Nonfiction Sports History

 America's Game traces pro football's grand transformation, from the World War II years, when the NFL was fighting for its very existence, to the turbulent 1980s and 1990s, when labor disputes and off-field scandals shook the game to its core, and up to the sport's present-day preeminence. A thoroughly entertaining account of the entire universe of professional football, from locker room to boardroom, from playing field to press box, this is an essential book for any fan of America's favorite sport. 

From famed baseball manager Terry Francona, a lively, unvarnished narrative of his tenure with the storied Boston Red Sox From 2004 to 2011, Terry "Tito" Francona managed the Boston Red Sox, the most talked about, scrutinized team in all of sports. In Francona the legendary manager opens up for...

“Eric Blehm offers an insightful perspective on how Craig Kelly became the effortless icon that we all revered as well as sobering details of how his heroic journey tragically ended. The Darkest White is a must read, not just for fans of snowboarding, but for anyone looking for inspiration...

A thrilling, candid and uncompromising memoir covering over twenty-years at the pinnacle of Formula 1, Drive sees Christian Horner, one of the sports biggest characters, take readers into the heart of Red Bull Racing as he reflects on his extraordinary career. For over twenty years Christian...

A New York Times Bestseller * An Amazon Best Book of the Year * A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice * A Time Best Book for Summer Between the world wars, no sport was more popular, or more dangerous, than airplane racing. While male pilots were lauded as heroes, the few women who...

Six Super Bowls, a perfect regular season and the greatest comeback ever — the complete, fact-checked history of the New England Patriots. The complete story of the greatest dynasty the modern game has known. Six Super Bowl titles. A perfect regular season. The greatest comeback ever played. And the coach and quarterback who made it all possible. From the founding of the Boston Patriots in 1959 to the run to Super Bowl LX in 2026, New England Patriots: The Complete History tells the full, fact-checked story of the most successful franchise of the modern NFL. This is the story of the ...

A historical nonfiction novella about the most chaotic Olympic race America ever staged. At the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis, thirty-two men lined up for an Olympic marathon that should have been difficult, dramatic, and respectable. It became something else entirely. The course stretched nearly twenty-five miles through heat, hills, choking dust, bad roads, and worse planning. The runners were given only two water stops. Official vehicles kicked stone dust into their lungs. One competitor rode eleven miles in a car and nearly received the winner’s crown. Another ran in street clothes...

The perfect three-pointer for young basketball enthusiasts: Bring to life the thrills, challenges, and triumphs of basketball, even if they are a beginner or a rising star in the game! Have you been on the hunt for a book that encourages your child's love for basketball and merges it with valuable life skills such as perseverance, teamwork, and dedication? Your quest ends here. Filled with gripping tales of triumph, teamwork, and heart, "The Most Amazing Basketball Stories for Kids" aims to ignite a lifelong passion in young readers for basketball while teaching crucial values. Perfect for ...

For decades, a world championship fight did not end after twelve rounds. It continued into three punishing final rounds in which exhaustion overwhelmed technique, injuries accumulated and reputations were made. To fighters, trainers and supporters, the fifteen-round distance represented the ultimate test of courage. To its critics, it asked damaged men to remain in danger for nine unnecessary minutes. Then came a fight that changed boxing forever. On 13 November 1982, American lightweight champion Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini entered the ring against determined South Korean challenger Duk ...

"Solitude is terrifying and awe-inspiring in Alone." —The Wall Street Journal Alone is an intense audiobook that will push listeners to face their deepest fears and realize the human capacity for survival. In April 2013, fifty-year-old Brett Archibald was on board a surf-charter boat, making a...

Is Your Young Slugger Ready for the Wildest, Truest Baseball Stories Ever Told? Give your child or teen a book that finally makes baseball thrilling. Packed with the impossible moments that turned ordinary kids into the greatest players. A boy who could not stop growing. A rookie in bright Brooklyn white told not to swing back. A two-way star who would not pick between hitting and pitching. Legends. Records that refuse to die. All in one book. Inside you'll find: Greatest Stories: Shohei Ohtani, Aaron Judge, Ronald Acuña Jr., Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso, and more. True biographies ...

It was the biggest event in the history of women's sports. And for the Americans, it came down to five kicks. After regulation play and two overtimes in the final game of the 1999 women's World Cup soccer match, the score was 0-0. Penalty kicks would decide the world champion. The Chinese and the Americans would each pick five players. One kick per player. With the score tied 4-4, the Americans had one more chance to win it all.

This book has compiled 25 of the Greatest Underdog Sports Stories for kids and adults of all ages. It will take you to a tour of some of the best feel good moments in sports history. One of the beautiful things about sport is its ability to throw up the occasional surprise. Those rare moments when David beats Goliath and upsets all the odds and predictions. It does not happen often, but, when it does, it provides moments of inspiration and hope, and makes instant heroes and heroines. Victory is a thousand times sweeter when you are the underdog. Be it a man, who rose from the hospital bed ...

Every July, several million people stand along French roads to watch a bicycle race pass in a matter of seconds. Most of what they think they know about the Tour de France — the yellow jersey, the mountain stages, the doping scandals — turns out to have a much stranger origin story than the polished modern spectacle suggests. In this entry in the I'm No Expert, But series, you'll find out why the race's most famous jersey was actually a newspaper's fix for a printing problem, why the mountains were once considered a genuine gamble that nearly killed the man sent to scout them, why the ...

Eighteen championships, eight in a row, and the greatest tradition in basketball — the complete, fact-checked history of the Boston Celtics. The complete story of the winningest franchise in basketball. Eighteen championships. Eleven in thirteen years. Eight in a row. And a tradition of winning unmatched in the history of the sport. From the founding of the franchise in 1946 to the record eighteenth banner of 2024, Boston Celtics: The Complete History tells the full, fact-checked story of the most successful team in the history of the NBA. This is the story of Red Auerbach's cigars and ...

Originally published in 1976, James A. Michener’s explosive, spectacular Sports in America is a prescient examination of the crisis in American sports that is still unfolding to this day. Pro basketball players are banned for narcotics use, while a Major League pitcher is arrested for...

Award-winning creator Kadir Nelson delivers the perfect gift for basketball fans of any age—a beautifully illustrated history of the game and its key players over the years—in this companion to his bestselling We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball. Basketball has evolved by...

They said girls couldn’t run. They were wrong. For generations, women fought for the right to compete, to be measured, and to be taken seriously in the world of sports. Faster, Higher, Stronger: A History of Women’s Track and Field tells that unforgettable story with energy, heart, and clarity designed especially for readers ages 10–14. From ancient footraces to the groundbreaking 1928 Olympics, from the first banned marathon runners to today’s global superstars, this book reveals how women and girls transformed track and field into one of the most exciting and inclusive sports in ...

George Harrison met Muhammad Ali in 1964, when both men were on the cusp of worldwide fame. We Shook Up the World is the story of these two larger-than-life figures at a momentous time. A unique blend of biography and cultural history, this book goes to the very heart of the zeitgeist that each man inhabited and reinvented in profound and enduring ways.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Strong Inside comes the inspirational true story of the birth of women’s Olympic basketball at the 1976 Summer Games and the ragtag team that put US women’s basketball on the map. Perfect for fans of Steve Sheinkin and Daniel James Brown. A...