yankee also knew his way around the diamond: During his 19-year major league career, he was a 15-time All-Star, a ten-time World Series champion, and a three-time Most Valuable Player. As a manager, he won pennants for both the Yankees and their intercity rivals, the Mets. Yogi Berra: The Eternal Yankee celebrates this now octogenarian fan favorite with a lively, affectionate, illustrated biography that captures this amiable, self-deprecating diamond genius at his best.

Kirkus Reviews

A full-scale biography of the most quoted and, possibly, the most underrated player in baseball history. From the 1950s cartoon that ripped off his name to the Aflac commercials of recent years, Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra has had an identity and impact outside the game greater than all but Ruth, Robinson and Gehrig. A Depression-era child of Italian immigrants, Berra grew up (along with Joe Garagiola, who as a player and broadcaster would do much to burnish Berra's folk-hero status) on "Dago Hill" in St. Louis with a strong set of values and a surprising certainty about his talent and worth as a player. His New York baseball career began in earnest after the war, and he quickly developed a reputation as a notorious bad-ball hitter and, eventually, a shrewd handler of pitchers. He only occasionally joined his hard-living Yankee teammates-Ford, Mantle, Martin-at Toots Shor's joint or the Copacabana, preferring instead to go to the movies or attend to a growing list of product endorsements. While there are plenty of stories here to prove that Berra's popular image is rooted in fact, Barra (The Last Coach: A Life of Paul "Bear" Bryant, 2005, etc.) reminds us how truly great a player Berra was-three-time American League MVP and ten-time World Series champion-and how smart a baseball man came disguised in his unlikely body. After his playing career, Berra coached and managed pennant-winning teams in each league. The play about him insists that Nobody Don't Like Yogi, and while that's not quite true-ask Willie Mays, Cleon Jones or Tom Seaver-for more than 60 years Berra has been a vital part of the game and a pop-culture icon. Now the worthy subject receives a serious biography that dignifieshis baseball accomplishments and still manages to make us smile. A superior sports book bound to interest more than just die-hard fans, ranking with classics like Robert Creamer's Babe: The Legend Comes to Life (1974) and Richard Ben Cramer's Joe DiMaggio: The Hero's Life (2000). Author tour to New York, Washington, D.C., Birmingham, Ala., St. Louis, Los Angeles, Montclair, N.J.

From the Publisher

"Starred Review. A superior sports book."— Kirkus Reviews

"Count me among the Yankee haters who devoured this book."— David Maraniss, author of Clemente

"Allen Barra’s real Yogi Berra is even more interesting than the legendary one."— Jim Bouton, author of Ball Four

Product Details

BN ID:	2940170867073
Publisher:	Tantor Audio
Publication date:	04/27/2009
Edition description:	Unabridged

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