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Faithful: Two Diehard Boston Red Sox Fans Chronicle the Historic 2004 Season
A fan's notes for the ages, Faithful grew from an email exchange last summer. Filled with the heady mix of exhilaration and frustration familiar to all Boston Red Sox fans, Stewart O'Nan fired off a note to fellow Sox fan, Stephen King, who responded with his thoughts on Pedro, Nomar, Manny, Mueller, and Theo. From the supposed Curse of the Bambino to f###in' Bucky Dent to the recent off-season battle for Alex Rodriguez, Sox fans have seen it all since 1918...except for that elusive World Championship. Baseball history has transformed these fans into a "nation" -- not to mention the most dedicated, knowledgeable fanbase on the planet. Stewart O'Nan and Stephen King, proud members of Red Sox Nation, will chronicle the 2004 baseball season from spring training to the last game of the season -- the important plays, the controversial managerial decisions, the significant front office moves, and the spectacular finish (whether heartbreaking or joyous). Attending games together, keeping a running diary of observations and arguments, and occasionally evoking great or tragic events in Red Sox history. King and O'Nan will cheer on their beloved team with the eternal hope that this just might be the year. If you don't have season ticket box seats right behind the firstbase dugout, you can't beat Faithful.
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First published December 1, 2004
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About the author
Stewart O'Nan
70 books1,364 followersStewart O'Nan is the author of eighteen novels, including Emily, Alone; Last Night at the Lobster; A Prayer for the Dying; Snow Angels; and the forthcoming Ocean State, due out from Grove/Atlantic on March 8th, 2022.
With Stephen King, I’ve also co-written Faithful, a nonfiction account of the 2004 Boston Red Sox, and the e-story “A Face in the Crowd.”
You can catch me at stewart-onan.com, on Twitter @stewartonan and on Facebook @stewartONanAuthor
With Stephen King, I’ve also co-written Faithful, a nonfiction account of the 2004 Boston Red Sox, and the e-story “A Face in the Crowd.”
You can catch me at stewart-onan.com, on Twitter @stewartonan and on Facebook @stewartONanAuthor
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June 28, 2024
The 2024 edition of the Major League Baseball season is for all practical purposes halfway over. Once the calendar turns to July, teams face the realization that they are either buyers or sellers and start to focus on either the post season or next year. This year’s iteration of the Chicago Cubs has not lived up to expectations, marred by injuries and healthy players not performing the way people thought they would before the season started. I have attempted to temper the pain of what seems at this point like a lost season by dissecting every game with my son. As poor as the team has played, at least we can share sarcastic humor after the last out. This took me back to one of the funniest baseball books I had come across in my reading countless accounts of bygone seasons. Prior to the 2004 season, without having foreknowledge of the outcome, Scribner books asked New Englanders and long time suffering Red Sox fans Stewart O’Nan and Stephen King to dissect every game of the year. From the first pitch of spring training to the last toss of the season, the two writers would be there for better or for worst. Hearing two fans gripe about a baseball season is just what I needed at the moment to cope with the one unfolding before me. It was long past time to reread the account of Boston’s faithful.
Prior to 2004 (and 2016) Red Sox and Cubs fans aligned themselves with a shared solidarity of futility. Both teams were supposedly cursed and hadn’t won a World Series in 86 or 96 years (would increase to 108). According to O’Nan the curse of the Bambino was not real, but the Billy goat curse had been documented. Regardless, I rooted for the Red Sox growing up because they were the only team besides the Cubs that I could relate to. Years of futility and playoff disappointment. Hall of fame players from both teams who would never play in the post season, at least not for the storied franchises. Historic moments, players who would move on to have hall of fame careers on other teams. Ballparks on the National register of historic places. The list goes on and is uncanny. In 2003 it appeared that one or both curses would finally be broken until they weren’t. To this day, I cannot watch a replay of games six or seven of the national league Championship series. It is too painful of a memory although it lead to me overcoming it and meeting my husband the following summer. I am sure Boston fans feel similarly about how the 2003 postseason played out. Maybe the people at Scribner felt something in the air or water because they asked the writer of writers King to document the next season. The fact that they did not ask any of Chicago’s finest writers to chronicle the Cubs’ next season might have foreshadowed the fact that the Red Sox would be the first to break their curse. At the time, they certainly had better management (the same front office that would later construct the 2016 Cubs). Although King was hard at work on his Dark Tower Series, he agreed to write this book along with Stewart O’Nan, another long suffering member of Red Sox nation. At least if the Red Sox would not succeed, King could end October with a horror story that only he could come up. That would not be necessary in the end.
Both O’Nan and King started with spring training in Florida and proceeded to watch or attend every day of the season. They would email back and forth in between games to dissect the every move of Red Sox manager Terry Francona also known as the Coma ( later the opposing manager in 2016 series). When he is not writing horror books that scare the living daylights off of me, Stephen King is actually funny. I discovered this when I read his On Writing last winter as he let readers in on his writing process. I am not as familiar with O’Nan as I am primarily a nonfiction reader, but he has suffered with the Red Sox for literally as long as I have with the Cubs. A Pittsburgh transplant, he started rooting for the Red Sox the year he started college at Boston University, the year after I was born and already watching games with my dad. Both men have experienced their share of heartbreak as fans, so they are able to construct a dialogue in their back and forth that is full of the same sarcastic humor that my son and I are using to get through this season. Millar can’t field and committed three errors in a game. Why didn’t Coma put McCarty out there if he is a defensive specialist? Why is Youkilis not playing if he is an on base machine? Does Coma not trust rookies? Why are starting pitchers left in too long? Is the bullpen not reliable? Sadly all of this banter sounds too vaguely familiar and had me laughing at parts because sadly I have experienced the narrative too many times. The difference between the 2004 Red Sox and the countless other teams who didn’t make it is that they righted their ship. A few trades to patch up holes, and they were on their way. Of course, die hard fans are skeptical because if not, then they would not be fans. Over analyzing a manager’s every move is part of what makes being a fan so great. These two famous super fans were up to the task.
A discussion of the 2004 season would not be complete without a mention of the New York Yankees. As much as I support New England’s football team, as an adult, rooting for the Red Sox is tricky. Yes, growing up there was always the solidarity with the Cubs, but as the 2004 playoffs began, I was about to get engaged to a Yankees fan. I actually took him to Wrigley Field on the last day of the 2004 season so he could see that this is who I am. I lose him to the World Cup once every four years so fair enough. Anyway, rooting for the Red Sox at that time was problematic, although secretly I wanted the Cubs to break their curse first. As Stephen King so poignantly explains, now the Cubs will have to deal with their curse on their own. Backtracking, in 2003 the Red Sox and Yankees battled for a trip to the World Series only to have the Yankees come out on top again. Dubbed the evil empire, the rest of baseball referred to the Bronx as the Death Star. With an owner willing to buy his way to titles, in the early 2000s, the Yankees were the richest and most hated team in baseball, and nowhere was this hatred more open than in the entire New England region. To get to the World Series, to reverse the curse of the bambino, the Red Sox would most likely have to beat the Yankees. Their regular season battles- all nineteen of them- were classic, some lasting over four hours. I actually miss those games, when both teams charged full steam ahead to the post season. Both writers’ detest the Yankees as much as I view the Cardinals as venom and the Brewers as sleaze bags. The one sided depiction of this rivalry with both men on hand to see the Red Sox finally overcome the Yankees, that is what made this book.
Twenty years later. For those non sports fans among us, the Red Sox did indeed sweep the 2004 World Series over the Cardinals (woo hoo!). The curse was over and generations of New Englanders could rejoice. The Cubs would experience the same euphoria twelve years later. The Red Sox have since won three more times, the Yankees only once. All is right in Red Sox nation, and it appears as though both teams will be battling for a playoff spot again this year. As for the key players on both teams, three are currently major league managers, two work for mlb network, and a handful are in the hall of fame. I hardly remember the end of that year- the Cubs missed out on the playoffs on the second to last day of the season and I had other things on my mind. As for the authors, O’Nan made immediate plans to attend 2005 spring training. He remains a notable regional author, one who I remind myself to read more of. Stephen King keeps chugging out horror books, which I still refuse to read, but I am challenging myself to read one later this year, only because I am curious after reading On Writing. Sadly they never wrote a follow up account of a further season, but nothing could have topped this, just what Scribner had been banking on. For the time being, the authors’ banter and humor provided me with a tonic for a losing season, just what the sports doctor ordered.
4 stars
Prior to 2004 (and 2016) Red Sox and Cubs fans aligned themselves with a shared solidarity of futility. Both teams were supposedly cursed and hadn’t won a World Series in 86 or 96 years (would increase to 108). According to O’Nan the curse of the Bambino was not real, but the Billy goat curse had been documented. Regardless, I rooted for the Red Sox growing up because they were the only team besides the Cubs that I could relate to. Years of futility and playoff disappointment. Hall of fame players from both teams who would never play in the post season, at least not for the storied franchises. Historic moments, players who would move on to have hall of fame careers on other teams. Ballparks on the National register of historic places. The list goes on and is uncanny. In 2003 it appeared that one or both curses would finally be broken until they weren’t. To this day, I cannot watch a replay of games six or seven of the national league Championship series. It is too painful of a memory although it lead to me overcoming it and meeting my husband the following summer. I am sure Boston fans feel similarly about how the 2003 postseason played out. Maybe the people at Scribner felt something in the air or water because they asked the writer of writers King to document the next season. The fact that they did not ask any of Chicago’s finest writers to chronicle the Cubs’ next season might have foreshadowed the fact that the Red Sox would be the first to break their curse. At the time, they certainly had better management (the same front office that would later construct the 2016 Cubs). Although King was hard at work on his Dark Tower Series, he agreed to write this book along with Stewart O’Nan, another long suffering member of Red Sox nation. At least if the Red Sox would not succeed, King could end October with a horror story that only he could come up. That would not be necessary in the end.
