Tag: Sports

Ep. 252 Begging to Go to the Library with Mina Kimes

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Award-winning ESPN reporter Mina Kimes joins the show to share her love of reading and the one book that inspired her career. Mina reveals how she ended up in sports journalism, how she handles online harassment, and what she would change if she were suddenly appointed NFL commissioner.

The Stacks Book Club selection for February is The Round House by Louise Erdrich. We will discuss the book on February 22nd with Mina Kimes.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

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Connect with Mina: Instagram | Twitter | The Mina Kimes Show featuring Lenny Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

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The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Unabridged: Triscuits and Nilla Wafers with David Dennis Jr. and Justin Tinsley

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On this Unabridged, we’re joined by journalists and writers David Dennis Jr. and Justin Tinsley for a really vibe-y hang. We talk sports and the art of sports criticism, Kyrie Irving and our Thanksgiving dinner hot takes. We also discuss our favorite fast food restaurants and the best scenes from Martin.

*This episode is exclusive to members of The Stacks Pack on patreon. To join this community, get inside access to the show, and listen now, click the link below.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find what we talked about on Amazon.

Connect with David: Instagram | Twitter Connect with Justin: Instagram | Twitter | Website
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To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 240 Hold the Powers that Be Accountable with Jemele Hill

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Renowned sports journalist Jemele Hill joins the show to discuss her powerful new book Uphill: A Memoir. We talk about how she organized and thought about telling her story, how she cultivated he sources as a journalist. Jemele also reveals how she navigates the challenging relationship between her own identity as a Black woman and the world of sports.

The Stacks Book Club selection for November is Prison by Any Other Name: The Harmful Consequences of Popular Reforms by Maya Schenwar and Victoria Law. We will discuss the book on November 30th with Mariame Kaba.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

credit: Chris Schmitt

Connect with Jemele: Instagram | Twitter
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To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 220 Spread Love It’s the Brooklyn Way with Justin Tinsley

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Today we’re joined by Justin Tinsley, senior culture writer at ESPN’s Andscape and author of the new book It Was All a Dream: Biggie and the World That Made Him. We talk about the culture, legends, women, and controversies that shaped The Notorious B.I.G.’s life, and place his story into a greater context. Justin also shares how he worked on multiple projects while writing this book, and what he thinks comes next.

The Stacks Book Club selection for June is White Negroes: When Cornrows Were in Vogue … and Other Thoughts on Cultural Appropriation by Lauren Michele Jackson. We will discuss the book on June 29th with David Dennis Jr.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find everything we talked about on Amazon.

Connect with Justin: Instagram | Twitter | Website
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To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 217 Surviving in the Face of Death with David Dennis Jr.

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This episode we hear from cultural critic David Dennis, Jr – Senior Writer at ESPN’s Andscape and author of the new book The Movement Made Us: A Father, a Son, and the Legacy of a Freedom Ride. We talk about the similarities and differences between Black Lives Matter and the Civil Rights Movement, the book that inspired David’s storytelling, and what it means to survive when you’re planning to die.

The Stacks Book Club selection for June is White Negroes: When Cornrows Were in Vogue … and Other Thoughts on Cultural Appropriation by Lauren Michele Jackson. We will discuss the book on June 29th with David Dennis Jr.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find everything we talked about on Amazon.

Connect with David: Instagram | Twitter
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To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 182 Athletes and Activism with Dave Zirin

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Today we’re joined by sportswriter, journalist, and podcaster Dave Zirin to discuss his new book The Kaepernick Effect: Taking a Knee, Changing the World. We talk about the impact of Colin Kaepernick’s NFL protest in 2016, the psyche of young activists, and the best sports protest moments of all time.

The Stacks Book Club selection for September is Blood in the Water: The Attica Prison Uprising of 1971 and Its Legacy by Heather Ann Thompson. We will discuss the book with Derecka Purnell on Wednesday September 29th.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find everything we talked about on Amazon.

