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Playing Through the Whistle: Steel, Football, and an American Town
by Price, S. L. | HC | Good
US $5.28
Approximately£3.89
Condition:
“Former library book; Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ”... Read moreAbout condition
Good
A book that has been read, but is in good condition. Minimal damage to the book cover eg. scuff marks, but no holes or tears. If this is a hard cover, the dust jacket may be missing. Binding has minimal wear. The majority of pages are undamaged with some creasing or tearing, and pencil underlining of text, but this is minimal. No highlighting of text, no writing in the margins, and no missing pages. See the seller’s listing for full details and description of any imperfections.
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eBay item number:145008944039
Item specifics
- Condition
- Good
- Seller notes
- Binding
- Hardcover
- Weight
- 1 lbs
- Product Group
- Book
- IsTextBook
- No
- ISBN
- 9780802125644
About this product
Product Identifiers
Publisher
GROVE/Atlantic, Incorporated
ISBN-10
0802125646
ISBN-13
9780802125644
eBay Product ID (ePID)
219728930
Product Key Features
Book Title
Playing Through the Whistle : Steel, Football, and an American Town
Number of Pages
400 Pages
Language
English
Topic
United States / State & Local / Middle Atlantic (DC, De, Md, NJ, NY, Pa), United States / 20th Century, Popular Culture, Technical & Manufacturing Industries & Trades, Football, Industries / Manufacturing
Publication Year
2016
Illustrator
Yes
Genre
Sports & Recreation, Technology & Engineering, Social Science, Business & Economics, History
Format
Hardcover
Dimensions
Item Height
1.4 in
Item Weight
30.1 Oz
Item Length
9 in
Item Width
6 in
Additional Product Features
Intended Audience
Trade
LCCN
2018-420187
Reviews
Advance Praise for Playing Through the Whistle : " Playing Through the Whistle is a gut-wrenching portrait of a high school football team that has to embody the American dream for one small town, in large part because everything else that was supposed to do it has fallen apart. I would say this is some of the best sports writing I read this year, except that it's some of the best writing I've read this year." --David Epstein, author of The Sports Gene "Among Scott Price's many interesting and well-crafted sentences is this: 'Heavy industry and football share the same DNA.' If so, the progeny of big steel is, in fact, high school football. Even as mill life disappears, football lives remain. With deeply nuanced reporting, and a style that's both big-hearted and unsentimental, Playing Through the Whistle isn't merely the history of an American town, but American history itself." --Mark Kriegel, author of Namath and Pistol "S.L. Price is hands down the best writer about sports and the meaning of sports in America today, and this is his most ambitious and finest work yet. Playing Through the Whistle is an exhaustively reported and expertly written narrative about the rise and fall of industrial America--and football's central place in that story." --Stefan Fatsis, author of A Few Seconds of Panic and Word Freak "Year after year, some of the best books about the human condition come from sportswriters, and S.L. Price has added another illuminating work to that list. Playing Through the Whistle is about football in the legendary western Pennsylvania steel town of Aliquippa, but so much more. It is an evocative, wistful journey through decades of American struggle and achievement and loss." --David Maraniss, author of When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi "S.L. Price's Playing Through the Whistle is a big book on a tough town. It reminded me of The Wire , which is high praise." --Roy Blount Jr., author of About Three Bricks Shy of a Load and Save Room for Pie, Advance Praise for Playing Through the Whistle : "Applause to S.L. Price for the mind-blowing research and gorgeous storytelling. Playing Through the Whistle is a sprawling display of Price's signature prose: sharp, vivid, and particular. You feel the heat of the blast furnace, the turf of the Friday night gridiron. With football as his lens, Price transports you to the glory days of an iconic American steel town, and envelops you in the saga of its ultimate demise." --Jeanne Marie Laskas, New York Times best-selling author of Concussion " Playing Through the Whistle is a gut-wrenching portrait of a high school football team that has to embody the American dream for one small town, in large part because everything else that was supposed to do it has fallen apart. I would say this is some of the best sports writing I read this year, except that it's some of the best writing I've read this year." --David Epstein, author of The Sports Gene "Among Scott Price's many interesting and well-crafted sentences is this: 'Heavy industry and football share the same DNA.' If so, the progeny of big steel is, in fact, high school football. Even as mill life disappears, football lives remain. With deeply nuanced reporting, and a style that's both big-hearted and unsentimental, Playing Through the Whistle isn't merely the history of an American town, but American history itself." --Mark Kriegel, author of Namath and Pistol "S.L. Price is hands down the best writer about sports and the meaning of sports in America today, and this is his most ambitious and finest work yet. Playing Through the Whistle is an exhaustively reported and