Both O’Nan and King started with spring training in Florida and proceeded to watch or attend every day of the season. They would email back and forth in between games to dissect the every move of Red Sox manager Terry Francona also known as the Coma ( later the opposing manager in 2016 series). When he is not writing horror books that scare the living daylights off of me, Stephen King is actually funny. I discovered this when I read his On Writing last winter as he let readers in on his writing process. I am not as familiar with O’Nan as I am primarily a nonfiction reader, but he has suffered with the Red Sox for literally as long as I have with the Cubs. A Pittsburgh transplant, he started rooting for the Red Sox the year he started college at Boston University, the year after I was born and already watching games with my dad. Both men have experienced their share of heartbreak as fans, so they are able to construct a dialogue in their back and forth that is full of the same sarcastic humor that my son and I are using to get through this season. Millar can’t field and committed three errors in a game. Why didn’t Coma put McCarty out there if he is a defensive specialist? Why is Youkilis not playing if he is an on base machine? Does Coma not trust rookies? Why are starting pitchers left in too long? Is the bullpen not reliable? Sadly all of this banter sounds too vaguely familiar and had me laughing at parts because sadly I have experienced the narrative too many times. The difference between the 2004 Red Sox and the countless other teams who didn’t make it is that they righted their ship. A few trades to patch up holes, and they were on their way. Of course, die hard fans are skeptical because if not, then they would not be fans. Over analyzing a manager’s every move is part of what makes being a fan so great. These two famous super fans were up to the task.
A discussion of the 2004 season would not be complete without a mention of the New York Yankees. As much as I support New England’s football team, as an adult, rooting for the Red Sox is tricky. Yes, growing up there was always the solidarity with the Cubs, but as the 2004 playoffs began, I was about to get engaged to a Yankees fan. I actually took him to Wrigley Field on the last day of the 2004 season so he could see that this is who I am. I lose him to the World Cup once every four years so fair enough. Anyway, rooting for the Red Sox at that time was problematic, although secretly I wanted the Cubs to break their curse first. As Stephen King so poignantly explains, now the Cubs will have to deal with their curse on their own. Backtracking, in 2003 the Red Sox and Yankees battled for a trip to the World Series only to have the Yankees come out on top again. Dubbed the evil empire, the rest of baseball referred to the Bronx as the Death Star. With an owner willing to buy his way to titles, in the early 2000s, the Yankees were the richest and most hated team in baseball, and nowhere was this hatred more open than in the entire New England region. To get to the World Series, to reverse the curse of the bambino, the Red Sox would most likely have to beat the Yankees. Their regular season battles- all nineteen of them- were classic, some lasting over four hours. I actually miss those games, when both teams charged full steam ahead to the post season. Both writers’ detest the Yankees as much as I view the Cardinals as venom and the Brewers as sleaze bags. The one sided depiction of this rivalry with both men on hand to see the Red Sox finally overcome the Yankees, that is what made this book.
Twenty years later. For those non sports fans among us, the Red Sox did indeed sweep the 2004 World Series over the Cardinals (woo hoo!). The curse was over and generations of New Englanders could rejoice. The Cubs would experience the same euphoria twelve years later. The Red Sox have since won three more times, the Yankees only once. All is right in Red Sox nation, and it appears as though both teams will be battling for a playoff spot again this year. As for the key players on both teams, three are currently major league managers, two work for mlb network, and a handful are in the hall of fame. I hardly remember the end of that year- the Cubs missed out on the playoffs on the second to last day of the season and I had other things on my mind. As for the authors, O’Nan made immediate plans to attend 2005 spring training. He remains a notable regional author, one who I remind myself to read more of. Stephen King keeps chugging out horror books, which I still refuse to read, but I am challenging myself to read one later this year, only because I am curious after reading On Writing. Sadly they never wrote a follow up account of a further season, but nothing could have topped this, just what Scribner had been banking on. For the time being, the authors’ banter and humor provided me with a tonic for a losing season, just what the sports doctor ordered.
4 stars
November 7, 2015
I didn't just read this book, I savored it, taking my time to get through to the end.
I had not read a Stephen King book in year's but he was as fun as I remember. It was also entertaining to listen to the fans neurosis as the season wore on and their disbelief at finally winning it all.
I had not read a Stephen King book in year's but he was as fun as I remember. It was also entertaining to listen to the fans neurosis as the season wore on and their disbelief at finally winning it all.
April 9, 2020
I'm a huge baseball fan but sadly there's no baseball to watch on tv so I decided to read about it instead!
March 19, 2010
Did you know that I like the Red Sox? I like the Red Sox. Did you know we won the World Series recently? Twice! But the first time was the best. After that first time, I did the following:
- Wept
- Drank several beers
- Several is an approximation
- Jumped out of my cab in the middle of the street to hug a total stranger
- Like three times, seriously
- Bought the entire postseason on DVD so I could watch The Steal again and again
- Wept while watching The Steal again and again
- Read several books by crazy people who are Red Sox fans.
And here's what sucks about this particular book by crazy people (Stewart O'Nan and Stephen King wrote it together): the 2004 ALCS was one of the most terrifying things that've ever happened. (If you don't know why, you don't need to read this review.) It's a crime against posterity that Stephen King - Stephen King! - wrote about this exact series...and didn't do it justice. I'm mystified and deeply saddened, because there's literally no one better in the history of the world to describe that exact series than Stephen King. And he blew it.
Tempted to click the "this review contains spoilers" box. Spoiler: we totally won the World Series. Spoiler 2: I wept.
- Wept
- Drank several beers
- Several is an approximation
- Jumped out of my cab in the middle of the street to hug a total stranger
- Like three times, seriously
- Bought the entire postseason on DVD so I could watch The Steal again and again
- Wept while watching The Steal again and again
- Read several books by crazy people who are Red Sox fans.
And here's what sucks about this particular book by crazy people (Stewart O'Nan and Stephen King wrote it together): the 2004 ALCS was one of the most terrifying things that've ever happened. (If you don't know why, you don't need to read this review.) It's a crime against posterity that Stephen King - Stephen King! - wrote about this exact series...and didn't do it justice. I'm mystified and deeply saddened, because there's literally no one better in the history of the world to describe that exact series than Stephen King. And he blew it.
Tempted to click the "this review contains spoilers" box. Spoiler: we totally won the World Series. Spoiler 2: I wept.
August 26, 2019
This is a book for fans by fans, and admirers of these two writers will be amazed that they had anything else to do in 2004 besides obsess over their team. And you couldn't make this up -- the year they are commissioned to write a double diary chronicling their lives as woebegone Red Sox fans, the impossible happens and the Sox go on to take the series. Not news to anyone with even a rudimentary interest in the game. Knowing the ending doesn't matter here; what is important is the day by day filtering of statistics and facts. These two guys are A List authors, and while I don't read King as a rule, I read everything Onan puts out. The two voices, alternating, give different slants to the events as they unspool, but what results is a cohesive life of a baseball fan during the season. While my allegiance is for a different team in a different league on a different coast, I feel the excitement at winning, the outrage of bad calls by the umpire, and the roller coaster ride of a season that starts out with everything possible and ends abruptly in the fall.
December 18, 2019
Anyone who picks this up ought to approach it from the perspective of a baseball fan, first and foremost - otherwise it'll probably be a slog. O'Nan in particular likes to give detailed play-by-plays throughout the regular season, and it's not always riveting reading. I really enjoyed this book because the 2004 Red Sox didn't qualify as favorites, and while they did have Theo Epstein (the fellow who eventually turned the Cubs organization into WS winners in 2016), Terry Francona was a new manager in Boston, and absolutely none of this was a sure thing.
Stephen's signature humor made it feel like I was having a conversation with him - most of his frustrations with Francona's decisions could have come out of mine and my dad's mouths these last few years (the diehard Cleveland fans that we are, sigh). Indeed, up til 2016 I would have said 2004 was probably my favorite WS in recent memory. A great book not just for BoSox fans but for any baseball fan.
Stephen's signature humor made it feel like I was having a conversation with him - most of his frustrations with Francona's decisions could have come out of mine and my dad's mouths these last few years (the diehard Cleveland fans that we are, sigh). Indeed, up til 2016 I would have said 2004 was probably my favorite WS in recent memory. A great book not just for BoSox fans but for any baseball fan.
February 25, 2023
** The Stephen King Goodreads Discussion Group is doing a re-read of his works from the beginning to the end. It’s been a long time since I have really immersed myself in Uncle Stevie’s world, but a rate of a book a month, I am all in. My goal is to read and review each one with as much honesty and reflection that I can give. **
Background – “Faithful: Two Diehard Boston Red Sox Fans Chronicle the Historic 2004 Season” was originally published in 2004 as a Scribner hardcover. It was co-written by Stephen King and Stewart O'Nan, sharing their communications during the Boston Red Sox 2004 baseball season, covering from spring training all the way to their first World Series since 1918.
Length-wise - my oversized paperback lists it as 445 pages and my Kindle lists it as 404 pages.
Plotline – Stephen King and Stewart O’Nan, two writers, are also die-hard Red Sox fans who sit together at the historical Fenway Park home games, send each other daily emails regarding how the Red Sox team is doing during the season (living and dying with each win and loss), and often write articles and blogs about the games.
Following the heart-crushing loss to the Yankees in the 2003 American league Championship series as the result of a seventh game, 11th inning walk-off home run, the Red Sox being their 2004 season with a hope, prayer, and several injuries. The curse of the Big Bambino is still alive in the eyes of suffering Red Sox fans as they pray things will be different this year.
