If I Never Get Back

Rating:
Summary: An INCREDIBLE book!!!
Review: A great book for anyone who's a fan of baseball, the late 1800s, period fiction, Mark Twain, or great books in general; This book has it all. I thoroughly enjoyed every page of it.

Rating:
Summary: An INCREDIBLE book!!!
Review: A great book for anyone who's a fan of baseball, the late 1800s, period fiction, Mark Twain, or great books in general; This book has it all. I thoroughly enjoyed every page of it.

Rating:
Summary: A Perfect Ending.
Review: Brock won me over with the many layers of his fine novel. I enjoyed baseball as it was played by "real people," and I'm not even a current day fan. I enjoyed the well-drawn characters as much as I delighted in the curiosities of 19th century America. I loved the "exotic" locales of Troy and Elmira and Cincinnati, as well as the more standard San Francisco and NYC of 1869---not the stuff of average tales, and all the better. But mostly I enjoyed the ending, because this was above all else a love story, the love of life and the love of a woman, and the ending has to carry it. I approached it as a reader, drawn along by events and circumstances, but Darryl Brock was wiser than that. He approached it as a writer who knew better. The more I think about it, the more I admire the author's skill in crafting it just so. It was perfect. My thanks to Amazon.com for making this "Out of Print" volume available through their excellent search service. And thanks to other online reviewers for bringing this book to my attention in the first place!

Rating:
Summary: Perceptive, well-written time-travel baseball novel
Review: Darryl Brock has hit a home run with this well-crafted time-travel novel that revisits the early years of baseball in the latter part of the nineteenth century. Brock is transported from contemporary San Francisco to 1869, where he encounters the first great professional baseball team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings. The resulting story is engrossing and is chock full of information and lore concerning the early years of our national pastime. As a bonus, Brock writes perceptively about social and cultural customs and attitudes from this earlier time, and this renders *If I Never Get Back* more than just another baseball yarn. The romantic aspect of the story borders on the corny at times, but within the context of the overall novel a bit of schmaltz is certainly forgivable. All baseball fans with an interest both in good reading and the history of the game will enjoy this book.

Rating:
Summary: One of those books you lend and never get back!
Review: I bought this book when it first came out, in part because I am a huge baseball fan, love history, and love books about time travel, but also because Mr. Brock was at the time a history teacher at my high school. I did not have the pleasure of being in his class but his students always raved about his teaching and loved being in his classes. When I read the book, I wished very much he'd been my teacher too. I am delighted to see he has authored some other books. I can't wait to read them! I will, after I replace the copy of "If I Never Get Back" I bought, loaned, and never got returned. A great book to get lost in! I didn't want it to end.

Rating:
Summary: Baseballs best fiction book
Review: I picked this book up at my Mom's yard sale, and had a hard time putting it down. I've been to a few baseball games, so I can visualize the game, but I'm not a fan by any means. Still, I enjoyed the protagonist; he is a rough and tumble guy--very masculine, and it was fun inhabiting a man's world for a while. I mostly skipped over the details of the ball games, but enjoyed the glimpse of 19th century life. I was convinced he was there, I was even persuaded that Mark Twain would have talked and acted as he was described. I think the author did his homework. Very enjoyable and highly entertaining.

Rating:
Summary: A great read, A great escape
Review: I read this book years ago and lent it out to friends who also thought it was great but unfortunatly It was never returned. Until I got on-line, I coulden't find it anywhere. I forgot the authors name but never gave up in my search. "If I Never Get Back" took me to another time and place. If your a baseball purist or historian, you'll love this book. Mr. Brocks research of the Cincinnati red stockings was excellent and the whole plot of travelling back in time was captivating. Like I said, it's been years since I've read this book and I look forward to reading it again. I never read books twice but this one is the exception.

Rating:
Summary: FANTASTIC!!!
Review: I was given this book by a friend and it took me 6 months to finally pick it up. It then took me less than two days to read it! I was completely taken in by the story and could not put it down. The way Brock combined baseball history with Americn history and added a fictional sub-plot was masterful. I also enjoyed the way the author described organized baseball in its infancy and incorporated a modern variable who could introduce aspects of today's game...like the invention of the hot dog. He made me wish I could see baseball when it had the innocence it did back then. I am shocked this book did not get more acclaim. A must read for baseball fans!!!!

Rating:
Summary: My favorite book of ALL time!!
Review: I'm new to Amazon, but not to reading mysteries. I love baseball, and a good friend recommended this wonderful book. If you love baseball, American history, and a great story, I promise you will love this book.
The only sad thing is that Mr. Brock has not written anything else similar. Can you tell that I LOVED IT?

Rating:
Summary: My All Time Favorite Book
Review: I've read this classic book four times, the only novel I've read more than once. Brock combines a fascinating account of baseball's infancy, a close-up look at special friendship and love, and a touch of adventure. The result is a remarkable book that is impossible to put down. Baseball has such a rich history, but most people know nothing about the game that existed prior to Babe Ruth. The fact is, however, that Brock used the history lesson on baseball simply as an avenue to tell the tale of Sam Fowler's discovery of himself. Mr. Brock, if you're out there, I would love to see this book reprinted. My copy is showing it's age.