expertly written narrative about the rise and fall of industrial America--and football's central place in that story." --Stefan Fatsis, author of A Few Seconds of Panic and Word Freak "Year after year, some of the best books about the human condition come from sportswriters, and S.L. Price has added another illuminating work to that list. Playing Through the Whistle is about football in the legendary western Pennsylvania steel town of Aliquippa, but so much more. It is an evocative, wistful journey through decades of American struggle and achievement and loss." --David Maraniss, author of When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi "S.L. Price's Playing Through the Whistle is a big book on a tough town. It reminded me of The Wire , which is high praise." --Roy Blount Jr., author of About Three Bricks Shy of a Load and Save Room for Pie, Praise for Playing Through the Whistle : An Amazon Best Book of the Month (History and Nonfiction) "[A] masterwork . . . Engrossing, and heartbreaking." -- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette "Price thoroughly explores the football saga . . . but this is no mere sports story . . . An artful mix of history, economics, sociology, and athletics . . . Price's especially touching engravings of ''promise squandered,' those chewed up and spit out by Aliquippa's tough environment, contrast powerfully with the tales of football triumph . . . Price's football story is really that of America's Rust Belt in poignant miniature." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "[An] exhaustive history . . . A more thorough account of any high school athletic program in the country would be tough to find." -- Publishers Weekly "Price, a Sports Illustrated senior writer, tells the town's story all very well . . . There are . . . revealing anecdotes about individual players and the coaches . . . Good stuff for Friday Night Lights devotees." -- Booklist " Playing Through the Whistle is . . . rich history . . . In creative nonfiction journalistic style like that of Pete Hamill or Gay Talese . . . Price dramatically chronicles [Aliquippa's] rise and fall . . . Playing Through the Whistle is an omnibus modern history of the United States as played out in the football ethos of small town Aliquippa, Pa." -- Shelf Awareness "Applause to S.L. Price for the mind-blowing research and gorgeous storytelling. Playing Through the Whistle is a sprawling display of Price's signature prose: sharp, vivid, and particular. You feel the heat of the blast furnace, the turf of the Friday night gridiron. With football as his lens, Price transports you to the glory days of an iconic American steel town, and envelops you in the saga of its ultimate demise." --Jeanne Marie Laskas, New York Times bestselling author of Concussion and Professor of English at the University of Pittsburgh " Playing Through the Whistle is a gut-wrenching portrait of a high school football team that has to embody the American dream for one small town, in large part because everything else that was supposed to do it has fallen apart. I would say this is some of the best sports writing I read this year, except that it's some of the best writing I've read this year." --David Epstein, author of The Sports Gene "Among Scott Price's many interesting and well-crafted sentences is this: ''Heavy industry and football share the same DNA.' If so, the progeny of big steel is, in fact, high school football. Even as mill life disappears, football lives remain. With deeply nuanced reporting, and a style that's both big-hearted and unsentimental, Playing Through the Whistle isn't merely the history of an American town, but American history itself." --Mark Kriegel, author of Namath and Pistol "S.L. Price is hands down the best writer about sports and the meaning of sports in America today, and this is his most ambitious and finest work yet. Playing Through the Whistle is an exhaustively reported and expertly written narrative about the rise and fall of industrial America--and football's central place in that story." --Stefan Fatsis, author of A Few Seconds of Panic and Word Freak "Year after year, some of the best books about the human condition come from sportswriters, and S.L. Price has added another illuminating work to that list. Playing Through the Whistle is about football in the legendary western Pennsylvania steel town of Aliquippa, but so much more. It is an evocative, wistful journey through decades of American struggle and achievement and loss." --David Maraniss, author of When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi and Once in a Great City: A Detroit Story "S.L. Price's Playing Through the Whistle is a big book on a tough town. It reminded me of The Wire , which is high praise." --Roy Blount Jr., author of About Three Bricks Shy of a Load and Save Room for Pie, Praise for Heart of the Game : "Veteran Sports Illustrated writer S.L. Price weaves his magic. Genuine and raw, Heart of the Game is a heartfelt work of despair, triumph, and redemption." -- Boston Globe "A superb storyteller . . . S. L. Price has done a masterful job." -- Chicago Tribune "The best baseball book I have ever read . . . Dazzling . . . If you read only one baseball book this year, make it Heart of the Game." -- Philadelphia Daily News "S.L. Price has become a powerful force in giving readers a front-row seat to the spectacular. Through his unique gifts of observation and prose, the veteran journalist