About this item
The story of Mickey Mantle's magnificent 1956 seasonMickey Mantle was the ideal batter for the atomic age, capable of hitting a baseball harder and farther than any other player in history. He was also the perfect idol for postwar America, a wholesome hero from the heartland.In A Season in the Sun, acclaimed historians Randy Roberts and Johnny Smith recount the defining moment of Mantle's legendary career: 1956, when he overcame a host of injuries and critics to become the most celebrated athlete of his time. Taking us from the action on the diamond to Mantle's off-the-field exploits, Roberts and Smith depict Mantle not as an ideal role model or a bitter alcoholic, but a complex man whose faults were smoothed over by sportswriters eager to keep the truth about sports heroes at bay. An incisive portrait of an American icon, A Season in the Sun is an essential work for baseball fans and anyone interested in the 1950s.
About the Author
I write books that I would like to read, stories about sports and film icons who had an impact on American history. People like John Wayne, Joe Louis, and Muhammad Ali. My most recent book, "Blood Brothers: The Fatal Friendship Between Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X" combines my interests in sports, politics, and race. It looks at two men, Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X, and how they changed the sports and political landscape in America. Previously I published books that have explored the role that college football players and coaches have played during times of national crisis. In 2013, I published "Rising Tide: Bear Bryant, Joe Namath, and Dixie's Last Quarter" (co-authored with Ed Krzemienski) . It details the relationship between Bear Bryant and Joe Namath during the early 1960s, a time of Civil Rights struggles, a violent backlash, and the emergence of Alabama as the finest football team in the nation. It features two iconic personalities fighting for victories on the field and their careers off the field.In 2011 I published "A Team for America: The Army-Navy Game That Rallied a Nation." It's the story of a West Point football team during World War II, striving to win a national championship before they shipped off to the battle front. It was their last chance to be boys before the nation demanded that they be men. During the months between D-Day and the Battle of the Bulge the team gave the millions of American soldiers around the world something to celebrate. After their last game General Douglas MacArthur wired Coach Red Blaik, "THE GREATEST OF ALL ARMY TEAMS. WE HAVE STOPPED THE WAR TO CELEBRATE YOUR MAGNIFICENT SUCCESS."
