The Hammer: The Best of Hank Aaron from the Pages of Sports Illustrated

by Mar (Edit Christian (Edited By); Mravic

Sports Illustrated presents the best moments and memories of Henry (Hank) Aaron in a series of stories that are a collection of memories or events that gives the reader the best recollections of the beloved Hammer.

Genres: Baseball, Sports

143 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Nile Schuett · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book was really super interesting. It compiles many of the Sports Illustrated stories about Hank Aaron into one book. You get to learn about the Hank's many hardships he had to endure to break the all time home run record. Hank was bombarded with hate and racism, because he was African- American. He was very humble and it shows the readers of this book how they should act and carry themselves. Hank paved the way for many other african-american athletes in America. Aaron came from a poor family, which proves that we are all capable of doing great things no matter where we come from. I really think all people should read this book, because of the lessons it teaches. You also get to learn about what it takes to be a really good baseball player. Hank Aaron did quite a bit for the United States of America, he helped break a color barrier in sports, which helped lead to breaking color barriers in other aspects of life. Hank Aaron is an American hero.

[Caleb Shumaker]

I really like this book because of all the adversity Hank has to go through. Sports Illustrated really does a really nice job in showing me what he had to deal with from day to day. Such as death threats and phone calls, while he's trying to break one of the greatest game's record of all time. It really showed me how focused of a player Hank was to be doing this great act all in such a racist time period. It also really made me understand how much of a natural Hank was because hardly anybody really developed his swing as a young player because of his color. Hank made history because he was able to slow the game down and make the pitchers play into his game. Even now a days I never see a batter outsmart the pitcher like how Hank did. Hank's ability to be so nonchalant when he we he finally hits home run #715 really shows the type of character he is. I wish he did all this in a more respecting time period like the 2000's because he wouldn't have had to deal with all the death threats and could've enjoyed it as much as he should have. Overall, I really look up to Hank as a roll model now because of al he had to deal with and his incredible achievements he did in the game of baseball.

[Jack Syron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this one years ago and wanted to reread a few articles, it's that good

[Daniel Velasquez · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book because "The Hammer" included multiple perspectives from various authors and with every chapter included a different opinion and viewpoint about an important time in baseball history. Another reason I enjoyed this book was that since the various authors were all sports writers from SI, they used unique titles in every chapter that would grab the readers attention and in my case, make help me enjoy the book even more.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick read and interesting compendium of miscellaneous Sports Illustrated articles about Hank Aaron, some of his early years, his quest to reach 3000 hits and break Babe Ruth’s home record, and some of the racism he met in the form of hate mail and segregation early on.

[Chris Dean · Rating 4 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed this anthology of Aaron articles from Sports Illustrated spanning his life and career from 1950s to the 1990s. Much of course is made of the Ruth chase, but some of the more engaging articles for me were the stories both before and after. A nice addition to any collection.

[ediddy999 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great collection of SI articles about Hank Aaron. From the late 50's to the early 90's. The tone of the early articles really reflect the attitude of the times. It's a great sample of what happened during his great career. The good and the ugly.