has painted compelling portraits of the special people, places and moments that define the games we play and watch." -- San Antonio Express-News "S.L. Price's work Heart of the Game: Life, Death, and Mercy in Minor League America is more than just another baseball book being released. It's a legacy, an heirloom that can be handed from a father no longer here to his children." --MLB.com "This is one of the baseball books that will endure as long as the game is played." --Richard Ben Cramer, author of Joe Dimaggio: The Hero's Life "The best sports book I've read in many seasons." --Robert Lipsyte, former New York Times sports columnist "The story of Mike Coolbaugh's life and death will break your heart--and you won't ever look at the game in quite the same way." --Darryl Strawberry "[A] superbly written book . . . a story that's both heartbreaking and uplifting, much like baseball itself." --Dave Barry Praise for Pitching Around Fidel : "Fascinating." -- Chicago Tribune "Unprecedented . . . Astonishing." -- Miami Herald "Price is one of the finest writers on sports anywhere." -- USA Today "Takes the wider view, poking its nose into the politics and culture of Cuba every few pages. Price has an easy, lyrical style that elevates his work beyond the usual sports fare." -- Business Week "Fascinating, sometimes hilarious, often heart-wrenching." -- Philadelphia Inquirer "Easily the most engaging book on Cuban sports--if not Cuba--published in many years." -- Baseball America "Offers a rare and provocative tour of the world's most remarkable sports culture. It's an unforgettable story of supremely gifted athletes, the utter madness of politics, and the scent of big money across the sea." --Carl Hiaasen Praise for Far Afield : "The sports reportage in this gracefully written book is strong enough to make the sometimes-dated events seem timeless . . . Price is a virtuoso at locating unconventional entries into common topics . . . The seasoned reporter behind this memoir is a master of the new journalism developed by Hunter Thompson, Gay Talese and Price's personal paragon, Pete Hamill . . . Whenever [Price] writes about sports--or about the craft of writing--he hits it over the fence." -- New York Times "A masterpiece." -- Chicago Tribune "One of the year's five best reads." -- Esquire "Price blends an unerring eye for detail and nuance with fresh, crackling prose that gives these insights a startling authenticity." -- Boston Globe, Advance Praise for Playing Through the Whistle : "Price thoroughly explores the football saga . . . but this is no mere sports story . . . An artful mix of history, economics, sociology, and athletics . . . Price's especially touching engravings of 'promise squandered,' those chewed up and spit out by Aliquippa's tough environment, contrast powerfully with the tales of football triumph . . . Price's football story is really that of America's Rust Belt in poignant miniature." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Applause to S.L. Price for the mind-blowing research and gorgeous storytelling. Playing Through the Whistle is a sprawling display of Price's signature prose: sharp, vivid, and particular. You feel the heat of the blast furnace, the turf of the Friday night gridiron. With football as his lens, Price transports you to the glory days of an iconic American steel town, and envelops you in the saga of its ultimate demise." --Jeanne Marie Laskas, New York Times bestselling author of Concussion and Professor of English at the University of Pittsburgh " Playing Through the Whistle is a gut-wrenching portrait of a high school football team that has to embody the American dream for one small town, in large part because everything else that was supposed to do it has fallen apart. I would say this is some of the best sports writing I read this year, except that it's some of the best writing I've read this year." --David Epstein, author of The Sports Gene "Among Scott Price's many interesting and well-crafted sentences is this: 'Heavy industry and football share the same DNA.' If so, the progeny of big steel is, in fact, high school football. Even as mill life disappears, football lives remain. With deeply nuanced reporting, and a style that's both big-hearted and unsentimental, Playing Through the Whistle isn't merely the history of an American town, but American history itself." --Mark Kriegel, author of Namath and Pistol "S.L. Price is hands down the best writer about sports and the meaning of sports in America today, and this is his most ambitious and finest work yet. Playing Through the Whistle is an exhaustively reported and expertly written narrative about the rise and fall of industrial America--and football's central place in that story." --Stefan Fatsis, author of A Few Seconds of Panic and Word Freak "Year after year, some of the best books about the human condition come from sportswriters, and S.L. Price has added another illuminating work to that list. Playing Through the Whistle is about football in the legendary western Pennsylvania steel town of Aliquippa, but so much more. It is an evocative, wistful journey through decades of American struggle and achievement and loss." --David Maraniss, author of When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi and Once in a Great City: A Detroit Story "S.L. Price's Playing Through the Whistle is a big book on a tough town. It reminded me of The Wire , which is high praise." --Roy Blount Jr., author of About Three Bricks Shy of a Load and Save Room for Pie, Praise for Playing Through the Whistle : "Price thoroughly explores the football saga . . . but this is no mere sports story . . . An artful mix of history, economics, sociology, and athletics . . . Price's especially touching engravings of ''promise squandered,' those chewed up and spit out by Aliquippa's tough environment, contrast powerfully with the tales of football triumph . . . Price's football story is really that of America's Rust Belt in poignant miniature." