Adnan Virk

On New Year's Eve 1972, following eighteen magnificent seasons in the major leagues, Roberto Clemente died a hero's death, killed in a plane crash as he attempted to deliver food and medical supplies to Nicaragua after a devastating earthquake. David Maraniss now brings the great baseball player brilliantly back to life in Clemente: The Passion and Grace of Baseball's Last Hero, a book destined to become a modern classic. Much like his acclaimed biography of Vince Lombardi, When Pride Still Mattered, Maraniss uses his narrative sweep and meticulous detail to capture the myth and a real man. Anyone who saw Clemente, as he played with a beautiful fury, will never forget him. He was a work of art in a game too often defined by statistics. During his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates, he won four batting titles and led his team to championships in 1960 and 1971, getting a hit in all fourteen World Series games in which he played. His career ended with three-thousand hits, the magical three-thousandth coming in his final at-bat, and he and the immortal Lou Gehrig are the only players to have the five-year waiting period waived so they could be enshrined in the Hall of Fame immediately after their deaths. There is delightful baseball here, including thrilling accounts of the two World Series victories of Clemente's underdog Pittsburgh Pirates, but this is far more than just another baseball book. Roberto Clemente was that rare athlete who rose above sports to become a symbol of larger themes. Born near the canebrakes of rural Carolina, Puerto Rico, on August 18, 1934, at a time when there were no blacks or Puerto Ricans playing organized ball in the United States, Clemente went on to become the greatest Latino player in the major leagues. He was, in a sense, the Jackie Robinson of the Spanish-speaking world, a ballplayer of determination, grace, and dignity who paved the way and set the highest standard for waves of Latino players who followed in later generations and who now dominate the game. The Clemente that Maraniss evokes was an idiosyncratic character who, unlike so many modern athletes, insisted that his responsibilities extended beyond the playing field. In his final years, his motto was that if you have a chance to help others and fail to do so, you are wasting your time on this earth. Here, in the final chapters, after capturing Clemente's life and times, Maraniss retraces his final days, from the earthquake to the accident, using newly uncovered documents to reveal the corruption and negligence that led the unwitting hero on a mission of mercy toward his untimely death as an uninspected, overloaded plane plunged into the sea.

Discover the cultural revolution that transformed Hollywood forever in this compelling non-fiction read. Follow the epic human drama behind the making of the five movies nominated for Best Picture in 1967, including Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, The Graduate, In the Heat of the Night, Doctor Doolittle, and Bonnie and Clyde. Author Mark Harris delves deep into the backgrounds and themes of these influential movies, revealing a captivating behind-the-scenes look at the people and events that shaped modern cinema.

Learn the mental ABCs of pitching from a seasoned instructor and counselor of Major League Baseball teams. H.A. Dorfman presents an A-to-Z handbook that offers insights and instructions on how to pitch with peak performance at all levels of the game. Whether you're a pitcher looking for an edge or a hitter wanting to understand the mental game on the mound, this book is perfect for you. Featuring a new foreword by Rick Wolff!

A stunning monograph takes readers behind the scenes of [TITLE], the cinematic masterpiece by Martin Scorsese. Starring Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Joe Pesci, the film chronicles one of the greatest unsolved mysteries in American history, the disappearance of legendary union boss Jimmy Hoffa, and offers a monumental journey through the hidden corridors of organized crime. Featuring special on-set photography, interviews with the cast and creative team, and a text by author and film critic Tom Shone, this book is an intimate and cutting meditation on loyalty, betrayal, and regret by one of our greatest living directors.

Discover the fascinating history of baseball pitching in K: A History of Baseball in Ten Pitches by an acclaimed New York Times baseball columnist. Learn about the evolution of ten major pitches, from the fastball to the knuckleball, and the innovative minds behind them. Experience the passion for the game infused on every page and gain priceless insights from legendary pitchers, including Bob Gibson, Nolan Ryan, and Clayton Kershaw. K will be a classic in the genre, joining the ranks of The Glory of Their Times and Moneyball.

«Tengo el síndrome de Tourette.» Las palabras salen atropellándose, incontrolables, y las manos no pueden evitar tocar impulsiva y compulsivamente todo lo que tengan cerca. Es el sino de Lionel Essrog, criado en un orfanato y que, junto con sus tres amigos de la infancia, trabaja para un mafiosillo local, Frank Minna, en una agencia ilegal de detectives. El asesinato de Frank le obligará a sumergirse en la trama, compleja y llena de sombras, de relaciones, amenazas y favores que conforman el Brooklyn que él creía conocer tan bien y donde nadie es lo que parece. Huérfanos de Brooklyn supera con creces lo que podríamos considerar una novela negra, subvierte el género y le confiere nuevos matices hasta lograr un texto sumamente original.

Explore the iconic films of 1999 and their impact on American culture with this celebration and analysis from a modern movie expert. From Fight Club to The Matrix, these daring filmmakers pushed cinema to new limits and took audiences on a ride through topics like sex, violence, and the end of the world. With over 130 exclusive interviews, this book not only examines how the movies were made, but how they re-made our vision of the world in the lead up to the Millennium. An absolute must-read for movie-lovers and pop-culture nuts alike.

Un acontecimiento fortuito es el nexo que une las vidas de cinco personas. Henry Skrimshander, un talentoso jugador de béisbol, llega a una pequeña universidad con una misión: rescatar al equipo de otra desastrosa temporada. La buena estrella del joven deslumbra a los entendidos y lleva al equipo a los mejores resultados de su historia. Sin embargo, un lanzamiento fallido,tendrá consecuencias devastadoras para él y quienes lo rodean. Extrañas simetrías, giros inesperados de la fortuna y pruebas del delicado equilibrio entre la voluntad individual y el azar sirven a Chad Harbach para pintar un adictivo retrato de la América contemporánea, trazado con un conmovedor realismo psicológico. Harbach tiene el don de escribir con emoción sin caer en el sentimentalismo, y de crear con humor personajes que conquistan la mente y el corazón del lector. Elogiada con igual ardor por Jonathan Franzen y John Irving, por The New Yorker y la revista de Oprah Winfrey, la novela fue incluida por el New York Times entre las diez mejores obras de ficción de 2011. Desde entonces, mientras su libro se mantiene en las listas de los más vendidos y se publica en más de quince idiomas, el prestigio de este joven autor no ha hecho más que aumentar.

Una novela magistral en la mejor tradición de los maestros del suspense Patricia Highsmith y Alfred Hitchcock. Matar es fácil, cualquiera puede hacerlo. Pasa constantemente, en un arrebato de furia la mujer mata al marido o viceversa. Pero matar sin que te pillen, eso es lo realmente difícil. Por suerte, Lily cree haber encontrado la solución. Sin cuerpo no hay asesinato. Sin cuerpo, un muerto se convierte en un desaparecido. No es que Lily encuentre placer en ello, aunque tampoco siente remordimientos; hay personas en el mundo que merecen morir y hay asesinos que merecen salirse con la suya. Así de simple, piensa en la gente que muere en un huracán, sólo que el huracán que encontrarán Ted, el marido, Miranda, la mujer, y Brad, el amante, se llama Lily. ¿Crees que puedes entender a un asesino? Cuidado, Lily puede acabar convenciéndote.