What ends up happening is an unbelievable true story of one of the greatest comebacks in sports baseball history, one in which Stephen and Stewart share their personal, once in a lifetime, ultimate fan experience.
Thoughts and Reflections – This is a real-life underdog sports story told by two hardcore, faithful Boston Red Sox fans. Stephen and Stewart make you quickly forget about their writing successes as professional authors, and pull you into their hard-luck history that comes with religiously following their hometown team and passionately hating their evil enemy - the New York Yankees.
This book is written primarily for sports fans, specifically baseball fans who know their history and the great Red Sox/Yankee rivalry that is on the level of the Hatfield’s and McCoy’s. It is made up of journal entries and emails from Stephen and Stewart from the beginning of the 2004 season, all the way through its 162 games, and then the unbelievable historic playoff run that culminated in the first Red Sox World Series win since 1918, and finally ending the curse of the Bambino.
The causal or non-sports writer will probably find themselves getting bogged down in the daily journal entries and emails of each game and the player dynamics. That’s understandable. Not everyone’s a hard-core baseball fan or aficionado. However, if you are a baseball fan, or a Red Sox fan, or a Red Sox vs. Yankees historical fan, then this niche book might be right up your alley. Since I am a big sports fan and can remember in vivid detail the absolutely amazing Red Sox comeback in the 2004 American league Championship, this was a nostalgic trip back to one of my all-time favorite sports stories experienced in my lifetime (only the U.S. Hockey team beating the Russians/taking home the gold medal, and my hometown Seattle Seahawks and Super-Sonics wining the Superbowl and the NBA Championship are dearer to my heart).
Other Notes – “Faithful” was dedicated to an Emerson College student named Victoria Snelgrove, who was struck in the eye by a projectile fired by the Boston Police Department during crowd-control actions near Fenway Park following Game 7 of the American League Championship Series, and resulted in her unfortunate death approximately 12 hours later.
Overall – This was a book that brought back some seriously wonderful sports and baseball memories for me. Although the daily journal entries and emails tended to drag on a bit during the long-winded regular season, it ramped up to a great crescendo and climax during their great playoff run and historical ALCS comeback that put them into their first World Series in 86 years.
For me, this was a very enjoyable trip back to a key hinge point in baseball history, told by two great wise narrators who know what their talking about. A solid three-stars out of five.
Background – “Faithful: Two Diehard Boston Red Sox Fans Chronicle the Historic 2004 Season” was originally published in 2004 as a Scribner hardcover. It was co-written by Stephen King and Stewart O'Nan, sharing their communications during the Boston Red Sox 2004 baseball season, covering from spring training all the way to their first World Series since 1918.
Length-wise - my oversized paperback lists it as 445 pages and my Kindle lists it as 404 pages.
Plotline – Stephen King and Stewart O’Nan, two writers, are also die-hard Red Sox fans who sit together at the historical Fenway Park home games, send each other daily emails regarding how the Red Sox team is doing during the season (living and dying with each win and loss), and often write articles and blogs about the games.
Following the heart-crushing loss to the Yankees in the 2003 American league Championship series as the result of a seventh game, 11th inning walk-off home run, the Red Sox being their 2004 season with a hope, prayer, and several injuries. The curse of the Big Bambino is still alive in the eyes of suffering Red Sox fans as they pray things will be different this year.
What ends up happening is an unbelievable true story of one of the greatest comebacks in sports baseball history, one in which Stephen and Stewart share their personal, once in a lifetime, ultimate fan experience.
Thoughts and Reflections – This is a real-life underdog sports story told by two hardcore, faithful Boston Red Sox fans. Stephen and Stewart make you quickly forget about their writing successes as professional authors, and pull you into their hard-luck history that comes with religiously following their hometown team and passionately hating their evil enemy - the New York Yankees.
This book is written primarily for sports fans, specifically baseball fans who know their history and the great Red Sox/Yankee rivalry that is on the level of the Hatfield’s and McCoy’s. It is made up of journal entries and emails from Stephen and Stewart from the beginning of the 2004 season, all the way through its 162 games, and then the unbelievable historic playoff run that culminated in the first Red Sox World Series win since 1918, and finally ending the curse of the Bambino.
The causal or non-sports writer will probably find themselves getting bogged down in the daily journal entries and emails of each game and the player dynamics. That’s understandable. Not everyone’s a hard-core baseball fan or aficionado. However, if you are a baseball fan, or a Red Sox fan, or a Red Sox vs. Yankees historical fan, then this niche book might be right up your alley. Since I am a big sports fan and can remember in vivid detail the absolutely amazing Red Sox comeback in the 2004 American league Championship, this was a nostalgic trip back to one of my all-time favorite sports stories experienced in my lifetime (only the U.S. Hockey team beating the Russians/taking home the gold medal, and my hometown Seattle Seahawks and Super-Sonics wining the Superbowl and the NBA Championship are dearer to my heart).
Other Notes – “Faithful” was dedicated to an Emerson College student named Victoria Snelgrove, who was struck in the eye by a projectile fired by the Boston Police Department during crowd-control actions near Fenway Park following Game 7 of the American League Championship Series, and resulted in her unfortunate death approximately 12 hours later.
Overall – This was a book that brought back some seriously wonderful sports and baseball memories for me. Although the daily journal entries and emails tended to drag on a bit during the long-winded regular season, it ramped up to a great crescendo and climax during their great playoff run and historical ALCS comeback that put them into their first World Series in 86 years.
For me, this was a very enjoyable trip back to a key hinge point in baseball history, told by two great wise narrators who know what their talking about. A solid three-stars out of five.
May 20, 2019
Cue Frankie Vallie:
Oh what a season, late October back in 2004. What a very special time for me, as I remember oh what a season.
This book relives what was the greatest season in Redsox history. It tells everything from the dizzying highs to the terrifying lows, to the times that made us cluck our tongues and say., "My oh my what ever should we do about this Terry Francona character and his merry band of misfits?". . It relives the benches clearing bloody, Saturday afternoon brawl against the hated Yankees, that ignited the Redsox and very well saved their season.
Sadly it can't describe the jubilation I felt when they swept the Angels in the ALDS, the dismay I felt when they fell behind the Yankees 3 games to none in the ALCS, or the overall euphoria I felt when they ended up winning the next 4 to advance to the World Series,(a feat that was never done before). It also can't describe how I almost lost my job because games 4, 5, and 6 went extra innings went into the wee hours of the morning, and of course I had to watch every pitch. It also can not describe the pride I feel to this day when I watch hights lights of that series on Youtube or see one of my German cousins wearing a Redsox shirt or cap in Facebook photos. They were visting during the brawl game and became instant Redsox fans.
Oh what a season, late October back in 2004. What a very special time for me, as I remember oh what a season.
This book relives what was the greatest season in Redsox history. It tells everything from the dizzying highs to the terrifying lows, to the times that made us cluck our tongues and say., "My oh my what ever should we do about this Terry Francona character and his merry band of misfits?". . It relives the benches clearing bloody, Saturday afternoon brawl against the hated Yankees, that ignited the Redsox and very well saved their season.
Sadly it can't describe the jubilation I felt when they swept the Angels in the ALDS, the dismay I felt when they fell behind the Yankees 3 games to none in the ALCS, or the overall euphoria I felt when they ended up winning the next 4 to advance to the World Series,(a feat that was never done before). It also can't describe how I almost lost my job because games 4, 5, and 6 went extra innings went into the wee hours of the morning, and of course I had to watch every pitch. It also can not describe the pride I feel to this day when I watch hights lights of that series on Youtube or see one of my German cousins wearing a Redsox shirt or cap in Facebook photos. They were visting during the brawl game and became instant Redsox fans.
September 3, 2020
This is a little odd; I wrote a review well over a decade ago and posted it and now it's gone. Research ensues, and I see that's happened to seven other titles I'd shelved, too. I'm now compelled to post a comment or two because of my completest compulsion.
King's writing is always enjoyable. Nan contributes a bit more to the text than he does, but his counterpoint is well composed and interesting. As a diehard Yankees for the last five decades I viewed the subject matter as an account of tragedy. But, you know, just wait for next year...
King's writing is always enjoyable. Nan contributes a bit more to the text than he does, but his counterpoint is well composed and interesting. As a diehard Yankees for the last five decades I viewed the subject matter as an account of tragedy. But, you know, just wait for next year...
March 14, 2024
This was really entertaining cant wait for opening weekend gonna get myself a fenway frank!
July 19, 2007
On the surface, this is a book for Red Sox fans. I am not a Red Sox fan. I grew up a Phillies fan, and am the son of a Cubs fan, so I don't need to be preached to about baseball futility. However, the little details of what it means to be a baseball fan are what makes this book so readable. So underneath all the Red Sox rooting, there is a very nice book about being a fan, of a team and the game.
If you don't have a working knowledge of baseball, let this book slide. The authors don't try to explain the game, rather they explain what the game means to them. Parent and child moments at the ballpark, desperately tuning AM radio stations to catch a score, and perhaps even turning your cap inside out when it's really, really, needed.
Those little details help make this book a great addition to any baseball lover's library. And, if you are a Sox fan, go ahead and revel in a perfect season captured in print.
If you don't have a working knowledge of baseball, let this book slide. The authors don't try to explain the game, rather they explain what the game means to them. Parent and child moments at the ballpark, desperately tuning AM radio stations to catch a score, and perhaps even turning your cap inside out when it's really, really, needed.
Those little details help make this book a great addition to any baseball lover's library. And, if you are a Sox fan, go ahead and revel in a perfect season captured in print.
January 21, 2015
Even though I'm a Texas boy and have rooted for the hard-luck Rangers my entire life, 'Faithful' is still a fun read. This is partly because O'Nan & King live out the anxieties that all of us diehard sports fans go through as we live & die with our favorite teams. It's almost like sitting in the bar overhearing these two go back and forth/bitch and moan about the Red Sox.
