Hoosier Hysteria Road Book : A Guide to the Byways of Indiana High School Basketball [Paperback]

Dale Lawrence (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2001

Here, for the first time, curious onlookers and fans of Indiana high school hoops have a book which guides them to and through the Hoosier Hysteria experience. Drawing on years of research and roadtrip miles, author Dale Lawrence visited nearly 400 high school gymnasiums and attended games at over 100 sites to bring you this one-of-a-kind guide to rivalries, school nicknames, little-known traditions, directions to both gyms and traditional pre-and-post game eateries, and more.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Dale Lawrence was born in Valparaiso, Indiana, on January 1, 1956 and grew up loving basketball -- at all levels -- as any true Hoosier would. He graduated from Indiana University in 1978 with a major in Comparative Literature with an emphasis in Film Studies.

Lawrence turned his passion for basketball Indiana-style into something "constructive" when he set out to write this, his first book. In writing the Hoosier Hysteria Road Book, Lawrence visited every high school gym where basketball is played, nearly 400 in all. He also attended games at over 100 sites across the state.

In addition to writing, Lawrence is a musician in a band called The Vulgar Boatmen, which to date has enjoyed three album-length releases.

Lawrence now resides in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Product Details

• Paperback: 369 pages
• Publisher: Taylor Trade Publishing (February 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1888698276
• ISBN-13: 978-1888698275
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,724,950 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #56 in Books > Travel > United States > States > Indiana

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For lovers of basketball, Indiana, and life in general., February 22, 2001

By 

Evan Finch (Indianapolis, IN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hoosier Hysteria Road Book : A Guide to the Byways of Indiana High School Basketball (Paperback)

Indiana holds a well-earned reputation as a basketball-loving state. And not surprisingly, many a book has been penned about "Hoosier Hysteria," the state's longtime love affair with its high school cage teams.

One might assume that this 343-page title would fit neatly into that genre. Indeed, there is much here to please the diehard Indiana sports fan. Virtually every school in the state is referenced by its enrollment, its team name, the age of its gymnasium, its noted alumni, and its crosstown arch-nemeses.

Yet the Hoosier Hysteria Road Book covers far more ground -- succeeding not only as a sports publication, but as an Indiana travel guide, a history book, and a humorously incisive work of sociology.

For some years, author Dale Lawrence has been the chief singer and songwriter of the Vulgar Boatmen, a critically-acclaimed rock band. As something of a sports outsider, he brings a unique perspective to the world he explores. He also offers prose that is observant, intelligent, and often borders on the lyrical.

On the dimmed lighting and atmosphere of a recently retired gym in Zionsville: "The game was played in a smoky haze, how I've always imagined watching a prizefight used to be. It was like having a dream about a basketball game."

On the horn in Columbus North's gym: "It's in stereo: two simultaneous but separate noises emanating from opposite corners. One is a sputtering BZZZ, like a novelty hand buzzer or an alarm clock on its last legs. The other sound is a sustained TOOOT, like a cartoon tugboat whistle. You can hardly believe it hasn't been replaced ages ago, and no doubt some misguided soul will someday do just that."

On Logansport's school mascot, ostensibly Felix the Cat: "The current live mascot is a rather paunchy incarnation of the famous cartoon character, which you probably wouldn't immediately recognize as Felix (or even a cat). With its mouth permanently screwed open to one side, it most closely resembles a bear doing an imitation of Buddy Hackett."

Reasoning that no game is complete without dinner afterwards at a local restaurant, Lawrence also devotes a fair portion of his book to recommending funky local eateries across the state. In fact, he seems willing and eager to review virtually any tidbit that wanders across his path. An ancient Presbyterian church in Williamsport. School pep bands. The lyrics of school fight songs. The crowds. The gyms. The popcorn at the gyms' snack bars. Public address systems. Game announcers. Call-in radio shows heard on the way to and from particularly distant destinations. All are dutifully considered with a mix of reverence and affectionate amusement -- a tone that steers thankfully clear of condescension and irony.

Lawrence has an evident and heartfelt love of Indiana basketball, and a passion for all things unique. In a world where the individual is being overtaken by the corporate, where chain stores are homogenizing the national landscape, where distinctions between peoples and places are fast disappearing, the Hoosier Hysteria Road Book is an homage to the singular and eccentric -- an invaluable celebration of those small, oft-overlooked differences that make our lives worth living.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Love the Passion of Indiana High School Basketball..., April 26, 2005

By 

Snorri Wolfersson (INDY,IN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hoosier Hysteria Road Book : A Guide to the Byways of Indiana High School Basketball (Paperback)

I bought and loved this book a couple of years ago and it disappeared when a well meaning friend "borrowed" it for a school project. Mr. Lawrence, I've seen a million Indiana high school ball games and I grew up in the culture. I love your descriptions of the gyms and the pomp and ceremony surrounding Indiana H.S. basketball.I've seen pennies thrown at coaches and players in Loogootee, I've seen fights in the parking lot at Southport versus Tech in the 70's , I've seen future NBA players get the crud kicked out of them by future insurance agents (no embarrassing ID's,OK?), and I have seen my cousins battle my childhood friends in games that made my skin crawl with sheer emotion. I,like you, despise class basketball in Indiana .....may its' reign be short (Agh...years and counting) and boring.