Customer Reviews

This Copyrighted Broadcast

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
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There is a line on the cover flap that sums up this book very well --- "There is more to Hank Geenwald than baseball." Greenwald may not be nationally known enough for this to be a runaway hit which is too bad, but it definitely is the best sports autobiogprhay I've ever read. It is human and extremely funny. His encounters with George Steinbrenner when Greenwald was doing radio for the Yankees are hilarious. His obsession with Gen. MacArthur, his love of trains and Austrialia are both riveting and funny. His chapter on his daughter Kellie, a Down syndrome child, will choke you up. There ought to be more books about sports and about broadcasting as fascinating and as honest as this book is. Greenwald came out of Syracuse University, from where so many top sportscasters have come. One of them is Bob Costas who writes the foreword. The book should be required reading for anyone interest in a broadcasting career. Greenwald proves himself to be a pretty fair writer for a first-tme author. Although this is a book that deals with the San Francisco Giants and the Yankees, it is good enough to be a bestseller, in my view. You start reading and the honesty and wit of the author just sort of stuns you. I buy lots of sports books and anything about broadcasting. This one is a real surprise. I give it five stars easy.

I am a lifelong Giants fan and remember listening to Hank as a kid. His wonderful voice, and passion for the game motivated me to buy his book and I was not disappointed. The stories he told brought back so many memories of my childhood, and some wonderful insight as well. I actually knew the disclaimer word for word and could do it in his voice.

Readers will be particularly touched with the chapter on his daughter who was born with Down Syndrome.

Way to go Hank, and thanks for bringing back some wonderful memories. (Even freezing at Candlestick)

Those that remember Hank Greenwald from his days as a Warriors and Giants broadcaster will enjoy his book tremendously. You can quickly tell that he deals with the written word as well as he did with the spoken word. The first night I read the book, I stayed up until 4 a.m. reading. There are a multitude of subjects he covers, all with wit, charm and personality. He not only has in-depth writing of his early years at Syracuse University and the East, but also his family, life in Australia, study of General MacArthur, the later years in the Bay Area with both the Warriors and Giants, and some general feelings about baseball. His dry wit, so common on his broadcasts, is quite evident throughout the book and may only be matched by his son Doug, now doing baseball in California. Greenwald retired from baseball broadcasting in 1996, to the chagrin of many, and now enjoys retirement life after a long and illustrious career. For anyone who listened to Hank on KNBR radio over the years, or for those who enjoy reading about sports broadcasters in general, this book is truly outstanding reading.

I was not familiar with Hank Greenwald, but I enjoy most any book written by a baseball announcer, and Hank provides us with numerous stories from his days with the Giants and Yankees. Although I am not a fan of the NBA, I did follow the St. Louis Hawks in the 1960's and I enjoyed hearing his stories as an announcer in the NBA during this period. Yes, there are personal stories here regarding his daughter with Down Syndrome, but the family's experiences in this area is valuable for anyone in this situation. I enjoyed his experiences in the Phillipines reliving General MacArthur's returning to the island of Leyte, and the patience shown by his wife. We are treated to a visit to Australia and given information about that country/continent which some may not find to be interesting in this type of book. At the end Hank vents his frustrations about the problems in the game of baseball today. Since the book has been written, league presidents have been done away with and the umpiring situation should be improving. The owners' problem of asking the playears to save them from themselves remains to be solved. We are also treated to a poem on "The Polo Grounds", Hank's favorite ballpark and mine, even though I've never seen the park in person. I have, however, visited the site twice. It's a good book and worth reading.

As a longtime San Francisco Giants fan, I looked forward to reading Hank's book - and I was not disappointed. As the person most responsible for my love of baseball (and my love of listening to baseball on the radio), Hank Greenwald has managed to make you think you were listening to him again while reading his book. This itself is a tremendous compliment. Highly recommended for all baseball and basketball fans, the book contains great stories on the old NBA as well as Major League Baseball. Wish he would come back and broadcast the Giants' games again!

If you like sports and are a Bay Area native, you have to read this book. Hank does a comical, complete review of early days with the Warriors and of course, the Men in Black (not the Raiders). He is really funny and a down to earth serious person as well.

Having discovered that the book had been banned, I naturally wanted to read it more, wondering what he could have said to anger the team's management that he faithfully and honestly served for all those years. Turns out it wasn't THAT much of a big deal. Just a few lines here and there. But it sure makes the Giants ownership group, at least half of it, sound like sourpusses, as well as a few others.

But Hank is not the type to dwell on negatives. He is far too funny, plus he and his wife have raised 2 children, which make you able to separate the important things from the nonsense real quick.

I am happy that I got to listen to Hank all those years of my youth, but even more happy for Hank that he seems to be living life on his terms. It is the gift that Bay Area sports fans would want for somebody like him after all that he has given us.

Buy it, read it, pass it to a friend. Hank, if you're reading this, we miss you.

As somebody who grew up in the Bay Area listening to Hank, this book was a nice re-acquaintance with one of the friendliest, most genuine voices in baseball. This book has plenty of chuckles and it makes you feel like you know a little bit more about somebody who most Giant fans regard as a friend.

Admittedly biased as a blood relative of the author, but not paid to write this review, I found Hank's book a great read. His sense of humor comes through in every chapter, almost every paragraph, and certainly in the book in total. He tells it like he sees it, including why he splits time in SF and Florida, how the world's changed since he came up in the big leagues, what it's really like being in broadcasting, and some great anecdotes in sporting history. I will never think of Mother's Day in the same way having read his Golden State Warriors story, and he made me reconsider Wilt Chamberlain's greatness as a basketball player. Baseball and Giants fans will love this book for the memories he shares, and anyone who has an aspiring truck driver at home (or broadcaster for that matter)in their family (read this as children who don't want to grow up to be doctors, lawyers or internet wizards) would do well to read this as a guide to successful parenting. Don't let your kids flunk out of college, ensure that they get lots of love and support, and they have a class D (truck driver) license as a backup. Not sure if Hank has one or not, doesn't need it now!

All in all - a future Hall of Famer wrote a great book, enjoy it!

Through the prism of sports, Hank Greenwald's autobiography reveals a man of self-effacing humor and dignity whose humble beginnings as a boy in Rochester fueled his American dream of becoming a Major League broadcaster. Mr. Greenwald's adventures as a student at Syracuse University and his uncharted education, mainly Sports 101, are handled with charm and display his determination to succeed. The book is at once motivational, poignantly written,filled with insights about sports and life as well as how bravely parents cope with a child born with Down Syndrome. As a broadcaster, Mr. Greenwald handled the mike with elan and wit; in print he performs even better and becomes something he would never say of himself, a national treasure.

Thank you for sharing Hank Greenwald. I grew up listening to Hank and the Giants on KNBR, Hanks's candid comments were appreciated. I wish Hank well in whatever he does. His comments about the state of baseball were not only truthful, but from a unique point of view..not a player, not an owner...but from an announcer of 162! Hank for Commissioner and pass the Advil.