However, what really makes the book is that O'Nan & King just happened to pick the 2004 season to chronicle the Red Sox, and in the process they captured the biggest choke-job in the history of American sports... at the hand of those punk-ass Yankees. Priceless.
However, what really makes the book is that O'Nan & King just happened to pick the 2004 season to chronicle the Red Sox, and in the process they captured the biggest choke-job in the history of American sports... at the hand of those punk-ass Yankees. Priceless.
May 19, 2016
One of my favorite LOST lines is when Ben tells Jack that the Red Sox won the 2004 World Series, and Jack's response is, "now I know you are lying." In a stroke of luck, Stephen King and Stewart O'Nan were hired to chronicle the 2004 Boston Red Sox season, which culminated in their first World Series win since 1918. A delightful back and forth of the thoughts, backgrounds, and game statistics of the season, I expected to enjoy, but I did not expect to laugh out loud so often. If you enjoy baseball, it's definitely a worthwhile read. It made me resolve to pay more attention to my teams this year.
February 9, 2019
In the dead of winter I start getting all jittery when there’s no baseball. Sorry, but football, basketball and hockey just can’t fill the void.
You know Stephen King has led a charmed life when he finally decides to co-write a fan’s-eye view of his favorite team and he chooses the season when they finally win the World Series after an 86-year drought.
Faithful is an entertaining read, especially for this Red Sox fan who could use a little bit of baseball back in his life. Spring training is just a few weeks away for the defending champions, but this book did the trick to keep my baseball-loving head in the game.
You know Stephen King has led a charmed life when he finally decides to co-write a fan’s-eye view of his favorite team and he chooses the season when they finally win the World Series after an 86-year drought.
Faithful is an entertaining read, especially for this Red Sox fan who could use a little bit of baseball back in his life. Spring training is just a few weeks away for the defending champions, but this book did the trick to keep my baseball-loving head in the game.
January 22, 2008
I'm reading this now to prep for the Red Sox win of the 2007 World Series!
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Stephen King is hilarious in this chronicle of the first Red Sox WS win in 86 years. O'Nan gives more of a straightforward account, King def steals the show. Great book, esp if you are a Sox fan.
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Stephen King is hilarious in this chronicle of the first Red Sox WS win in 86 years. O'Nan gives more of a straightforward account, King def steals the show. Great book, esp if you are a Sox fan.
August 1, 2025
Read this sometime in 23’ when I was in the middle of my quest to read Stephen King’s entire bibliography (which I have since completed).
It’s a fine piece of non-fiction and I’m a big Baseball fan but I don’t particularly like the Red Sox and never have even back in 2004 when they had their big World Series run.
I’m from Philadelphia so you can guess what team I root for.
3/5; fits perfectly in the realm of mediocre non-fiction that I would never read again (Bill Bryson’s “A Walk in The Woods” fits right into that category)
It’s a fine piece of non-fiction and I’m a big Baseball fan but I don’t particularly like the Red Sox and never have even back in 2004 when they had their big World Series run.
I’m from Philadelphia so you can guess what team I root for.
3/5; fits perfectly in the realm of mediocre non-fiction that I would never read again (Bill Bryson’s “A Walk in The Woods” fits right into that category)
April 28, 2015
"Faithful" by diehard Red Sox Fans Stewart O'Nan and Stephen King chronicles the epic 2004 Red Sox baseball season. I am a life-long Red Sox fan and the 2004 team is my all-time favorite. I remember rocking my first daughter (when she was 8 months old) to sleep during the playoffs and the World Series while trying to not make too much noise cheering for the team while watching them on TV. It will be a memory I'll always cherish. The Red Sox had great offensive players from top to bottom - Johnny Damon, Mark Bellhorn, Orlando Cabrera, Bill Mueller, Trot Nixon, and of course the best 3-4 combo in MLB history, David Ortiz, and Manny Ramirez. Also, great pitchers Pedro Martinez, Curt Schilling, Tim Wakefield, Derek Lowe, and Bronson Arroyo. This team was pretty much unstoppable at the end of the season. They overcame many ups and downs during the season (including trading star shortstop Nomar Garciaparra) but they persevered. They not only came back from the brink of going home to beat the almighty Yankees, but the St. Louis Cardinals did not really have a chance when they played this Red Sox team in the World Series. "Faithful" is a great way for fans to re-live the unbelievable 2004 Red Sox season because it is written by two true fans who love the team no matter what happened. It turns out they couldn't have picked a better year to write this book! This is a must read for Red Sox fans, and I believe it would be enjoyable to fans of baseball in general because it comes from the fan's point of view. Highly recommended! Happy reading everyone!
January 4, 2013
This is the second time I've read this book and, just like the first, it was very hard going for me. There are basically two aspects to this book. The first is a love letter to baseball, sometimes recounted in nearly an inning-by-inning fashion. As you can imagine, these sections are almost impossible for me to read.
But the second part---oh, the second part! That's a love letter to obsession. And that I can rally behind. I don't get people who love sports (although if forced at gunpoint to watch a sport, I'd probably pick baseball), but I figure most of them don't understand why I'd willingly choose to re-read a prolific author's entire body of work in one year (speaking of, now it's two done and 66 to go!).
If you're a baseball fan (or probably even a sports fan), you will love this book to the marrow of your soul. If you're like me, you will hate yourself a lot of the time you're reading this. I did. And then I realized that I'm just as obsessed as they are, just with different things. It keeps me from getting too smug about the sports people. ;)
But the second part---oh, the second part! That's a love letter to obsession. And that I can rally behind. I don't get people who love sports (although if forced at gunpoint to watch a sport, I'd probably pick baseball), but I figure most of them don't understand why I'd willingly choose to re-read a prolific author's entire body of work in one year (speaking of, now it's two done and 66 to go!).
If you're a baseball fan (or probably even a sports fan), you will love this book to the marrow of your soul. If you're like me, you will hate yourself a lot of the time you're reading this. I did. And then I realized that I'm just as obsessed as they are, just with different things. It keeps me from getting too smug about the sports people. ;)
September 4, 2008
Thoroughly enjoyed this book, but maybe mostly for the walks down memory lane it prompted. The magical Red Sox summer of 04 was also the year we moved from baseball-crazy Boston to half-Red-Sox, half-Yankees Connecticut. I spent lots of those first few lonely months in Connecticut (foreign town, husband constantly at work) watching the Red Sox rise, slump, and improbably rise again. The rag-tag long-haired boys of Boston were a great diversion from the sometimes scary acts of moving, sending my firstborn off to kindergarten, and watching my husband sleepwalk through his intern year...I also relived with glee some great moments...like the Pokey Reese in-the-park homerun that we witnessed on Mormon Day in the spring.
With that said, I found Stephen King to be surprisingly funny and smart. (I haven't read much by him, surprise surprise). But I really wish he could clean up his language...not all baseball fans are used to locker-room talk...
With that said, I found Stephen King to be surprisingly funny and smart. (I haven't read much by him, surprise surprise). But I really wish he could clean up his language...not all baseball fans are used to locker-room talk...
October 3, 2017
I listened to this on audiobook a little at a time. It was fun to hear the day to day details of two everyday baseball fans. I was busily attending almost every September game of the last place but rebuilding 2017 Phillies and it main a fine companion, a partner in crime even. Any story where the Yankees die a horrible death is a happy ending.
February 12, 2015
As the title says, Faithful is about the 2004 Red Sox season. O'Nan and Stephen King write alternate chapters and discuss the team in depth and describe the games they get to see. King has season tickets and O'Nan has to scrounge for chances to go to the games.
May 21, 2008
Awesome book. Loved the picture on the cover of the book.
GO SOX!
GO SOX!
April 11, 2009
Great book for Boston fans. Good book for baseball fans. Not the best book for Stephen King fans only.
February 4, 2023
Let me get this straight: here in Europe, at least in the few countries I've been to or lived in, baseball is not a thing. No one knows about it. We know you guys in the US play with bats to hit balls and do home runs and that's about that.
In my entire life I've never met another baseball fan IRL (except for my spouse but that's 'cause I got her into it with me 🙃).
You might ask how in Hell am I become a baseball fan. Well it's dumb and simple: Stephen King got me into. As a kid, I read all of Stephen King I could lay hands on and with all his mentioning baseball and comments about fanatism turned me into a regular Faithful, a Red Sox fan.
For long it was utterly difficult to follow anything baseball or to get into it due to the non-existent interest for the sport all around me. I've never let my oddity (on a european POV) out until recent years. Then came YouTube MLB Game of the Week and it became simpler. And then I found out I could watch baseball on mlb.tv in France as well and I'm now a regular spectator, even though I'm not so diehard like Stephen King nor Stewart O'Nan.
Those guys here offered me something new with this book: I got to follow the Red Sox for probably what's their best year, on an almost day to day recollection. '04 is legendary and yet at the time I wasn't in any position to follow the season at all. "Faithful" is therefore an ideal testimony of the struggle it was for Red Sox fans that year and I really dug this book!
I understand why it doesn't have that much of a good note on GR, not because it isn't good enough but because the readers have probably way more insight on the season and its outcome than I have. Maybe am I a better target for such a story.
On other matters too, this book brought me a lot, for instance on ballgame lingo and a lot of trivia.
Moreover, I loved living the '04 season with Stew and Steve, with whom we somehow get the feeling we're living the year. For this specifically, Faithful is perhaps the most intimate Stephen King's I've ever read and, as a Faithful reader (wink), this means a lot to me as well.
The circle is complete. Thank you, Stew and Steve 🥳
In my entire life I've never met another baseball fan IRL (except for my spouse but that's 'cause I got her into it with me 🙃).
