Lou Gehrig: The Lost Memoir

by Alan D. Gaff Narrated by Angelo Di Loreto, Kyle Tait

Overview

The lost memoir from Lou Gehrig-“a compelling rumination by a baseball icon and a tragic hero” (Sports Illustrated) and “a fitting tribute to an inspiring baseball legend” (Publishers Weekly).

At the tender age of twenty-four, Lou Gehrig decided to tell the remarkable story of his life and career. He was one of the most famous athletes in the country, in the midst of a record-breaking season with the legendary 1927 World Series-winning Yankees. In an effort to grow Lou's star, pioneering sports agent Christy Walsh arranged for Lou's tale of baseball greatness to syndicate in newspapers across the country. Those columns were largely forgotten and lost to history-until now.

Lou comes alive in this “must-read” (Tyler Kepner, The New York Times) memoir. It is an inspiring, heartfelt rags-to-riches tale about a poor kid from New York who became one of the most revered baseball players of all time.

Fourteen years after his account, Lou would tragically die from ALS, a neuromuscular disorder now known as Lou Gherig's Disease. His poignant autobiography is followed by an insightful biographical essay by historian Alan D. Gaff. Here is Lou-Hall of Famer, All Star, MVP, an “athlete who epitomized the American dream” (Christian Science Monitor)-back at bat.

Editorial Reviews

JUNE 2020 - AudioFile

True baseball fans know Lou Gehrig’s time on the diamond served as a critical component of the Yankees’ classic teams. He should not be regarded as having stood in Babe Ruth’s shadow. Non-fans know Gehrig as the namesake of the disease that cut short his life. Historian Alan D. Gaff has brought to life lost newspaper columns by the Iron Horse, and narrators Angelo Di Loreto and Kyle Tait help his story come alive. Tait narrates Gaff’s introduction and follow-up essay, while Di Loreto voices Gehrig. The two work well. Tait’s voice is higher, with good enunciation. Di Loreto’s is lower, adding a serious quality to the audiobook. Di Loreto’s slight East Coast accent is appropriate for New York City native Gehrig. The columns form an autobiographical account, and the narrators serve as teammates to bring the story home. M.B. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

From the Publisher

"Alan Gaff’s slim but distinctive contribution to the Gehrig syllabus shifts our attention to the Hall of Famer’s improbable rise—in its way, every bit as inspiring as the courage he demonstrated later."
—The Wall Street Journal

“A fitting tribute to an inspiring baseball legend.”
—Publishers Weekly

"A simple gem for baseball fans.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“It is a special treat to add Lou Gehrig: The Lost Memoir, to the canon of such a profound American life. What a treasure to hear from Gehrig at the height of his powers, blissfully unaware of the hardship he would face. Gehrig offers fascinating first-hand insight into his life and the world of baseball in the 1920s, and Alan D. Gaff follows with a captivating essay giving readers the full scope of the man. This book is a must read for anyone interested in a fresh perspective from a true legend in his prime.”
—Tyler Kepner, national baseball writer for The New York Times, bestselling author of K: A History of Baseball in Ten Pitches

“Lost no more, Lou Gehrig: The Lost Memoir is a remarkable find—and brings the Iron Horse to life in a new, compelling way. Gehrig is one of the essential figures in American sport and this is an essential addition to his story.”
—Jeremy Schaap, host of ESPN’s E:60 and Outside the Lines

"A compelling rumination by a baseball icon and a tragic hero."
—Sports Illustrated

"Gehrig reveals a great deal about himself and his insecurities, both in his youth and in his years in professional baseball...The Yankee first baseman has very interesting observations and comments on his teammates and opponents...A delight to read."
—New York Journal of Books

"Gaff astutely crafts a biography to accompany Gehrig’s columns and focuses on details that parallel Gehrig’s generosity of spirit. Perhaps most movingly, Gaff revisits the Yankee great’s post-baseball career. Despite the ravages of ALS, Gehrig worked for the parole board, counseling young men who had taken a wrong turn in life. 'Even when he could barely sit in his office chair, he came to work everyday,' Gaff writes of Gehrig.”
—Associated Press

