Books like Choosing Sides — picked by fans

This is one of my favorite books. Gramsci was an Italian philosopher imprisoned by Italian fascists in 1928. Although not physically imposing (he measured only five feet in height and was a hunchback); but Mussolini considered him to be the most dangerous man in Italy due to his intellect.

Gramsci's hegemony theory states that in any society, a dominant group has the power to define and shape society by establishing particular values and practices that become accepted as social norms. All other subordinate groups (of which there may be several) can accept, reject, adopt, or adapt such dictates, which can produce a continual power struggle in the production of popular culture.

I was exposed to this theory in graduate school, and it enabled me to make sense of the world around me for the first time, as I came from a working-class family seemingly mired in poverty in the capitalist… show more.

This book is the classic and foundational book in which the author designates the requisite characteristics of modern sports: secularization, equality, specialization, rationalization, and bureaucracy.

Secularization distanced sport from the association with religious rituals such as the ancient Olympic Games. Distinct rules and regulations relative to participants designated equal opportunities for success. The sport's perceived physical, social, and moral benefits provided a rational reason for their practice. Specialized events required specialized practice, furthering the advent of professionalism.

The greater profusion and practice of sport led to the creation of associations to administer and regulate the activities. Melvin Adelman, A Sporting Time: New York City and the Rise of Modern Athletics, 1820-70, later added commercialization and urbanization as a feature of modernity.

My next pick is a masterful account of astute analysis written in vibrant prose that recounts the working class version of pugilism during the Antebellum period and the Gilded Age of the nineteenth century. In the frontier communities, males issued public challenges to other individuals or, in general, appealed to any challengers to test one's masculinity.

Lacking rules, such contests allowed for brutal tactics, including eye gouging and even castration, unless or until an opponent admitted defeat. Rather than the middle and upper-class virtues of piety, sobriety, and social mobility, such altercations provided a compensatory value system that rewarded physical prowess.

With the gradual introduction of the Marquis of Queensberry rules after the Civil War, boxing gradually assumed a somewhat more genteel appearance and limited acceptance as a professional sport, producing working-class, racial, and ethnic heroes. By the end of the nineteenth century, it gained the stature of a commercialized… show more.

This next one covers the concurrent growth of cities and athletics over the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. It provides much interest to readers in search of economic, social, and political history, ethnic assimilation, and the growth of municipal areas.

Riess reaches well beyond the professional leagues to elucidate the growth of youth sport, religious endeavors, and the use of public space in city planning among the often conflicting needs of disparate groups.

Tom is the hero we need today. I love characters who know who they are and don’t care what others think of them. And I value ‘fun’ as a goal.

Tom just wants to fool around and yawns at his aunt’s disapproval. The contests between Tom and his aunt’s champion, Captain Najork, are the best descriptions of games I’ve ever read, especially when you consider that the games themselves are invented out of whole cloth and the words applied seemingly at random. 

This book is full of fun ideas for learning to play with your children at different ages, letting them lead the play. Play is a fundamental way to grow the brain at any age. So the approach is beneficial for parents as well as kids. Imagine playing as a way to solve behavior problems!

Duck and Moose are a duo that immediately grabbed my attention and won my heart! This short graphic novel is filled with hilarious moments, and I especially love the theme about imaginary play (and compromise) which young readers and their grownups will surely relate to. 

It’s raining. Pete can’t go out to “play ball with the guys.” So he’s in a bad mood. His father thinks it might cheer Pete up to be made into a pizza. He’s right, of course! Dad kneads him and twirls him up in the air. He sprinkles on cheese (actually torn-up bits of paper) and puts him in the oven (actually the sofa).

This is a celebration of the parents’ trick of distracting a grumpy child with a bit of zany humour. (Best trick in the book, as far as I’m concerned.) And what a wonderfully loving, inventive, energetic dad William Steig has created! Pete laughs “like crazy”. And the sun comes out at the end.

I love backyard games of catch, so when I heard the concept of this book I was sold!

Ethan D. Bryan, an avid baseball player and fan, set a goal to play a game of catch a day for an entire year. He met up with people across the United States for games, learning about their lives and witnessing the ways that tossing a ball around can transform a community.

I loved the heartwarming stories throughout the book and was deeply inspired to connect with people in unique ways. I’ve got to get outside and warm up my throwing arm. Ethan’s invited me to play a game of catch sometime. I want to be ready!

This book struck a visual chord and changed the way I looked at picture books. As most of my favorites were in full or limited color, Jumanji’s black and white illustrations had extreme perspective and were visually exciting.

This book inspired me to push both my illustration and text for picture books toward a less juvenile or simple presentation. The illustrations in Jumanji are a departure from the ordinary in both subject and artistic approach. It urged me to look harder at the extraordinary in the ordinary.