You might ask how in Hell am I become a baseball fan. Well it's dumb and simple: Stephen King got me into. As a kid, I read all of Stephen King I could lay hands on and with all his mentioning baseball and comments about fanatism turned me into a regular Faithful, a Red Sox fan.
For long it was utterly difficult to follow anything baseball or to get into it due to the non-existent interest for the sport all around me. I've never let my oddity (on a european POV) out until recent years. Then came YouTube MLB Game of the Week and it became simpler. And then I found out I could watch baseball on mlb.tv in France as well and I'm now a regular spectator, even though I'm not so diehard like Stephen King nor Stewart O'Nan.
Those guys here offered me something new with this book: I got to follow the Red Sox for probably what's their best year, on an almost day to day recollection. '04 is legendary and yet at the time I wasn't in any position to follow the season at all. "Faithful" is therefore an ideal testimony of the struggle it was for Red Sox fans that year and I really dug this book!
I understand why it doesn't have that much of a good note on GR, not because it isn't good enough but because the readers have probably way more insight on the season and its outcome than I have. Maybe am I a better target for such a story.
On other matters too, this book brought me a lot, for instance on ballgame lingo and a lot of trivia.
Moreover, I loved living the '04 season with Stew and Steve, with whom we somehow get the feeling we're living the year. For this specifically, Faithful is perhaps the most intimate Stephen King's I've ever read and, as a Faithful reader (wink), this means a lot to me as well.
The circle is complete. Thank you, Stew and Steve 🥳
June 12, 2025
The history of the Boston Red Sox is usually more interesting than anything in the Bible. Somehow the way many Bostonian sports fans (including myself) think and process information, players past and present are always connected to the Red Sox lore through the history of the game.
I first purchased this book in 2005 at the Tampa International Airport as I was ogling at Hulk Hogan's blonde bombshell wifey, but 30 pages were missing so I didn't get around to reading it until now.
This book does not work as a function without both O'Nan and King, but I think King's discourse is far more intelligent and entertaining. He earns the bold face font. O'Nan is misinformed regarding a handful of things concerning Red Sox Nation.
There is a neat DFW mention in the introduction (xv).
A young Hanley Ramirez is mentioned in spring training (9) as his Red Sox journey has now come full circle, attempting to fill the shoes of the legendary Big Papi.
Radio broadcaster Joe Castiglione set Brian Daubach up with his wife (13).
O'Nan writes, "Jeter seems to have lost his concentration the last few years." (50), but the fabled Captain would go on to play until 2014 and add another World Series ring to his collection of five.
O'Nan is driven by seats on top of the Green Monster hounding for lottery chances, but the view up there kind of sucks and the seats are way overpriced. "The monster seats are a dream." (62) Meh...
In 2004, the Red Sox salary was $125 million. In 2016, it is closer to $200 million.
O'Nan notices a misspell on printed souvenir cups on April 9th, "The company hasn't proofread the thing: Schilling is spelled SHILLING. And will be all season long." On June 27th (roughly three months), the cups are fixed. "She shows me that the souvenir-cup makers have fixed the SHILLING." (173) David Price has been a member of the Red Sox for over a year now. He makes $30 million a year. His official and verified Facebook page still lists him as a Toronto Blue Jays player. I have been blocked by him on Twitter, told Red Sox employees for an entire season before games, and sent certified mail to the head honchos, but no luck in that department. I also had the 2013 World Series Champions added to their Official Facebook page (millions of followers) because I'm fairly observant, but that only took a few weeks to fix.
O'Nan writes, "Gate B- the gate no one uses." I firmly disagree, as Gate B is one of the best gates to meet visiting baseball fans and sell programs to large crowds even before all of the statues have been added.
O'Nan clearly is unaware of BOSTON BASEBALL, the affordable program/scorecard sold outside of the ballpark. "In the mail is a stack of scoresheets from the Remy Report. Now, instead of having to buy the same $4 program all month, I can just flip a single sheet over and fold it into my pocket when I'm done." (91) I'm surprised his writing accomplice Mr. King did not inform him of BOSTON BASEBALL.
King writes, "The guy selling programs just outside Gate A pauses just long enough in his spiel to ask me how I'm feeling. I tell him I'm feeling fine. He says, 'Do you thank God?' I tell him, 'Every day.' He says, 'Right on, brotha,' and goes back to telling people how much they need a program, how much they need a scorecard, just two dollars unless you're a Yankee fan, then you pay four." (124)
That, "guy" used to try and pick fights with me in an alleyway adjacent to where junkies shoot up heroin in between their toes. He is a loser with poor grammar. Heroin is a stupid drug.
The Fenway marriage proposal is quite commonplace now. Sad.
Throughout the read, King writes "fan's notes," which made me think of Frederick Exley's A Fan's Notes (thanks Irby!). Sure enough, King quotes Exley's work on 181.
O'Nan writes "Right-hander John Lackey, a number four starter at best." (206) Wrong again. Lackey is a three-time World Series Champion (2002, 2013, 2016). Career 176-135, 3.88 regular season. 8-6, 3.27 postseason.
King writes, "I have never seen such a big man who is able to generate such sudden power, not even Mo Vaughn. God knows how long it will last, but Red Sox fans have been blessed to watch it over the last two seasons, and Ortiz may be having an MVP year." (254) Red Sox fans were blessed for 14 glorious seasons and won three World Series with Papi's transcendent bat.
El Monstro was the name of Papi's Cadillac roadster. (342) There are also several good allusions to Moby Dick throughout.
On Ortiz again, King writes, "What followed was, quite simply, baseball history. I can't repeat it here to any reader's satisfaction because, although I saw it, my forebrain still doesn't believe I saw it." (345) Game 2 ALCS 2013 was my moment.
https://youtu.be/HJyxzaLNlNw?si=aAgBV...
Thank you, Baseball Gods. #blessed
King was raised a Methodist (358).
King writes again, "Boston finished up with Tim Wakefield, the goat in last year's ALCS Game 7." (368) It's interesting how goats are used negatively in baseball, including the now broken Cubbies' curse (that's two for Brookline High alumnus, Theo Epstein now), yet Tom Brady is THE GOAT in the NFL (five-time Super Bowl Champion and Jesus Christ impersonator).
King's mother's name is Ruth (374).
In big bold print, King writes, "Last night, in a game that was never supposed to happen, the Boston Red Sox completed the greatest comeback in the history of American professional sports." (377) This can now be debated for all eternity with Super Bowl LI.
I forgot Clemens was the starting pitcher in Game 7 of the NLCS against Jeff Suppan (both former Sox players). Tony Womack was also cut from the Sox during spring training during the 2004 season (.307-5-38) for the NL Champion St. Louis Cardinals.
Surprisingly, O'Nan's wife cries when the Red Sox win the whole shebang (397), but at times throughout the season acts as if she couldn't care less about the team. Why are women so wishy-washy sometimes? I can't help but think of Giselle's selfie video as soon as her hubby Tom won the big game and then later fumbling her cell during the live TV coverage. What a ditz.
I certainly will never forget this magical season, but a lot has changed. If "Father Schilling" didn't post so much right-wing and anti-Muslim garbage on social media, he probably wouldn't have been axed from ESPN's documentary. The Sox have lost a lot of their luster and charm for now until the next prolific team rises from the ashes of the cellar.
Who will be the next great underdog?
I hope and pray it is me.
I first purchased this book in 2005 at the Tampa International Airport as I was ogling at Hulk Hogan's blonde bombshell wifey, but 30 pages were missing so I didn't get around to reading it until now.
This book does not work as a function without both O'Nan and King, but I think King's discourse is far more intelligent and entertaining. He earns the bold face font. O'Nan is misinformed regarding a handful of things concerning Red Sox Nation.
There is a neat DFW mention in the introduction (xv).
A young Hanley Ramirez is mentioned in spring training (9) as his Red Sox journey has now come full circle, attempting to fill the shoes of the legendary Big Papi.
Radio broadcaster Joe Castiglione set Brian Daubach up with his wife (13).
O'Nan writes, "Jeter seems to have lost his concentration the last few years." (50), but the fabled Captain would go on to play until 2014 and add another World Series ring to his collection of five.
O'Nan is driven by seats on top of the Green Monster hounding for lottery chances, but the view up there kind of sucks and the seats are way overpriced. "The monster seats are a dream." (62) Meh...
In 2004, the Red Sox salary was $125 million. In 2016, it is closer to $200 million.
O'Nan notices a misspell on printed souvenir cups on April 9th, "The company hasn't proofread the thing: Schilling is spelled SHILLING. And will be all season long." On June 27th (roughly three months), the cups are fixed. "She shows me that the souvenir-cup makers have fixed the SHILLING." (173) David Price has been a member of the Red Sox for over a year now. He makes $30 million a year. His official and verified Facebook page still lists him as a Toronto Blue Jays player. I have been blocked by him on Twitter, told Red Sox employees for an entire season before games, and sent certified mail to the head honchos, but no luck in that department. I also had the 2013 World Series Champions added to their Official Facebook page (millions of followers) because I'm fairly observant, but that only took a few weeks to fix.
O'Nan writes, "Gate B- the gate no one uses." I firmly disagree, as Gate B is one of the best gates to meet visiting baseball fans and sell programs to large crowds even before all of the statues have been added.
O'Nan clearly is unaware of BOSTON BASEBALL, the affordable program/scorecard sold outside of the ballpark. "In the mail is a stack of scoresheets from the Remy Report. Now, instead of having to buy the same $4 program all month, I can just flip a single sheet over and fold it into my pocket when I'm done." (91) I'm surprised his writing accomplice Mr. King did not inform him of BOSTON BASEBALL.
