Reason We Play

Marc Bona is a journalist with more than 30 years’ experience in newspapers, the last eight as a features writer for cleveland.com, the digital arm of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland’s daily paper. He has roots in sports writing, having edited and covered a variety of sports. He is the author of The Game Changer (2018) and has assisted other authors on several nonfiction sports titles.

• Acknowledgments 1. Brian Boitano, Figure Skating: A California Kid Learns to Skate2. Bobby Bowden, Football: Born to Coach3. Dave Burba, Baseball: An Ohio Homecoming4. Todd Christensen, Football: Big Player, Big Words5. Frank Deford, Sports Writing: A Born Storyteller6. Tony Dungy, Football: Calm and in Control7. Mike Eruzione, Hockey: Believing in Miracles8. Gerry Faust, Football: A Dream Fulfilled9. Tony Granato, Hockey: Basement Dreams10. Tim Green, Football: A Busy Man11. Janet Guthrie, Auto Racing: Speedy Trailblazer12. Lou Holtz, Football: The Upbeat ‘Do Right’ Coach13. Tom Kurvers, Hockey: The World Traveler14. Vern Law, Baseball: The Deacon on the Mound15. Kristine Lilly, Soccer: The Caps Queen16. Kim Mulkey, Basketball: Champion Player, Champion Coach17. Ty Murray, Rodeo: The Record-Breaking Cowboy18. Victor Oladipo, Basketball: More Than a Player19. Cat Osterman, Softball: The Untouchable Tall Texan20. Lyn St. James, Auto Racing: From Student to Teacher21. Dick Schultz, Sports Executive: The Man in Charge22. Andre Thornton, Baseball: Keeping the Faith23. Mike Veeck, Baseball Executive: Director of FunNotesBibliographyAbout the Author

Bona personally corresponded with and/or interviewed each subject to gather his material. Each profile includes an illustration of the luminary, a biographical synopsis, some quoted "words of wisdom" from the subject, and a brief list of the person's favorite books. Bona does a fine job of highlighting the hard work that these people have put into achieving their ultimate accomplishments. Because the book is aimed at young adults, in the course of his narrative, Bona deftly offers textual elucidation...about people (e.g., Nelson Mandela), places (e.g., China's Forbidden City), and concepts (e.g., stigma) with which readers may not be familiar. These athlete profiles would make good introductions to the distinguished careers of people who are not now typically prominent in the news. Because some of Bona's subjects have published autobiographies, engaging with this book could encourage additional reading. Recommended. General readers.