Boston: America's Best Sports Town

Good overview of each team

We love our sports in New England. Sean McAdam has written a great book for quick histories of the Boston Pro teams and sports in Boston. We have been blessed with some of the all time greats in their sports. Just to mention a few:Bruins - Bobby Orr; Celtics - Bill Russell; Patriots - Tom Brady; Red Sox - Ted Williams.A must for all Boston sports fans everywhere.

If you're a true and hard Red Sox fan, and you don’t have this book, you need to get it to add to your collection.

Not only a great crash-course in Boston sports, past and present, but also a perfect gift for die-hard fans of all ages. With the intro from Red Sox legend Pedro Martinez, great photos, and the passionate (and expert) writing from Sean McAdam, it's a must-have for anyone who roots for the Sox, Celtics, Pats, Bruins, and even the Revolution.

Great read, Sean McAdam really captures the Boston sports scene and history very well.

McAdam is a terrific writer who has captured the essence of Boston sports.

I'll start with a few confessions which will provide a bit of background. Firstly I'm a Brit. But I'm a Brit who loves her American sports. I have seen live NBA - in the UK, live NFL - season ticket holder for the London international series and, here's the reason for wanting to read this book, live MLB in Boston at Fenway Park (I still have live NHL on my bucket list). Me and my bro have always wanted to go Stateside to see live sports and, when Papi announced his retirement, well, it had to be done the next season. So, in 2016 we went to Boston and watched them lose to the Orioles and then come from behind to walkoff against the Yankees. Papi hit us a HR and then Hanley brought it home with a 3 run homer in the bottom of the ninth. Aside from the sports element, Boston itself was magical and everything I wanted from a city holiday. If I hadn't already forged my allegiances with other teams in the other main sports (Eagles, Spurs and Penguins) I would have probably picked them all there and then (well, maybe not the Pats!). Anyway, I digress...So, this book is a must read for all sports fans whether you follow the Boston teams or not. After a great forward from the Great Pedro Martinez, there's a chapter for each of the main four teams containing the history of each team, listing the greatest and the almost as great players, the pivotal games and the influential trades. There's also a great section on rivalries too. Obviously I was most interested in the MLB Red Sox chapter, especially the 2004 ALCS when they came back from 3-0 down to beat the Yankees "Don't Let Us Win Tonight" (Four Days in October). Then the book goes on to College sports - the feeding ground for the major leagues - and then there are chapters on Olympians and Other Boston sportsmen, women and other sport related events held in the city, including a healthy section on the Boston Marathon and the bombing where Papi is directly quoted "This is our f city". GOAT both on and off the park, and I am so glad I got to see him play before he retired.Anyway, even with my interest only really lying with the Sox, I did read all the rest of the book and I learned a lot. I also got a better appreciation of some of the things around and about the sports. Things I didn't even know I didn't know but feel a lot wiser now knowing. I even, and I hate to have to admit it, but I even have a new found kind of respect for the Pats knowing where they came from and what they endured to get to where they are today. There, I've said it!My US sports history education is severely lacking having only recently started following them, so anything that adds to that, even if not about my teams, is nothing to be scorned. It's always hit and miss trying to find decent books to fill the gaps, especially ones available in the UK, but after finishing this book, I feel the Boston part of my education is complete. Of course I can't speak for its accuracy but I am sure that's been done as professionally as the overall presentation.Oh, it's also written in a very readable way. I've read some sports books that have bored me to tears with stats and the like but here, it is all nicely illustrated both with pictures and eloquent words. I am also proof that you don't have to know so much already to understand the rest as it all flows nicely along within each chapter. Although I scored me an ARC of this book to read, it'll be one that I will definitely buy a copy of when it is out.My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.