King writes, "The guy selling programs just outside Gate A pauses just long enough in his spiel to ask me how I'm feeling. I tell him I'm feeling fine. He says, 'Do you thank God?' I tell him, 'Every day.' He says, 'Right on, brotha,' and goes back to telling people how much they need a program, how much they need a scorecard, just two dollars unless you're a Yankee fan, then you pay four." (124)
That, "guy" used to try and pick fights with me in an alleyway adjacent to where junkies shoot up heroin in between their toes. He is a loser with poor grammar. Heroin is a stupid drug.
The Fenway marriage proposal is quite commonplace now. Sad.
Throughout the read, King writes "fan's notes," which made me think of Frederick Exley's A Fan's Notes (thanks Irby!). Sure enough, King quotes Exley's work on 181.
O'Nan writes "Right-hander John Lackey, a number four starter at best." (206) Wrong again. Lackey is a three-time World Series Champion (2002, 2013, 2016). Career 176-135, 3.88 regular season. 8-6, 3.27 postseason.
King writes, "I have never seen such a big man who is able to generate such sudden power, not even Mo Vaughn. God knows how long it will last, but Red Sox fans have been blessed to watch it over the last two seasons, and Ortiz may be having an MVP year." (254) Red Sox fans were blessed for 14 glorious seasons and won three World Series with Papi's transcendent bat.
El Monstro was the name of Papi's Cadillac roadster. (342) There are also several good allusions to Moby Dick throughout.
On Ortiz again, King writes, "What followed was, quite simply, baseball history. I can't repeat it here to any reader's satisfaction because, although I saw it, my forebrain still doesn't believe I saw it." (345) Game 2 ALCS 2013 was my moment.
https://youtu.be/HJyxzaLNlNw?si=aAgBV...
Thank you, Baseball Gods. #blessed
King was raised a Methodist (358).
King writes again, "Boston finished up with Tim Wakefield, the goat in last year's ALCS Game 7." (368) It's interesting how goats are used negatively in baseball, including the now broken Cubbies' curse (that's two for Brookline High alumnus, Theo Epstein now), yet Tom Brady is THE GOAT in the NFL (five-time Super Bowl Champion and Jesus Christ impersonator).
King's mother's name is Ruth (374).
In big bold print, King writes, "Last night, in a game that was never supposed to happen, the Boston Red Sox completed the greatest comeback in the history of American professional sports." (377) This can now be debated for all eternity with Super Bowl LI.
I forgot Clemens was the starting pitcher in Game 7 of the NLCS against Jeff Suppan (both former Sox players). Tony Womack was also cut from the Sox during spring training during the 2004 season (.307-5-38) for the NL Champion St. Louis Cardinals.
Surprisingly, O'Nan's wife cries when the Red Sox win the whole shebang (397), but at times throughout the season acts as if she couldn't care less about the team. Why are women so wishy-washy sometimes? I can't help but think of Giselle's selfie video as soon as her hubby Tom won the big game and then later fumbling her cell during the live TV coverage. What a ditz.
I certainly will never forget this magical season, but a lot has changed. If "Father Schilling" didn't post so much right-wing and anti-Muslim garbage on social media, he probably wouldn't have been axed from ESPN's documentary. The Sox have lost a lot of their luster and charm for now until the next prolific team rises from the ashes of the cellar.
Who will be the next great underdog?
I hope and pray it is me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 12, 2010
Sean LaPrise
11/11/10
Period: 1
Mr. Ambrose
Quarter One Book Review: Faithful
In the year of 2004, history was made marking the greatest comeback in all of Baseball by none other than the Boston Red Sox. Two die-hard fans, who decided to chronicle the 2004 season of the Boston Red Sox were novelist, Stewart O’Nan and author of contemporary horror, Stephen King. These authors however would not know what history would eventually be made by their home team, and their recap of this great year would spawn, Faithful. O’Nan and King take the readers through their experiences, emotions, and memories within the writing of this book. In a few words, it is an excellent read, but has only a few negative things. This review for Faithful is based off of the good things about it, the bad things, and how it reaches out to certain and specific readers.
There are many reasons why a reader or readers would enjoy or like this book. It lets the readers relive the history that was made in the 2004 American League championship series, and the entire season with every single game and the scores. Both also describe the turning points of the Red Sox season, including their terrible month of June to the turnaround in July/August. The readers get to know what the authors are like during the year as well, including their expressed mixed emotions throughout the year. One example in particular was the American League Championship Series where all hope was lost after falling 0-3, and coming back and winning 4-3 in the series. Their emotions changed from nervous and depressed feelings to exciting and confident feelings. Readers can also use the authors as a reference to see what a die-hard fan is like, by going to many games and watching every game to the last second. One quote from Stephen King was, “Tonight, barring a stroke or a heart attack, I expect to be in until the end, be it bitter or sweet. And the same could be said for the season as a whole. I'm going to do pretty much what I did last year, in other words (only this year I expect to get paid for doing it). Which is pretty much addiction in a nutshell: doing the same thing over and over, and expecting a different result,"(King, 33). King said this on opening night of the season, and it shows that he is a die-hard fan, saying that he will be in it to the end bitter or sweet. Both authors also include short segments every few pages that are dialogues between each other. This is a good way for the readers to identify the feelings between the authors at certain points during the year, and witness debates between the authors as well. If some readers do judge the book by its cover, they would presume that the book is just about the team and their games, well, it’s not. The authors include many of their experiences within the season that adds more to the story. O’Nan writes about going to Fort Myers with his family for spring training, and King includes his experience of throwing the first pitch at Fenway Park. As one can see, there are many reasons why this book is a good read, but it does have its negatives as well.
Nothing can be perfect, but this book is very close to being perfect. In my opinion, the book was very clear throughout the four-hundred and three pages and did not have many undesirable elements and things, but it did have a couple. The major dislike of the book in my opinion is the references to every single game of the season and stats. This made the book feel very dull and boring, having to read about every single game and statistic. I also did not like that Stephen King was not included as much compared to Stewart O’Nan. The only times King was included in the book was within the dialogues between him and O’Nan and the bold sentences. I believe that O’Nan should deserve most of the credit for the book. Other than those two dislikes, the book was great to read.
In my opinion the greatest thing that Stewart O’Nan and Stephen King did to write this book was making it readable for all types of readers. Sports fans and enthusiast would most likely enjoy this book for reviewing or reliving the unbelievable acts of 2004, and because they enjoy sports. Readers who enjoy comedy and humor may like this read because of the language that is invoked within the book, jokes and cuss words in particular. Readers who enjoy Drama and suspense may enjoy this book as well because of how dramatic the Red Sox regular season and postseason was. Additionally, people who would like to learn about what happened in 2004 would definitely enjoy reading this because they can read about how the Red Sox came back from a 0-3 deficit, and from a fans view at the same time. This is a book that has so many different elements and themes that makes it creative and enjoyable for all.
These are the elements that the book review for Faithful, is based off of. As stated before, even though this book has a few negative things that do not make it perfect, it is still a great read. It is a creative and powerful story about the entire 2004 Boston Red Sox season, starting from spring training and ending in the World Series. It is a book that is readable and enjoyable for all types of readers. It is also a key to reliving the 86 year drought of a World Series title, come to an end. If I were to recommend this book, I would recommend it to any type of reader because it is something everyone will enjoy. I believe that this is one of the greatest books I have ever read and is marked as a remembrance of what happened in the 2004 baseball season forever.
11/11/10
Period: 1
Mr. Ambrose
Quarter One Book Review: Faithful
In the year of 2004, history was made marking the greatest comeback in all of Baseball by none other than the Boston Red Sox. Two die-hard fans, who decided to chronicle the 2004 season of the Boston Red Sox were novelist, Stewart O’Nan and author of contemporary horror, Stephen King. These authors however would not know what history would eventually be made by their home team, and their recap of this great year would spawn, Faithful. O’Nan and King take the readers through their experiences, emotions, and memories within the writing of this book. In a few words, it is an excellent read, but has only a few negative things. This review for Faithful is based off of the good things about it, the bad things, and how it reaches out to certain and specific readers.
There are many reasons why a reader or readers would enjoy or like this book. It lets the readers relive the history that was made in the 2004 American League championship series, and the entire season with every single game and the scores. Both also describe the turning points of the Red Sox season, including their terrible month of June to the turnaround in July/August. The readers get to know what the authors are like during the year as well, including their expressed mixed emotions throughout the year. One example in particular was the American League Championship Series where all hope was lost after falling 0-3, and coming back and winning 4-3 in the series. Their emotions changed from nervous and depressed feelings to exciting and confident feelings. Readers can also use the authors as a reference to see what a die-hard fan is like, by going to many games and watching every game to the last second. One quote from Stephen King was, “Tonight, barring a stroke or a heart attack, I expect to be in until the end, be it bitter or sweet. And the same could be said for the season as a whole. I'm going to do pretty much what I did last year, in other words (only this year I expect to get paid for doing it). Which is pretty much addiction in a nutshell: doing the same thing over and over, and expecting a different result,"(King, 33). King said this on opening night of the season, and it shows that he is a die-hard fan, saying that he will be in it to the end bitter or sweet. Both authors also include short segments every few pages that are dialogues between each other. This is a good way for the readers to identify the feelings between the authors at certain points during the year, and witness debates between the authors as well. If some readers do judge the book by its cover, they would presume that the book is just about the team and their games, well, it’s not. The authors include many of their experiences within the season that adds more to the story. O’Nan writes about going to Fort Myers with his family for spring training, and King includes his experience of throwing the first pitch at Fenway Park. As one can see, there are many reasons why this book is a good read, but it does have its negatives as well.
Nothing can be perfect, but this book is very close to being perfect. In my opinion, the book was very clear throughout the four-hundred and three pages and did not have many undesirable elements and things, but it did have a couple. The major dislike of the book in my opinion is the references to every single game of the season and stats. This made the book feel very dull and boring, having to read about every single game and statistic. I also did not like that Stephen King was not included as much compared to Stewart O’Nan. The only times King was included in the book was within the dialogues between him and O’Nan and the bold sentences. I believe that O’Nan should deserve most of the credit for the book. Other than those two dislikes, the book was great to read.
