Black History Month 2023 Titles

<strong>A compelling memoir at the intersection of baseball and American history </strong><br /><br />Cleon Jones has never forgotten where he came from. As a child, growing up in a Mobile, Alabama shotgun house with no electricity or running water, he yearned to follow the path of hometown heroes Satchel Paige and Hank Aaron, and his community uplifted him. <br /><br />Navigating the perilous norms of the Jim Crow South, Jones ascended to baseball&#39;s highest ranks, leading the 1969 New York Mets with his bat and catching the final out to clinch the &quot;miracle&quot; World Series title. But after 13 years in the major leagues, Jones returned to the place he loves, the neighborhood where it all started: Africatown. <br /><br /><em>Coming Home</em> is Jones&#39;s love letter to his roots in Alabama&#39;s most historic Black settlement, whose origins can be traced back to the last known illegal transport of slaves to the United States aboard the Clotilda. Jones candidly discusses how his Africatown neighbors helped supply him with a bat and glove when his family could not afford equipment, the opposition he faced as a Black player after leaving Alabama, his fond memories of the Miracle Mets, and his post-baseball fight to save his dying community. <br /><br /><strong>Also featuring Jones&#39;s outlook on the modern game and American society, this timely chronicle is a profound slice of history for all baseball fans.</strong>

<strong>A compelling autobiography from one of Detroit&#39;s favorite sons</strong><br /><br />At 15, Willie Horton received his first contract offer to become a professional baseball player. At 20, he smacked his first major-league home run. At 24, Horton stood in full uniform on the hood of his car, in the midst of burning homes and overturned vehicles, and pleaded for an end to the violence of the 1967 Detroit riots.<br /><br />In this new autobiography, Horton shares the fascinating story of his life and career, from growing up in Detroit&#39;s Jeffries Projects as the youngest of 21 children to winning a World Series with his hometown Tigers in 1968. Horton also candidly discusses the opposition he faced as a Black player, his fond memories of Al Kaline, the joy he felt in returning to the Tigers as a front office executive, and the many ways he still tries to give back to Detroit and his community. <br /><br /><strong>By turns heartrending and hilarious, this timely chronicle is an essential contribution to baseball&#39;s written history.</strong>

<strong>A heartfelt portrait of Hank Aaron, featuring nearly 40 years of stories plus never-before-told insights from the home run king</strong><br /><br />When journalist Terence Moore was 12 years old, he treasured his poster of Henry Aaron. Years later, Aaron would sign it for him: &quot;Best wishes to Terry.&quot; Later still, Moore would be named an honorary pall bearer at the home run king#&39;s funeral, staying up late into the night with Aaron#&39;s widow, Billye, to get the obituary just right for the program.<br /><br />Friends and family knew Aaron as quick-witted, hilarious, and fiercely opinionated beyond what was shown in public. With the encouragement of Aaron#&39;s family, Moore now shares this intimate perspective on the baseball legend, the culmination of decades of friendship and correspondence. <em>The Real Hank Aaron</em> captures the icon#&39;s contagious laugh and pointed views, from the depth of his admiration for Jackie Robinson to his true thoughts on Barry Bonds and the steroid era. <br /><br /><strong>Also featuring Aaron#&39;s views on race, politics, media, and sports fandom, this is a charming and illuminating glimpse at the man outside the spotlight.</strong>

A candid and insightful memoir from one the NBA's most unlikely stars. Growing up, Muggsy Bogues was always told he should do something else, anything besides basketball. He never acknowledged his many doubters except to prove them spectacularly wrong. Twenty years after receiving his first basketball as a toddler, he stood proud—at five-foot-three—as the starting point guard for the Charlotte Hornets in the NBA. From the East Baltimore playground courts where he earned his nickname by "muggin'" opponents for possession of the ball, to Dunbar High School where he excelled alongside future NBA players, Bogues set the tone in his early years for the great heights he'd reach professionally. In this new autobiography, Bogues delves deep into his life and career, reflecting on legendary battles with Michael Jordan, John Stockton, and other generational stars of '80s and '90s hoops. He shares far-ranging anecdotes from playoff runs in Charlotte, filming Space Jam, and even watching a young Steph Curry grow up.Conversational and clear-sighted, this is a story of uncompromising vision and fleet-footed determination during a golden era for the NBA.