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MY HOME TEAM

A SPORTSWRITER'S LIFE AND THE REDEMPTIVE POWER OF SMALL-TOWN GIRLS BASKETBALL

An enjoyable, poignant, meaningful memoir.

An iconic American sportswriter returns to his Midwest roots and finds his greatest story.

How did a much-decorated sports columnist and author who chronicled some of the most epic athletic events since the 1960s end up writing for a high school girls' basketball team's website in exchange for Milk Duds? In this fast-paced, endearing memoir written in three acts, Kindred chronicles a circuitous route to his hometown and what could be his most important and personally meaningful subject: the dominant Morton High School Lady Potters hoops squad. The author, who wrote nationally recognized sports columns for publications such as the Washington Post, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and Golf Digest, recounts his idyllic upbringing, the rapid changes in the newspaper business during his career, juggling work and family, and his success in emulating his sportswriting heroes and gurus, particularly Red Smith. Kindred has an elephantine memory and sharp eye for detail, talents that distinguished his columns and add flavor to his descriptions of his unique relationship with Muhammad Ali; his coverage of the 1996 Olympic Park bombing (and beating a libel suit by exonerated suspect Richard Jewell); and a panoply of Super Bowls, Kentucky Derbys, and Masters tournaments. Kindred often zigzags in and out of his memories of events and all involved; this may be dizzying for some, but a completely chronological recitation would be ill-suited to this book. The narrative is also an ode to his wife, Cheryl, his high school sweetheart and all-everything partner, whose health problems precipitated their move back home once Kindred left full-time work. The author writes candidly of personal heartache, loss, and the solace that the no-frills, community-oriented world of small-town high school athletics brings. His profiles of the Lady Potters and what the team meant to him during difficult days are every bit as compelling—if not more so—as the famous athletes he covered in thousands of columns. "When the wages are Milk Duds,” he writes, “it's everything else that matters."

An enjoyable, poignant, meaningful memoir.

Pub Date: Sept. 12, 2023

ISBN: 9781541702202

Page Count: 304

Publisher: PublicAffairs

Review Posted Online: June 2, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023

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  • New York Times Bestseller

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TANQUERAY

A blissfully vicarious, heartfelt glimpse into the life of a Manhattan burlesque dancer.

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  • New York Times Bestseller

A former New York City dancer reflects on her zesty heyday in the 1970s.

Discovered on a Manhattan street in 2020 and introduced on Stanton’s Humans of New York Instagram page, Johnson, then 76, shares her dynamic history as a “fiercely independent” Black burlesque dancer who used the stage name Tanqueray and became a celebrated fixture in midtown adult theaters. “I was the only black girl making white girl money,” she boasts, telling a vibrant story about sex and struggle in a bygone era. Frank and unapologetic, Johnson vividly captures aspects of her former life as a stage seductress shimmying to blues tracks during 18-minute sets or sewing lingerie for plus-sized dancers. Though her work was far from the Broadway shows she dreamed about, it eventually became all about the nightly hustle to simply survive. Her anecdotes are humorous, heartfelt, and supremely captivating, recounted with the passion of a true survivor and the acerbic wit of a weathered, street-wise New Yorker. She shares stories of growing up in an abusive household in Albany in the 1940s, a teenage pregnancy, and prison time for robbery as nonchalantly as she recalls selling rhinestone G-strings to prostitutes to make them sparkle in the headlights of passing cars. Complemented by an array of revealing personal photographs, the narrative alternates between heartfelt nostalgia about the seedier side of Manhattan’s go-go scene and funny quips about her unconventional stage performances. Encounters with a variety of hardworking dancers, drag queens, and pimps, plus an account of the complexities of a first love with a drug-addled hustler, fill out the memoir with personality and candor. With a narrative assist from Stanton, the result is a consistently titillating and often moving story of human struggle as well as an insider glimpse into the days when Times Square was considered the Big Apple’s gloriously unpolished underbelly. The book also includes Yee’s lush watercolor illustrations.

A blissfully vicarious, heartfelt glimpse into the life of a Manhattan burlesque dancer.

Pub Date: July 12, 2022

ISBN: 978-1-250-27827-2

Page Count: 192

Publisher: St. Martin's

Review Posted Online: July 27, 2022

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WAR

An engrossing and ominous chronicle, told by a master of the form.

Documenting perilous times.

In his most recent behind-the-scenes account of political power and how it is wielded, Woodward synthesizes several narrative strands, from the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection and Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel to the 2024 presidential campaign. Woodward’s clear, gripping storytelling benefits from his legendary access to prominent figures and a structure of propulsive chapters. The run-up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is tense (if occasionally repetitive), as a cast of geopolitical insiders try to divine Vladimir Putin’s intent: “Doubt among allies, the public and among Ukrainians meant valuable time and space for Putin to maneuver.” Against this backdrop, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham implores Donald Trump to run again, notwithstanding the former president’s denial of his 2020 defeat. This provides unwelcome distraction for President Biden, portrayed as a thoughtful, compassionate lifetime politico who could not outrace time, as demonstrated in the June 2024 debate. Throughout, Trump’s prevarications and his supporters’ cynicism provide an unsettling counterpoint to warnings provided by everyone from former Joint Chief of Staff Mark Milley to Vice President Kamala Harris, who calls a second Trump term a likely “death knell for American democracy.” The author’s ambitious scope shows him at the top of his capabilities. He concludes with these unsettling words: “Based on my reporting, Trump’s language and conduct has at times presented risks to national security—both during his presidency and afterward.”

An engrossing and ominous chronicle, told by a master of the form.

Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2024

ISBN: 9781668052273

Page Count: 448

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Review Posted Online: Oct. 15, 2024

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2024

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