Hoopla

by Harry Stein

When eight members of the Chicago White Sox were accused of throwing the 1919 World Series, the team became known as the "Black Sox." Hoopla blends the narrative of team member George Weaver with the view of Luther Pond, who exposed the scandal. Filled with cameo portraits of prominent sports legends of the early twentieth century, this novel brings to life an era when America was passionate, even patriotic, about baseball; and when one reporter's words had the power to rock a nation.

Genres: Baseball, Sports, Fiction

464 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1983

About the author

Conservative author Harry Stein is known for his light touch on hard topics: How I Accidentally Joined the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy (And Found Inner Peace): I Can't Believe I'm Sitting Next to a Republican; The Idiot Vote -- The Democrats' Core Constituency; etc. Now, with his comic novel Will Tripp, Pissed Off Attorney-at-Law , he does his bit to take back popular culture from the radical left.

Harry Stein is a veteran author and journalist who, in his earlier life as a liberal, regularly wrote for The New York Times Sunday Magazine, Playboy and Esquire, among other places he will never appear again. A contributing editor to City Journal, he written twelve books.

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hoopla is a true gem of a novel, sadly overlooked in the pantheon of baseball literature, but an absolute must for baseball fans, and for fans of early 20th Century American history as well. The story in Hoopla is told by alternating 1st person narrators. One of them is Luther Pond, a New York City sports writer who works for a Hearst paper, and who is erudite, witty, urbane, and deeply driven to set himself apart from the pack. The other narrator is Buck Weaver of the Chicago White Sox. The fact that Harry Stein is able to evoke so believably and balance two such disparate voices is a feat in its own right, but it's the plot that propels the action in Hoopla so wonderfully. From the Jack Johnson/Jim Jefferies Fight of the Century, to the sinking of the Titanic, to the darker parlors of Ty Cobb's home and sordid family history, to the culminating Black Sox scandal, Stein puts together a world of events that are stunning and thrilling at the same time, while never feeling forced or the by-product of expository necessity. This is one of my very favorite novels, and one that I love even more after re-reading it this summer. Do yourself a favor and read Hoopla.

[Daniel Jr. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe could have gone 2.5 stars. HOOPLA, though not without occasional charm and some good scenes, is one of the least compelling baseball books I've read in a long time. May have to go re-read THE GLORY OF THEIR TIMES or BOTTOM OF THE 33RD to wash it out of my system.

The big risk was to write Buck Weaver's POV, and I think Stein fails in this. "Weaver's" voice always feels at least a little disingenuous and often condescending. Then we have Luther Pond's counterpoint narrative, which should come as a relief but does not, as Pond is simply unlikeable.

Also, the book is not aging well.

[David Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't think that this book pretends to be the definitive account of the Black Sox Scandal. Instead, it reveals the unfolding of the scandal through the press while giving the reader some wonderful portraits of the players involved. It is a much better book than some of the other reviewers give it credit for being. (By the way, this is the new edition of the book; I read the original 1987 version.)

[Matthew]

Great read for any baseball fan.

[Ron · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best sports novels I've ever read. It truly captures the vernacular of the times (early 20th century).

[Rock · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought 2 authors alternating chapters would be more entertaining then it was.
One authors style and writing left alot to be desired and the other author had no business being in the book.
The historical aspect was cool, as I find the early 1900's era interesting, and I love baseball.

[Willie Shakes · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you enjoy sports in any degree and love studying life around the early 1900’s, you will love this book. It is filled with snippets of what life was like at the turn of the 20th century. Aficionados of the 1919 Black Sox scandal will greatly appreciate this book.

[MICHAEL · Rating 2 out of 5]

I gave up on this, and I feel a little badly about it. The tale was interesting enough, and the chpaters that grabbed me were great. But at the end of the day, I would reach for something else. I would like to try another of Stein's works because it might not have been his writing, but the subject matter that ultimately caused me to have little enthusiasm for this one.

[Carol Storm · Rating 1 out of 5]

Truly dreadful -- dumb and unfunny retelling of the Black Sox Scandal, with no sense of tragedy and an insufferably condescending narrator who patronizes Buck Weaver to the point of outright hostility.

EIGHT MEN OUT is KING LEAR compared to this!

[Amanda]

I love books about baseball and this one is no disappointment.