In my opinion the greatest thing that Stewart O’Nan and Stephen King did to write this book was making it readable for all types of readers. Sports fans and enthusiast would most likely enjoy this book for reviewing or reliving the unbelievable acts of 2004, and because they enjoy sports. Readers who enjoy comedy and humor may like this read because of the language that is invoked within the book, jokes and cuss words in particular. Readers who enjoy Drama and suspense may enjoy this book as well because of how dramatic the Red Sox regular season and postseason was. Additionally, people who would like to learn about what happened in 2004 would definitely enjoy reading this because they can read about how the Red Sox came back from a 0-3 deficit, and from a fans view at the same time. This is a book that has so many different elements and themes that makes it creative and enjoyable for all.
These are the elements that the book review for Faithful, is based off of. As stated before, even though this book has a few negative things that do not make it perfect, it is still a great read. It is a creative and powerful story about the entire 2004 Boston Red Sox season, starting from spring training and ending in the World Series. It is a book that is readable and enjoyable for all types of readers. It is also a key to reliving the 86 year drought of a World Series title, come to an end. If I were to recommend this book, I would recommend it to any type of reader because it is something everyone will enjoy. I believe that this is one of the greatest books I have ever read and is marked as a remembrance of what happened in the 2004 baseball season forever.
February 26, 2012
It was recommended to me by someone I trust to skip this book. I told him I don't care that much about baseball, and I care even less about the Red Sox, so the only reason I would read it is because of my undying adoration of both Stewart O'Nan and Stephen King. I read a couple reviews by people here, all of whom seem to agree that if you don't care about the Sox or baseball it would be silly to read this book.
I'm not going to say I agree or disagree with them. I will say that I actually sorta kinda enjoyed this. I didn't expect to, but it happened. It totally snuck up on me.
O'Nan and King are both incredible fans of the Red Sox, and this is their documentation of the 2004 season in which they made it to (and ultimately won) the World Series for the first time in a really long time. These two fans exchanged e-mails throughout the season, kept diaries, went to games together, talked some smack, and never gave up hope.
I don't think it was as badly written as some of the reviews complain. I think what those people focus on is the subject itself. Considering I don't follow baseball and don't give a hoot about RBIs and other stats, I was able to just focus on what I think is the bigger issue at hand: The undying love and affection two writers have for one baseball team. I can appreciate when anyone is so faithful to whatever; in my case I have an undying love and affection for books. Faithful was dedicated to the authors' "baseball widows", Trudy and Tabitha, which made me think if I ever wrote a book about books I would have to dedicate it to my family as well - the ones who can (and have) spent hours with me in bookstores (more than one in a day), or specifically my oldest brother who went with me to Pearl S. Buck's house that one time only to find out I was supposed to have worked that day but (WHOOPS!) I didn't realize and I got in trouble later.
Baseball isn't my obsession of choice, but I can respect it. Well, now I can. My ex was an avid Mets fan and I hated hearing about it, but that's a different story. I grew up with some baseball in my history. Our parents took us to some games, strangely, and all three of us played T-ball. (Some of us played worse than others. It took me a while to understand the concept was to hit the ball and not the T.) Some time ago when my dad's job moved to another state, he had to go ahead to try to find a place to live and my mom had to stay behind to try to sell our house. My brothers and I were adults at that point and pretty much lived on our own, but would all try to get together on the weekends when Dad would come back. I thought it'd be cool to ride down to Memphis with him one weekend and then ride back to Missouri with him the following weekend. During the week in Memphis I did my own thing while Dad worked, but one evening he brought home tickets to a AAA game. We laughed about it because it really wasn't us, that's not our schtick. But we went anyway. I can't tell you now who played or who won or even what the score was. But I can tell you that it was a fun time, that it was great to be able to spend that one-on-one time with my dad. It's not something we had really done before and it's not something we'll likely do again. So I appreciated it.
And that seems to be what baseball is for me. It's something that's just sort of there, I can take it or leave it, but the memories I have of it are pretty fun. I like ballparks, oddly. The smell and the sounds mostly. But I don't follow the teams, and maybe that's because we moved so much that it was hard to give our loyalty to any specific team.
Or maybe (most likely) it's because overall we're a pretty nerdy family, and even though we all tried sports at one time or another, it just wasn't for us.
Yes, my eyes started to glaze over a time or two during reading this book - there are lots of names and stats that I don't care about. But the other part of the book is the connection between O'Nan and King, the way their friendship developed over this season, the anecdotes about their families and their own writing... those are things I held on for, gimme more gimme more.
So, okay, as a sports book I can't say whether or not it's any good. I have a feeling they weren't able to capture the moment the Red Sox won the World Series, and in fact that bit seemed a bit breezy. But as a work of non-fiction about being faithful to a sports team and what it means to be faithful? That was pretty good.
And, really. I truly adore O'Nan and King. I'm glad they're friends. I think they're good for each other. And, hell, if they'd have me, I would totally go to a Red Sox game with them.
I'm not going to say I agree or disagree with them. I will say that I actually sorta kinda enjoyed this. I didn't expect to, but it happened. It totally snuck up on me.
O'Nan and King are both incredible fans of the Red Sox, and this is their documentation of the 2004 season in which they made it to (and ultimately won) the World Series for the first time in a really long time. These two fans exchanged e-mails throughout the season, kept diaries, went to games together, talked some smack, and never gave up hope.
I don't think it was as badly written as some of the reviews complain. I think what those people focus on is the subject itself. Considering I don't follow baseball and don't give a hoot about RBIs and other stats, I was able to just focus on what I think is the bigger issue at hand: The undying love and affection two writers have for one baseball team. I can appreciate when anyone is so faithful to whatever; in my case I have an undying love and affection for books. Faithful was dedicated to the authors' "baseball widows", Trudy and Tabitha, which made me think if I ever wrote a book about books I would have to dedicate it to my family as well - the ones who can (and have) spent hours with me in bookstores (more than one in a day), or specifically my oldest brother who went with me to Pearl S. Buck's house that one time only to find out I was supposed to have worked that day but (WHOOPS!) I didn't realize and I got in trouble later.
Baseball isn't my obsession of choice, but I can respect it. Well, now I can. My ex was an avid Mets fan and I hated hearing about it, but that's a different story. I grew up with some baseball in my history. Our parents took us to some games, strangely, and all three of us played T-ball. (Some of us played worse than others. It took me a while to understand the concept was to hit the ball and not the T.) Some time ago when my dad's job moved to another state, he had to go ahead to try to find a place to live and my mom had to stay behind to try to sell our house. My brothers and I were adults at that point and pretty much lived on our own, but would all try to get together on the weekends when Dad would come back. I thought it'd be cool to ride down to Memphis with him one weekend and then ride back to Missouri with him the following weekend. During the week in Memphis I did my own thing while Dad worked, but one evening he brought home tickets to a AAA game. We laughed about it because it really wasn't us, that's not our schtick. But we went anyway. I can't tell you now who played or who won or even what the score was. But I can tell you that it was a fun time, that it was great to be able to spend that one-on-one time with my dad. It's not something we had really done before and it's not something we'll likely do again. So I appreciated it.
And that seems to be what baseball is for me. It's something that's just sort of there, I can take it or leave it, but the memories I have of it are pretty fun. I like ballparks, oddly. The smell and the sounds mostly. But I don't follow the teams, and maybe that's because we moved so much that it was hard to give our loyalty to any specific team.
Or maybe (most likely) it's because overall we're a pretty nerdy family, and even though we all tried sports at one time or another, it just wasn't for us.
Yes, my eyes started to glaze over a time or two during reading this book - there are lots of names and stats that I don't care about. But the other part of the book is the connection between O'Nan and King, the way their friendship developed over this season, the anecdotes about their families and their own writing... those are things I held on for, gimme more gimme more.
So, okay, as a sports book I can't say whether or not it's any good. I have a feeling they weren't able to capture the moment the Red Sox won the World Series, and in fact that bit seemed a bit breezy. But as a work of non-fiction about being faithful to a sports team and what it means to be faithful? That was pretty good.
And, really. I truly adore O'Nan and King. I'm glad they're friends. I think they're good for each other. And, hell, if they'd have me, I would totally go to a Red Sox game with them.
March 29, 2018
I enjoyed this book the first time I read it but now I think that was because I was still on a high from the Red Sox actually winning the World Series. Now, almost 14 years later, it is....not good. This clearly was the idea of Stewart O'Nan, who convinced the more successful Stephen King (who is always supportive of young writers) to do this, and O'Nan is the most annoying type of baseball fan. The kind of adult who comes to a ballpark with a fishing net so he can catch batting practice balls and begs players to toss him fouls so he can go home with a bagful instead of giving them to kids. The kind of guy who waits at the players' entrance for autographs and talks to the players like they're buddies. The kind of guy who craps on players for one bad stretch or immediately dumps on a manager because clearly he knows better. (His constant crapping on Terry Francona is pretty hilarious considering how Francona turned out to be one of the greatest managers of his time.)
I lived through this season as a fan (a lifelong one, unlike O'Nan) and I remember it as a fun season. The players were the scrappy "idiots," taking on the personality of the goofy Kevin Millar. They were GOOD, and while I don't think any Red Sox fan at that point expected them to win the World Series, they were fun to watch and pretty damn successful, too. O'Nan apparently watched a different season. If you just read his comments on the games, they apparently suck. The players suck. The front office sucks. Francona sucks. Except they had the second best record in the American League. Ugh, fans like this drive me crazy.
