Publishers Weekly
02/03/2020
Legendary Hall-of-Famer and folk sage Yogi Berra is baseball’s humble yet profound everyman in this warmhearted biography. Pessah (The Game), founding editor of ESPN the Magazine, recounts Berra’s ascent from a childhood in a working-class Italian-American neighborhood in St. Louis to his career as the catcher of the storied Yankees of the 1940s and ’50s, when he won five consecutive World Series rings. Pessah styles Berra as beloved but insufficiently respected: he suffered secret pain from jibes at his intelligence and looks—his long arms and fire-hydrant silhouette got him dubbed “the Ape”—and his kindness earned him a reputation as a weak, ineffectual manager even though he won two pennants in six seasons. He’s a down-to-earth and well-behaved but recessive figure in much of the book, a stolid foil for the antics of more dramatic Yankees like the tragic aristocrat Joe DiMaggio, the rebel boozehound Mickey Mantle, and the soap opera trio of George Steinbrenner, Billy Martin, and Reggie Jackson. Throughout, Pessah celebrates Berra’s cultural afterlife as a font of artless aphorisms in which wisdom rises from the ruins of logic (“You should always go to other people’s funerals. Otherwise, they won’t come to yours”). The funny anecdotes and exciting play-by-play from baseball’s golden age will keep Berra’s legions of fans happy. (Mar.)
From the Publisher
"If you're a lifetime baseball fan, you'd rather be watching an early-season major-league game now instead of recycled classics during this plague year. But Mr. Pessah's book is as good a proxy for baseball pleasure as you're going to find. It's a relaxed, sprawling affair-like those Yankee Stadium Sunday double-headers...This is a heart-warming narrative with a heroic protagonist who overcomes every imaginable obstacle to achieve greatness."—Edward Kosner, Wall Street Journal
"Now, when the baseball season would normally be in its early days, Jon Pessah's biography Yogi: A Life Behind the Mask arrives to help fill the void. It's a book that covers the funny quotes and the exceptional career, but also the complicated and sensitive person often obscured by the image."—John Williams, New York Times
"Pessah proves to be the only writer of baseball books who you would stand on line for hours to get copies of his work, on the day the publisher stocks store shelves."—Observer-Dispatch
"An incredible read."—Pittsburgh Post Gazette
"Better reading could hardly be found."—The Spectator
"Pessah provides a gripping account of the Yankees' postwar dynasty, but he also generates excitement for Berra's stint with the Mets, most notably the 1973 Amazin's. Where he excels is in probing the relationships in Berra's baseball career... The book also expertly situates Berra's life in historical context. Yogi: A Life Behind the Mask lives up to a Herculean task, offering a fresh look at a player ubiquitous in American culture. It will fit nicely on any Yankees fan's bookshelf."—Pinstripe Alley/SB Nation
"While a number of books have been written about Yogi Berra, none are as comprehensive as this in-depth account by sportswriter Pessah ...A thorough, engaging read for Berra fans and Yankee admirers."—Library Journal
"The funny anecdotes and exciting play-by-play from baseball's golden age will keep Berra's legions of fans happy."