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "[An] exhaustive history . . . A more thorough account of any high school athletic program in the country would be tough to find." -- Publishers Weekly "Price, a Sports Illustrated senior writer, tells the town's story all very well . . . There are . . . revealing anecdotes about individual players and the coaches . . . Good stuff for Friday Night Lights devotees." -- Booklist " Playing Through the Whistle is . . . rich history . . . In creative nonfiction journalistic style like that of Pete Hamill or Gay Talese . . . Price dramatically chronicles [Aliquippa's] rise and fall . . . Playing Through the Whistle is an omnibus modern history of the United States as played out in the football ethos of small town Aliquippa, Pa." -- Shelf Awareness "Applause to S.L. Price for the mind-blowing research and gorgeous storytelling. Playing Through the Whistle is a sprawling display of Price's signature prose: sharp, vivid, and particular. You feel the heat of the blast furnace, the turf of the Friday night gridiron. With football as his lens, Price transports you to the glory days of an iconic American steel town, and envelops you in the saga of its ultimate demise." --Jeanne Marie Laskas, New York Times bestselling author of Concussion and Professor of English at the University of Pittsburgh " Playing Through the Whistle is a gut-wrenching portrait of a high school football team that has to embody the American dream for one small town, in large part because everything else that was supposed to do it has fallen apart. I would say this is some of the best sports writing I read this year, except that it's some of the best writing I've read this year." --David Epstein, author of The Sports Gene "Among Scott Price's many interesting and well-crafted sentences is this: ''Heavy industry and football share the same DNA.' If so, the progeny of big steel is, in fact, high school football. Even as mill life disappears, football lives remain. With deeply nuanced reporting, and a style that's both big-hearted and unsentimental, Playing Through the Whistle isn't merely the history of an American town, but American history itself." --Mark Kriegel, author of Namath and Pistol "S.L. Price is hands down the best writer about sports and the meaning of sports in America today, and this is his most ambitious and finest work yet. Playing Through the Whistle is an exhaustively reported and expertly written narrative about the rise and fall of industrial America--and football's central place in that story." --Stefan Fatsis, author of A Few Seconds of Panic and Word Freak "Year after year, some of the best books about the human condition come from sportswriters, and S.L. Price has added another illuminating work to that list. Playing Through the Whistle is about football in the legendary western Pennsylvania steel town of Aliquippa, but so much more. It is an evocative, wistful journey through decades of American struggle and achievement and loss." --David Maraniss, author of When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi and Once in a Great City: A Detroit Story "S.L. Price's Playing Through the Whistle is a big book on a tough town. It reminded me of The Wire , which is high praise." --Roy Blount Jr., author of About Three Bricks Shy of a Load and Save Room for Pie, Advance Praise for Playing Through the Whistle : "Applause to S.L. Price for the mind-blowing research and gorgeous storytelling. Playing Through the Whistle is a sprawling display of Price's signature prose: sharp, vivid, and particular. You feel the heat of the blast furnace, the turf of the Friday night gridiron. With football as his lens, Price transports you to the glory days of an iconic American steel town, and envelops you in the saga of its ultimate demise." --Jeanne Marie Laskas, New York Times bestselling author of Concussion and Professor of English at the University of Pittsburgh " Playing Through the Whistle is a gut-wrenching portrait of a high school football team that has to embody the American dream for one small town, in large part because everything else that was supposed to do it has fallen apart. I would say this is some of the best sports writing I read this year, except that it's some of the best writing I've read this year." --David Epstein, author of The Sports Gene "Among Scott Price's many interesting and well-crafted sentences is this: 'Heavy industry and football share the same DNA.' If so, the progeny of big steel is, in fact, high school football. Even as mill life disappears, football lives remain. With deeply nuanced reporting, and a style that's both big-hearted and unsentimental, Playing Through the Whistle isn't merely the history of an American town, but American history itself." --Mark Kriegel, author of Namath and Pistol "S.L. Price is hands down the best writer about sports and the meaning of sports in America today, and