"The Red Sox and Philosophy"

Over the years, there have been numerous books written about the Boston Red Sox. They've been a writer's delight, and many a forest has been leveled to let the world know that.

But now comes a new angle about your beloved Sox. It comes from 30 different writers on the subject of philosophy, called appropriately, "The Red Sox and Philosophy: Green Monster Meditations."

It was edited by Michael Macomber, who is a graduate student currently finishing his dissertation on aesthetic theory at the New School here in New York. (And as a matter of full disclosure, Michael is also a fan of this blog and Professor Thom's.)

As soon as I received the book, I was pleased to see the introductory chapter was entitled, "From Professor Thom's to The Little Professor." (Thanks for the shout out to the bar, Michael.) Dick Bresciani, the Vice-President of the Red Sox and also the team's official historian, does the book's forward.

Of course in a book like this, the media-created "Curse of the Bambino" gets a whole lot of play, and a lot of the Red Sox' trials and tribulations pre-2004 get the business from philosophers such as Aristotle, Sartre and Kierkegaard. But it's not all about that, as just being a Red Sox fan is explored in depth, in chapters like "What Binds Us Together" by Marcus Giamatti (the son of the late commissioner) and one I really found fascinating, "In Sync With Pink?" by Stephanie St. Martin, about the Red Sox fans who sport the pink hats.

The book also explores past Red Sox players through philosophy, such as Ted Williams, Bill Lee, Johnny Damon, Bill Buckner, and Carlton Fisk. 28 of the 30 writers are Red Sox fans, and there are even chapters from one Yankee fan and a Cardinals fan, too.

"The Red Sox and Philosophy" is full of tragedy, irony and the meaning of it all as seen through the eyes of the fans of the Olde Towne Team. It's a fascinating and different look at the Red Sox for sure. Philosophy may not be your cup of tea, but there's lots of Yankee hatred in this book to please any Red Sox fan.

The book is now available through Open Court Books. Michael Macomber will also be doing a reading of the book at Professor Thom's on May 18th, appropriately enough during a Red Sox-Yankees game. Here's more on the book from Amazon.