A Book for Dad

That last post about candy was mostly a silly joke. But this is different.

I know, dad, we trade book suggestions on occasion, and I know I try to diligently look up information on the suggestions you make, and then act on them as I see fit. Gould's Book of Fish? Yeah, that was the best book I read in all of 2012.

But here I have a suggestion I wouldn't have found on my own. Uncle Dan got the following book for me for my just-occurred birthday:

As They See 'Em by Bruce Webber is a briskly paced book with article-like prose about Webber's own trip to attend baseball umpire school; interviewing umpires; and even umpiring some games. You get an extraordinarily close look at the game, at the intricacies of the art of umping, and at one of the last professions--or activities even--where regularly dealing with hate-speech is just part of the daily routine.

I gained a profound new insight into the game and how difficult the art or science of being a major league ump is, not to mention how horrible the life in the minors turns out to be.

Also in my book collection is another book by this same Bruce Webber:

Webber is a sports writer for the New York Times, which explains the journalistic prose of the book. If you'd like to read an intricate look at baseball from a different angle that reads like a Times article, definitely check it out.