Book Log 2008 #21: The Soul of Baseball: A Road Trip Through Buck O’Neil’s America by Joe Posnanski

In a way, I liked this book for the same reason I enjoyed Let Me Tell You a Story: there's a wealth of entertaining anecdotes, which in this case are all the more interesting given that they take place at a place and time that most Americans couldn't have been given their skin color. But I think the more valuable part of the book comes from seeing how Buck O'Neill took the discrimination and missed opportunities and turned them into a powerful, positive driving force for Negro Leaguers and baseball in general.

The writing flows freely and often puts O'Neill's words into poetic form, which more often than not enhances the quality of what's said. It's also clear that the author has a demonstrable love for his subject that is refreshing at a time when sports biography tends towards the sycophantic or the combative.

At some point soon I'll have to read I Was Right On Time, O'Neill's autobiography. In the meantime, I'd highly recommend this book.