this is his most ambitious and finest work yet. Playing Through the Whistle is an exhaustively reported and expertly written narrative about the rise and fall of industrial America--and football's central place in that story." --Stefan Fatsis, author of A Few Seconds of Panic and Word Freak "Year after year, some of the best books about the human condition come from sportswriters, and S.L. Price has added another illuminating work to that list. Playing Through the Whistle is about football in the legendary western Pennsylvania steel town of Aliquippa, but so much more. It is an evocative, wistful journey through decades of American struggle and achievement and loss." --David Maraniss, author of When Pride Still Mattered: A Life of Vince Lombardi and Once in a Great City: A Detroit Story "S.L. Price's Playing Through the Whistle is a big book on a tough town. It reminded me of The Wire , which is high praise." --Roy Blount Jr., author of About Three Bricks Shy of a Load and Save Room for Pie
Dewey Edition
23
Dewey Decimal
796.33262
Synopsis
In the early twentieth century, down the Ohio River from Pittsburgh, the Jones & Laughlin Steel Company built one of the largest mills in the world and a town to go with it. Aliquippa was a beacon and a melting pot, pulling in thousands of families from Europe and the Jim Crow south. The J&L mill, though dirty and dangerous, offered a chance at a better life. It produced the steel that built American cities and won World War II and even became something of a workers' paradise. But then, in the 1980's, the steel industry cratered. The mill closed. Crime rose and crack hit big. But another industry grew in Aliquippa. The town didn't just make steel; it made elite football players, from Mike Ditka to Ty Law to Darrelle Revis. Pro football was born in Western Pennsylvania, and few places churned out talent like Aliquippa. Despite its troubles--maybe even because of them--Aliquippa became legendary for producing football greatness. A masterpiece of narrative journalism, Playing Through the Whistle tells the remarkable story of Aliquippa and through it, the larger history of American industry, sports, and life. Like football, it will make you marvel, wince, cry, and cheer.
LC Classification Number
GV959.53.A485P75
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- c***m (404)- Feedback left by buyer.Past 6 monthsVerified purchaseWOW!; I cannot believe this 3 Days to Hawaii! ; AAA+++; Excellent Service; Great Pricing; Fast Delivery-Faster Than Expected to Hawaii!; Shipped 05/05, Mon, Received 05/08, Thu to Hawaii using free shipping; USPS Ground Mail, Book in Excellent Condition--Better Than Described ; TLC Packaging; Excellent Seller Communication, Sends updates . Highly Recommended!, Thank you very much!
- e***r (2705)- Feedback left by buyer.Past 6 monthsVerified purchaseThank you so much for offering this art book. Your price was fabulous on it. I had no communication, but you are no doubt a kind person. You are also a professional person, and your attention to detail really helped me in making my purchase decision. I'm adding you to my favorite seller list, and I always do shop with this list first. And also, I'd like to thank you for the lovely packaging, and the extremely fast shipping. The book was exactly as you described it. Happy New Year, if I can say.Sonia Boyce: Feeling Her Way by Ridgway, Emma; Martin, Courtney J. (#197040368082)
- t***1 (63)- Feedback left by buyer.Past monthVerified purchaseI had a problem after placing my order. I contacted the seller who responded within an hour and resolved the issue with no hassle. This book was a fair price and received today. I failed to notice, but the description did indicate it was missing the dust jacket. I highly recommend this seller.
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- 17 Jul, 2019
Terrific book - very interesting & informative
Verified purchase: YesCondition: NewSold by: ebooksweb123
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- c***m (404)- Feedback left by buyer.Past 6 monthsVerified purchaseWOW!; I cannot believe this 3 Days to Hawaii! ; AAA+++; Excellent Service; Great Pricing; Fast Delivery-Faster Than Expected to Hawaii!; Shipped 05/05, Mon, Received 05/08, Thu to Hawaii using free shipping; USPS Ground Mail, Book in Excellent Condition--Better Than Described ; TLC Packaging; Excellent Seller Communication, Sends updates . Highly Recommended!, Thank you very much!
- e***r (2705)- Feedback left by buyer.Past 6 monthsVerified purchaseThank you so much for offering this art book. Your price was fabulous on it. I had no communication, but you are no doubt a kind person. You are also a professional person, and your attention to detail really helped me in making my purchase decision. I'm adding you to my favorite seller list, and I always do shop with this list first. And also, I'd like to thank you for the lovely packaging, and the extremely fast shipping. The book was exactly as you described it. Happy New Year, if I can say.Sonia Boyce: Feeling Her Way by Ridgway, Emma; Martin, Courtney J. (#197040368082)
- t***1 (63)- Feedback left by buyer.Past monthVerified purchaseI had a problem after placing my order. I contacted the seller who responded within an hour and resolved the issue with no hassle. This book was a fair price and received today. I failed to notice, but the description did indicate it was missing the dust jacket. I highly recommend this seller.