<rd-winning baseball authors Stew Thornley and Dan Levitt will read from, discuss and sign copies of their books at 4 p.m., Monday, April 20, in the Gould Library Athenaeum on the Carleton College campus.
The event, which is sponsored by the Carleton Bookstore, is part of the store’s weeklong celebration to mark the return of baseball. Throughout the week discounts will be offered on all baseball books, baseball caps, peanuts and Cracker Jack, and a drawing will be held for a $50 Minnesota Twins gift card.
Thornley is the foremost historian on Minnesota baseball, the author of more than thirty-five books, and a longtime member of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR). His most recent baseball book, “Minnesota Baseball: A Definitive History,” is the first comprehensive account of the game’s history in the North Star State. “There will never be a more authoritative or entertaining record of baseball in Minnesota than this,” said St. Paul Pioneer Press sports columnist and former Minnesota Twins pitcher Charley Walters.
Thornley’s “On to Nicollet: The Glory and Fame of the Minneapolis Millers” received the Macmillan-SABR Award for baseball research and was a finalist for the 1988 Minnesota Book Award. “Holy Cow! The Life and Times of Halsey Hall” was named the Best Regional Book of 1991 at the Midwest Book Achievement Awards and was a finalist for the Minnesota Book Award. Thornley’s other books include “Land of the Giants: New York’s Polo Grounds,” “Six Feet Under: A Graveyard Guide to Minnesota,” and “Hi Everybody!,” written with legendary baseball broadcaster Herb Carneal.
Levitt, a recognized authority on how baseball teams are assembled, is the author of the critically acclaimed “Ed Barrow: The Bulldog Who Built the Yankees’ First Dynasty,” the first biography of the man who ran arguably the most successful sports franchise in American history. The book, published in 2008, was one of three finalists for the Seymour Medal and a finalist for the Casey Award. Says Kirkus Reviews: “The author has an astounding facility with detail: The sheer number of names, dates and salaries he tosses around is mind-blowing, and the informational tables in the appendix are worthy of inclusion in an economics textbook. … A labor of love of great value to Yankees fans and hard-core baseball junkies.”
Levitt is coauthor of “Paths to Glory: How Great Baseball Teams Got That Way,” winner of the Sporting News-SABR baseball research award, a longtime member of SABR, and the author of numerous baseball articles and biographical profiles.
“Baseball in Minnesota: A Definitive History,” “Ed Barrow,” and “Paths to Glory” will be on sale for 15 percent off at the event and before the event at the Carleton Bookstore.
Information: 507-222-4153 or www.carletonbookstore.com