Out at the Old Ball Game: A Novel [Hardcover]

Bernie Bookbinder (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 9, 1995

Gay baseball team turns derision into respect. Funny, authentic, socially significant. --Jim Bouton

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Bookbinder's novel leads off with a nifty premise but in the long run fails to score. New York Gents' first baseman Dick (Rootie) Toote publicly comes out of the closet and inadvertently gives team manager Scrappy Schwartzenberger a chance to reverse the Gents' flagging performance. Hearing from Toote about other ballplayers of like persuasion, Scrappy decides to assemble the sport's first all-gay team. As the story continues from different characters' viewpoints, irrelevant flashbacks and frequent tangents make for a choppy narrative and incosistent tone. Bookbinder's humor ranges from forced ("It's become the national crasstime") to recycled ("Before I forget, call your mother." "What should I call her?") to stereotypic (the stadium's outfield wall is painted lavender). Because the ballplayers are never portrayed as individuals, the novel doesn't make it to first base.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

The only star of the pathetic New York Gents baseball team publicly announces his homosexuality. His manager promptly outs other prominent players-all of them outstanding-buys their contracts, and creates the first all-gay baseball team. Those who come to hate and jeer soon come to fear this disciplined team of men who, for the first time, can concentrate fully on baseball without worrying about being found out. In this first novel, former Newsday writer and editor Bookbinder pits the ethic of manliness against the ethic of excellence and winning, and in this story (if not, one suspects, in the real world) excellence triumphs. The baseball action and characters are sketchily drawn, but the plot is fast-paced and farcical, and the potshots taken at sportswriters, PR types, pollsters, and politicians ring true. Recommended for general collections.
Marylaine Block, St. Ambrose Univ. Lib., Davenport, Ia.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 278 pages
• Publisher: Bridgeworks; 1st edition (February 9, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 188259309X
• ISBN-13: 978-1882593095
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #9,580,726 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Funny, stimulating, irreverent, page-turning satire., May 26, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Out at the Old Ball Game: A Novel (Hardcover)

This humorous,irreverent satire skewers the hypocrisy of American institutions, i.e., business, media, sports, through an entertaining, fast-moving plot involving the extraordinary success of the first all-gay major league baseball team. Fine characterization and inside looks at baseball and gay lifestyles combine with a non-preachy message to make this novel must reading for anyone who cares about contemporary issues. It would also make a helluva movie!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars More than a bit contrived and overdone, August 2, 2002

By 

Bob Lind "camelwest" (Phoenix, AZ United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

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This review is from: Out At The Old Ball Game: A Novel (Paperback)

The best part of the book is its basic plot: a group of "outed" gay ML baseball players become a winning team, under the direction of a crusty, bigoted "old school" owner-manager. The normal development from that could not help but make for an entertaining and enjoyable book.

But the author goes too far ... including distracting side stories about a down-on-his-luck sports writer, religious leaders' takes on homosexuality, and a cheesey local cable TV operator who makes his daughter the team's TV commentator in order to keep her busy. I wasn't expecting (nor did I desire) any "PC" approach to gays, but the author ran with the classic stereotypes to the point where many of the non-gay characters are laughably clueless ... A lot less would have been a lot more, in my opinion.

1.0 out of 5 stars mediocre denouement, August 5, 2005

By 

Professor Rowe "Dr. Rowe" (North Colorado) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Out At The Old Ball Game: A Novel (Paperback)

While the premise of this very high-concept debut novel is indeed clever, the payoff is lacking. The baseball background lacks depth and believabilty, and the preciousness of the writing begins to wear on the reader, as one approachs the mediocre denouement.