"These long-lost columns serve both as a time capsule into a past era of baseball and a window into the life of an athlete who epitomized the American dream."
—Christian Science Monitor

“Revealing insights into Gehrig's view of his role on the Yankees and his feelings about fame...Baseball fans with an interest in the game’s history will find much to enjoy here.”
—Booklist

“A new book that is an essential addition to [Lou Gehrig’s] story.”
—ESPN Radio's The Sporting Life with Jeremy Schaap

Library Journal

02/07/2020

A reading of these "lost memoirs" of Yankees great Lou Gehrig, compiled from a series of dispatches to the Oakland Tribune in 1927, reveals the man the world came to know: self-effacing and without a negative word for anyone. But there remains the question: Did Gehrig write the columns? This arises because Christy Walsh, the agent he shared with teammate Babe Ruth, headed a syndicate that included such luminaries as Damon Runyon and future baseball commissioner Ford Frick. Their duties included ghostwriting articles credited to their clients, often with little or no input from them, designed to burnish the athletes' reputations. Independent historian Gaff (Bayonets in the Wilderness) barely addresses this issue either in his introduction or lengthy biographical essay, writing only that Lou "would write his account himself," and mentioning that Frick helped him during the 1927 World Series so Gehrig could focus on baseball. After that, there is no mention of authenticity of authorship. VERDICT This memoir highlights baseball and its players from a golden age would have been more emotionally and historically appealing had Gaff offered more about the subject's provenance.—Jim Burns, formerly with Jacksonville P.L., FL

JUNE 2020 - AudioFile

True baseball fans know Lou Gehrig’s time on the diamond served as a critical component of the Yankees’ classic teams. He should not be regarded as having stood in Babe Ruth’s shadow. Non-fans know Gehrig as the namesake of the disease that cut short his life. Historian Alan D. Gaff has brought to life lost newspaper columns by the Iron Horse, and narrators Angelo Di Loreto and Kyle Tait help his story come alive. Tait narrates Gaff’s introduction and follow-up essay, while Di Loreto voices Gehrig. The two work well. Tait’s voice is higher, with good enunciation. Di Loreto’s is lower, adding a serious quality to the audiobook. Di Loreto’s slight East Coast accent is appropriate for New York City native Gehrig. The columns form an autobiographical account, and the narrators serve as teammates to bring the story home. M.B. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

2020-01-26
A baseball icon’s rediscovered memoir, enhanced with biographical material by the independent scholar who found it.

While researching another topic, Gaff stumbled upon a series of newspaper columns by Major League Baseball legend Lou Gehrig (1903-1941). Those columns, published by the Oakland Tribune in 1927, constitute 90 pages of this book, with Gaff’s brief biography of Gehrig and other related material comprising the rest. Gehrig was only 24 when the columns appeared. They chronicle his youthful years in New York City, unlikely metamorphosis from an awkward wannabe athlete into a Yankees icon, and wide-eyed insights into becoming teammates with, among others, Babe Ruth, who “was the first one to give me advice about keeping in condition.” Divided into nine chapters, the newspaper serial portrays a seemingly uncomplicated young man whose gratefulness for meteoric success contains no hint of jadedness. He lauds baseball at all skill levels as a tonic for American youngsters. Although Gehrig decided not to complete a college degree because the Yankees offered him a contract that he couldn’t turn down, Gehrig advocates for “college men” to consider professional baseball as a career: “I believe [they] can contribute much to the good of the game—and it’s a certain cinch that baseball can contribute much to the welfare and the benefit of the college man.” Gaff’s biographical essay contains strong research and clear prose; his account of Gehrig’s rapid development as a talented slugger is especially inspiring. In 1939, as his athletic skills visibly diminished, Gehrig was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a relentless neurological disorder that is often referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease. In addition to the biographical information, Gaff also includes some material that will be a treat for Gehrig devotees, including “Lou Gehrig’s Tips on How To Watch a Ball Game” as well as Gehrig’s lifetime statistics and a roster of “the careers of the many players in Lou’s narrative who are now largely unknown.”

A simple gem for baseball fans.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940173890795
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster
Publication date:	05/12/2020
Edition description:	Unabridged

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