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Connect with Dave: Twitter | Instagram | Website
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To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 111 Ethan Strauss//The Victory Machine

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Today our guest is Ethan Strauss, a basketball reporter for The Athletic and the author of The Victory Machine: The Making and Unmaking of the Warriors Dynasty. The book is a workplace drama about one of basketball’s greatest teams, but this episode is more than sports talk. We get into Ethan’s love of subculture narratives, being a reporter versus an author, and the “sadness of success”. This is an episode for both lovers of the game and the page.

The Stacks Book Club selection for May is The Giver by Lois Lowry, we will discuss the book with Sue Thomas on May 27th.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

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Connect with Ethan: Twitter | Instagram | The Athletic | House of Strauss Podcast
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To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of this show. If you prefer to do a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 43 Life as an Actor with Josh Segarra

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Josh Segarra is an actor of both the stage (On Your Feet) and screen (Arrow, Orange is the New Black, Sirens), and today he is our guest on The Stacks. Josh talks with us about acting, how reading fits into his life as a dad, and we go off on a tangent into sports biographies. Get ready for some good book recommendations and a lot a laughs.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

Books

Everything Else

Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of this show. If you prefer to do a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. Shopping through these links helps support the show, but does not effect opinions on books and products. For more information click here.

How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization by Franklin Foer

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IMG_6134For this week’s The Stacks Book Club episode, we discussed Franklin Foer’s book, How Soccer Explains the World. Our guest Aaron Dolores, founder of Black Arrow FC, and I look at this book and what is has to say about race and class.

Before I do my complete review of the book, take a look at what its all about.

A groundbreaking work—named one of the five most influential sports books of the decade by Sports Illustrated—How Soccer Explains the World is a unique and brilliantly illuminating look at soccer, the world’s most popular sport, as a lens through which to view the pressing issues of our age, from the clash of civilizations to the global economy.

The first thing of note, is that this book was written in 2006, a World Cup year, and Foer is clearly a lover of the sport. The book has the feel of someone trying to convince us, that we’re missing out and we should like soccer too. There is an earnestness, and a romanticization of all the issues that come up in the book.

While I found the idea of this book to be exciting and interesting, in actuality it lacked. In his desire to convince us to like soccer, Foer is uncomfortably uncritical. Granted, this book was written 12 years ago and issues that are front in center today, were barely discussed then. However, Foer goes out of his way to dismiss things as racialist, instead of calling them out for their blatant racism. For example, a group of reporters calling an African player a   “monkey”. This dismissal of real issues is also present when Foer justifies violent hooliganism as a charming relic of an old way of life, instead of noting the aggressive nationalism at play. I don’t know if its all as bad as I say, but as I read the book, I kept thinking who is benefiting from this? And who is at risk?

Where the book worked for me, was that the writing style was easy and straight forward. I didn’t always agree with what was being said, I understood the points being made. It is also worth noting, that most people who I have talked to who have read this book, love it. I think that can be attributed to the Foer’s style.

If you like soccer, you should read this book. It provides insight into the world’s most popular sport. If you’re not so into soccer, I think you can skip it, as it doesn’t really speak to the world on as grand of a scale as is presented in the title.

  • Paperback: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Harper Perennial; Reprint edition (May 11, 2010)
  • 2/5 stars
  • Buy How Soccer Explains the World on Amazon

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/thestacks). We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of The Stacks.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs in which we receive a small commission when products are purchased through some links on this website. This does not effect my opinions on books and products. For more information click here.

 

Ep 11. Talking Books and Soccer with Aaron Dolores Founder of Black Arrow FC

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This week we’re joined by Aaron Dolores, founder of Black Arrow FC, a lifestyle brand that focuses on the intersection of soccer and Black culture. The World Cup starts tomorrow, so we’re talking about Soccer and how it relates to the Black experience. We also discuss story telling in the Black community, when reading doesn’t come so easily, and how challenges in your reading life can effect your relationship to books.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

BOOKS

 

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Connect with Aaron & Black Arrow FC: Black Arrow Website | Black Arrow Instagram | Black Arrow Facebook | Black Arrow Twitter |Aaron’s Instagram
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To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of this show. If you prefer to do a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs in which we receive a small commission when products are purchased through some links on this website. This does not effect my opinions on books and products. For more information click here.