Of course, it wasn't all bad. Stephen King's portions are delightful and relatable. Sharing stories about taking his elderly mother-in-law to a playoff game because she thinks if they don't win this year, she'll die before they ever do; quotes from his grandson about whether this is real life; celebrating with other random fans; his strong affection for Tim Wakefield regardless of how he pitched the night before - this is the stuff I remember and enjoyed. Everyone had an older relative (dead or alive) who had never seen the team win before that they immediately thought of when the Sox won. I was in college and remember everyone just rushing out of their rooms to hug and celebrate, whether you knew each other or not. As you get into the playoffs in the book, the difference between King's and O'Nan's approaches to fandom are even more drastically obvious. I wish this was just a Stephen King vehicle, but since it's not... I think this is the last time I use it to get myself excited for a new baseball season.
I lived through this season as a fan (a lifelong one, unlike O'Nan) and I remember it as a fun season. The players were the scrappy "idiots," taking on the personality of the goofy Kevin Millar. They were GOOD, and while I don't think any Red Sox fan at that point expected them to win the World Series, they were fun to watch and pretty damn successful, too. O'Nan apparently watched a different season. If you just read his comments on the games, they apparently suck. The players suck. The front office sucks. Francona sucks. Except they had the second best record in the American League. Ugh, fans like this drive me crazy.
Of course, it wasn't all bad. Stephen King's portions are delightful and relatable. Sharing stories about taking his elderly mother-in-law to a playoff game because she thinks if they don't win this year, she'll die before they ever do; quotes from his grandson about whether this is real life; celebrating with other random fans; his strong affection for Tim Wakefield regardless of how he pitched the night before - this is the stuff I remember and enjoyed. Everyone had an older relative (dead or alive) who had never seen the team win before that they immediately thought of when the Sox won. I was in college and remember everyone just rushing out of their rooms to hug and celebrate, whether you knew each other or not. As you get into the playoffs in the book, the difference between King's and O'Nan's approaches to fandom are even more drastically obvious. I wish this was just a Stephen King vehicle, but since it's not... I think this is the last time I use it to get myself excited for a new baseball season.
October 10, 2013
This is the ninth book in my 2013 TBR Pile Challenge, and the only nonfiction. I'd been meaning to read it since it came out in 2005, but I just hadn't been able to make room on my reading list until I signed up for the challenge.
Faithful is written as a series of email exchanges, diary entries, and just plain narratives of the 2004 baseball season, following the Boston Red Sox. Stephen King grew up a fan, but Stewart O'Nan came to it later in life, though he's no less avid for being a Red Sox Nation transplant. He wasn't born a Sox fan, but he got here as quick as he could.
Their sections are easy to tell apart, even without the font changes. Stewart has his superstitions, and an entire family rallying around his project, while Stephen's family is mostly grown up and his wife is spoken of little, except as a tolerant bystander. Stewart likes to relate the play-by-plays, while Stephen's passages are, more often, general musings on baseball fandom, the team itself, and his own agony as a lifelong Sox fan.
I rarely follow baseball minutiae, so a lot of the jargon went over my head. The nicknames for players, the slang or abbreviations for plays, and the references to past rivalries were all lost on me. These details certainly filled the pages and ramped up tension for a baseball season whose ending I already knew, but they weren't illuminating in the least. Had I been less of a Red Sox fan, I would've given up on this book.
I like to think I picked up a couple of things, though, and that what I picked up made me a better fan.
After all the painstaking detail and speculation of the earlier sections, the final parts about the pennant win against the hated Yankees, and then their World Series victory, seemed almost cursory. I didn't feel the excitement of the earlier chapters, and the tension seemed to have been used up. I remember I was ecstatic at the Game 4 pennant win, and my elation only grew with each subsequent victory. I felt little of that from either writer, which was disappointing. Surely they could've captured some excitement, instead of focusing most of their narrative on the tragedies at the Boston celebrations.
If you're a Boston Red Sox fan, and you understand baseball jargon, I think you'd love this book. Because I only fit one of the two criteria, I found it acceptably entertaining, if a bit dry in places.
If I ever decide to reread this, I'll make sure I read Baseball for Dummies or the equivalent, first.
Faithful is written as a series of email exchanges, diary entries, and just plain narratives of the 2004 baseball season, following the Boston Red Sox. Stephen King grew up a fan, but Stewart O'Nan came to it later in life, though he's no less avid for being a Red Sox Nation transplant. He wasn't born a Sox fan, but he got here as quick as he could.
Their sections are easy to tell apart, even without the font changes. Stewart has his superstitions, and an entire family rallying around his project, while Stephen's family is mostly grown up and his wife is spoken of little, except as a tolerant bystander. Stewart likes to relate the play-by-plays, while Stephen's passages are, more often, general musings on baseball fandom, the team itself, and his own agony as a lifelong Sox fan.
I rarely follow baseball minutiae, so a lot of the jargon went over my head. The nicknames for players, the slang or abbreviations for plays, and the references to past rivalries were all lost on me. These details certainly filled the pages and ramped up tension for a baseball season whose ending I already knew, but they weren't illuminating in the least. Had I been less of a Red Sox fan, I would've given up on this book.
I like to think I picked up a couple of things, though, and that what I picked up made me a better fan.
After all the painstaking detail and speculation of the earlier sections, the final parts about the pennant win against the hated Yankees, and then their World Series victory, seemed almost cursory. I didn't feel the excitement of the earlier chapters, and the tension seemed to have been used up. I remember I was ecstatic at the Game 4 pennant win, and my elation only grew with each subsequent victory. I felt little of that from either writer, which was disappointing. Surely they could've captured some excitement, instead of focusing most of their narrative on the tragedies at the Boston celebrations.
If you're a Boston Red Sox fan, and you understand baseball jargon, I think you'd love this book. Because I only fit one of the two criteria, I found it acceptably entertaining, if a bit dry in places.
If I ever decide to reread this, I'll make sure I read Baseball for Dummies or the equivalent, first.
November 16, 2007
It's a great cover.
To make things simple in conversation, I have often fallen back on telling people I am not a sports fan. So it was a suprise for a few friends of mine when I was going ca-razy during the post-season Red Sox games this year. The way I see it, being a fan of the Red Sox, or of baseball really, doesn't necessarily mean you're a fan of sports; you could just be a fan of history. Baseball, to me, is all about history. And, while I couldn't care less about any other sports team on the planet (except for Italy's national soccer/football/calcio... team, but that's another review), I love the Red Sox. I grew up watching them. Then I let college and grad school stop me. And that's really why I read this book.
So, yes, about the book. There were some moments I really loved, and they usually came from my fellow Mainer Stephen King. Those moments were the ones when he broke away from the play-by-play recounting of each game and shared with the reader what it means to be a Red Sox fan. An example because I am procrastinating and it's worth it:
"There is a very real streak of dour pessimism in the New England character, and it runs right down into the bedrock. We buy new cars expecting them to be lemons. We put in new heating systems and suspect them not just to go tits-up but to do it stealthily, thereby suffocating the kiddies in their beds (but leaving us, their parents, to grieve and blame ourselves for at least fifty years). We understand we're never going to win the lottery, we know we'll get that unpassable and exquisitely painful gallstone on a hunting or snowmobiling trip far from medical help, and that Robert Frost was fucking-A right when he said that good fences make good neighbors. We expect the snow to turn into freezing rain, rich relatives to die leaving us nothing, and the kids (assuming they escape the Black Furnace Death) to get refused by the college of their choice. And we expect the Red Sox to lose. It's the curse, all right, but it has nothing to do with the Bambino; it's the curse of living here, in New England, just up that Christing potholed I-84 deathroad from the goddamn New York Yankees." (page 199, if you're interested.)
Every game from the entire season is in here, and for me that got pretty tedious and took away from my enjoyment. But this book is the ultimate book about baseball, its history, and its fans. It's worth a read even if you hate the Sox but love the game.
To make things simple in conversation, I have often fallen back on telling people I am not a sports fan. So it was a suprise for a few friends of mine when I was going ca-razy during the post-season Red Sox games this year. The way I see it, being a fan of the Red Sox, or of baseball really, doesn't necessarily mean you're a fan of sports; you could just be a fan of history. Baseball, to me, is all about history. And, while I couldn't care less about any other sports team on the planet (except for Italy's national soccer/football/calcio... team, but that's another review), I love the Red Sox. I grew up watching them. Then I let college and grad school stop me. And that's really why I read this book.
So, yes, about the book. There were some moments I really loved, and they usually came from my fellow Mainer Stephen King. Those moments were the ones when he broke away from the play-by-play recounting of each game and shared with the reader what it means to be a Red Sox fan. An example because I am procrastinating and it's worth it:
"There is a very real streak of dour pessimism in the New England character, and it runs right down into the bedrock. We buy new cars expecting them to be lemons. We put in new heating systems and suspect them not just to go tits-up but to do it stealthily, thereby suffocating the kiddies in their beds (but leaving us, their parents, to grieve and blame ourselves for at least fifty years). We understand we're never going to win the lottery, we know we'll get that unpassable and exquisitely painful gallstone on a hunting or snowmobiling trip far from medical help, and that Robert Frost was fucking-A right when he said that good fences make good neighbors. We expect the snow to turn into freezing rain, rich relatives to die leaving us nothing, and the kids (assuming they escape the Black Furnace Death) to get refused by the college of their choice. And we expect the Red Sox to lose. It's the curse, all right, but it has nothing to do with the Bambino; it's the curse of living here, in New England, just up that Christing potholed I-84 deathroad from the goddamn New York Yankees." (page 199, if you're interested.)
Every game from the entire season is in here, and for me that got pretty tedious and took away from my enjoyment. But this book is the ultimate book about baseball, its history, and its fans. It's worth a read even if you hate the Sox but love the game.
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