—Publishers Weekly
"A vigorous biography of the New York Yankees legend... Yogi emerges as a man who was more thoughtful than many give him credit for...A welcome life of the Yankees icon and worthwhile reading for any baseball buff."—Kirkus
"Yogi Berra is a poster boy for the greatest generation; both a man of great character and a ... great character! His journey from "The Hill" to Normandy to Yankee hero to American icon is inspiring. Thank you Jon Pessah for making this book necessary!"—Marty Appel, Yankee historian and author of Pinstripe Empire,Munson and Casey Stengel
"Here's a contender for baseball book of the year. Pessah's Yogi is as warm, winning and entertaining as its subject-certain to be the definitive biography of an American legend."—Jonathan Eig, authorof Luckiest Man, Opening Day, and Ali: A Life
"Yogi Berra is the greatest winner of all time and one of baseball's most lovable, fascinating, and iconic players. Jon Pessah brings Yogi to life, from his childhood, to his brilliance as a Yankee, to his importance as a cultural icon. I thought I understood Yogi's life and career, but I learned something new on virtually every page."—TimKurkjian, senior baseball writer/analyst, ESPN
"Jon Pessah's meticulously sourced Yogi: A Life Behind the Mask immediately becomes essential for anyone interested in the life of a true American icon. The book is a serious and thoughtful treatment of a life that was a good deal more complex than most people realize. Throughout, it's Yogi's warmth, love of his family and loyalty to them and his friends that drive this narrative. Yogi Berra was a beautiful person with a big heart, and this biography more than does him justice. Simply put-a great read for any baseball fan."—Joe Garagiola Jr., Special Advisor to the President/CEO Arizona Diamondbacks
"Jon Pessah is not just an author who recounts history. He is a talented storyteller, as his critically acclaimed The Game illustrated. Now he has used his passion and prose to give us Yogi, a rich and poignant portrait of one of America's most beloved sports icons."—Clare Smith, JG Spink Award winner (2017) and ESPN Coordinating Editor/Baseball
"If Yogi Berra wasn't a true story, nobody could make him up. Or maybe a brilliant storyteller like Jon Pessah could! But thanks to Yogi, Pessah doesn't have to."—-Rob Neyer, author of Power Ball: Anatomy of a Modern Baseball Game
Yogi is a masterwork...Jon Pessah expertly reveals the powerful influence of one of baseball's, and perhaps all of America's, most golden-hearted and well-beloved characters."—Tyler Kepner, author of K: A History of Baseball in Ten Pitches
Library Journal
03/01/2020
While a number of books have been written about Yogi Berra (1925–2015), none are as comprehensive as this in-depth account by sportswriter Pessah (The Game). Featuring firsthand interviews with those who knew Berra well, supported by research from secondary sources, the book sheds insight into baseball history during Berra's playing career (1946–63). Pessah offers a year-by-year recounting of Berra's evolution as a catcher for the New York Yankees, including ten World Series championships. Yankee fans will appreciate knowing more about Berra's relationship with owner George Steinbrenner and teammates Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle. Not only does the work focus on Berra's career, it also explains how he became such a legendary figure in the sport. The one possible drawback might be the work's high level of detail, which may be overwhelming for most casual readers. VERDICT A thorough, engaging read for Berra fans and Yankee admirers.—Pamela Calfo, Bridgeville P.L., PA
Kirkus Reviews
2020-01-12
A vigorous biography of the New York Yankees legend.
Lorenzo Pietro Berra (1925-2015), first nicknamed "Lawdie," wasn't supposed to be a baseball star. His father, an Italian immigrant to St. Louis, discouraged his ambitions, saying that it wasn't seemly for a man to make a living playing a boy's game. Branch Rickey shook his head at the young man's prospects. He was goofy looking and odd, speaking a "mangled English [that was] the product of his Italian-language household and his uneasy relationship with school." Yet, as Pessah, a founding editor of ESPN the Magazine, writes, Lawdie shook them off. Soon given the new nickname of "Yogi" for his habit of sitting cross-legged while waiting to bat or take the field, he started racking up admirable statistics—and a solid sense of how the business of baseball worked, which served him well. He was especially well served by a mistrust of management early on, for Yogi would fare ill at the hands of executives like George Steinbrenner in his later career as a coach and manager. The narrative often takes a play-by-play flavor ("Bodie doesn't disappoint. He brings in Yankee Phil Rizzuto to play shortstop and Red Sox star Dom DiMaggio—Joe D's younger brother—to man center field") that suits the story just fine. Yogi emerges as a man who was more thoughtful than many give him credit for, even if he may have often played the rube—when told he was at an impasse in negotiating a contract, he replied, "What the hell is an impasse?" Of course, as any baseball fan knows, he was no slouch on the field, known far and wide for hammering pitches into the parking lot and giving teammate Mickey Mantle a run for his money as a slugger.
A welcome life of the Yankees icon and worthwhile reading for any baseball buff.
