Braves Bookshelf: “100 Things Braves Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die”

Hello again everyone from southeast Michigan, where we’re on a three day winning streak on the weather, as it’s warm and sunny this afternoon.

Moving on, as I can’t really think of a great segue to where I want to go next, I’d like to introduce a new feature to Tomahawk Take. When I run across a book that is focused on the Braves that I think might be interesting to our readers, I’ll write up a brief review.

The first of these is a really neat book, “100 Things Braves Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die”, written by noted newspaper reporter and columnist Jack Wilkinson. The book is an interesting compilation of trivia, folklore, sightseeing tips, and other items that I think will prove entertaining to the involved Braves fan. In a lot of ways it could serve as a primer to an entrance exam for admittance to an advanced level Braves fan club, if there was such a thing. If you were going on a first date with a Braves fan, or a job interview with one for that matter, you’d be well served to browse this compilation before hand.

Written in a conversational manner, the material is heavily weighted to the Braves “Renaissance Period” of 1991 to today, it actually covers noteworthy Braves from the Rabbit Maranville era all the way through the “coronation” of Fredi Gonzalez as the latest Braves manager. I really like that the book presents trivia in a manner that is almost “Google-Proof”, which is quite the challenge. For example, there is one item in the book titled “Dr. Jack’s Red Shirt”. Google would insist that you are referring to Dr. Jack Kevorkian. A died-in-the-wool fan of John Smoltz would know better, remembering 1991 and Dr. Jack Llewellyn wearing his unique red shirt in the stands on the nights that Smoltz pitched, reinforcing his work to restore Smoltzie’s lost confidence.

The book hits on some bad times as well: The Eric Gregg game; The Jim Leyritz homer; Lonnie Smith’s base-running blunder; The Kent Hrbek WWF/WWE take-down. And what book about the life and times of the Braves could be complete without a taste of the sublime: Ted Turner managing; Pascual Perez earning the I-285 moniker; the stadium press box fire; the longest game.

This is a book that you can read as a narrative from cover to cover or as from a menu, selecting the items that meet your interests. While no one could capture the spirit of a team perfectly, Wilkinson does an excellent job. At a list price of $14.95, this is a great value for a personal purchase or as a gift. Published by Triumph Books (http://triumpbooks.com), it is available as a paperback an ebook at Amazon.com, or at borders.com, or at most other book sellers. Enjoy!