Super Bowl, super reads

It is a little known and generally useless factoid that in the world

of publishing, baseball books and books about golf far surpass the

number of books published about any other sport. Even so, next Sunday

is one of the biggest days in American sports -- THE SUPER BOWL. So

just to get you fired up and set to scream your lungs out for the

Patriots or the Eagles, let us suggest some really good books about

football.

Award-winning sportswriter Michael Freeman’s book “Bloody Sundays:

Inside the Dazzling, Rough-and-Tumble World of the NFL,” is

structured much like George Will’s classic baseball book, “Men at

Work: The Craft of Baseball.” Freeman divides his look at pro

football into sections -- coaches, players, executives, referees,

etc. It’s a book packed with history, anecdotes, controversy and

insight.

“America’s Game: The Epic Story of How Pro Football Captured a

Nation,” by Michael MacCambridge, details how professional football

went from a third-class sport to a mass entertainment giant in about

60 years. The author takes you from the pre-World War II era’s

loosely affiliated regional organizations up to the infamous

half-time show at the last Super Bowl; so, even as a history, it is

up-to-date and insightful.

Two books are particular favorites. “The Football Game I’ll Never

Forget: 100 NFL Stars’ Stories,” compiled by Chris McDonell, and

“Sunday’s Heroes: NFL Legends Talk about the Times of their Lives,”

compiled by Richard Whittingham, are fascinating chronicles of

anecdotes, vignettes, recollections and humorous stories by some of

the greatest players and coaches of all times. Beautifully

illustrated, both books record the memories of the likes of Dick

Butkus, Johnny Unitas, John Elway, Don Shula, Ray Nitschke, Bill

Parcells and Ed “Too Tall” Jones.

Want to prep for the game by boning up on strategies, techniques,

trends and mind games used by the pros? Phil Simms, the former

quarterback and current CBS analyst, has written a book, “Sunday

Morning Quarterback: Going Deep on the Strategies, Myths and Mayhem

of Football.” Simms’ conversational tone makes it easy to learn what

the “West Coast offense” is, or what makes a coach a “player’s

coach,” or what those TV football cliches really mean -- even for the

football beginner.

And if you want to read something more relative to next Sunday’s

big bash, there is “Won for All: The Inside Story of the New England

Patriots’ Improbable Run to The Super Bowl,” by former Patriots’

linebacker Pepper Johnson, and “Broken Wing, Broken Promise: A Season

Inside the Philadelphia Eagles,” by Phil Anastasia to get you all

caught up on individual team histories. But if you just want to get

revved up for the biggest football game of the season and you want

your history in easy doses, there’s always the “Greatest Moments in

Super Bowl History” DVD, which is so much more than a highlight reel.

It contains interviews, statistics, trivia and the “all-time Super

Bowl team.”

So, root for New England or cheer for Philadelphia. Bet the next

drink on Tom Brady or Donovan McNabb. And jeer or applaud the

half-time show. Have fun next Sunday, when all the hype will be over

and the game actually begins!

* CHECK IT OUT is written by the staff of the Newport Beach Public

Library. This week’s column is by Sara Barnicle. All titles may be

reserved from home or office computers by accessing the catalog at

https://www.newportbeach library.org. For more information on the

Central Library or any of the branch locations, please contact the

Newport Beach Public Library at (949) 717-3800, option 2.