Opening Day at Great American Ball Park

Rating:
Summary: Great for a Reds fan!
Review: I attended opening day this season in the Reds new ballpark. It was a great event and a big celebration for the city. This book has a ton of great photos that span from the Findley Market parade to the closing of the ballpark after the game. The photos are fantastic, and the captions provide plenty of information about some of the cool features in the ballpark like the Pepsi Power Stacks, the Big Red Machine Bar and a lot of the history elements found throughout the ballpark.

I plan to give a copy to all my friends who are Reds fans for the holidays.

Rating:
Summary: Fun, light read
Review: I first heard about this book during an in game advertisment in the ballpark late in the season. Like so many others, I paid an arm and a leg for my tickets for Opening Day at on an online auction site. And like so many others, I thought it was totally worth the cost. Although the Reds had a terrible season because of injuries and an embarrassing ownership group, the team did "go all out" for the Opening Day festivities.

For those of you expecting a detailed history of the tax increase, the ballpark construction and the companies involved -- this isn't exactly that type of book. Although it has a chapter on the buildingof the ballpark, most of it's devoted just to Opening Day.

I really wish this book had some sample pages on amazon so that other people could see the type of photography in this book. There are some great shots of Barry Larkin, former President Bush, Marty and Joe, panoramic shots of the ballpark, etc.

Rating:
Summary: Very highly recommended for baseball buffs
Review: Opening Day At Great American Ball Park by Cincinnati Reds baseball enthusiast Dann Stupp is an exciting celebration of Cincinnati's Great American Ball Park openeing day. Dazzling colorful photography and a sprinkling insightful asides fill the pages of this visual celebration of the grand sport of baseball, as well as the athletes who strive to excel, and the fans who love the thrill of watching teams compete to be the very best they can. Opening Day At Great American Ball Park is very highly recommended for baseball buffs in general, and Cincinnati Reds fans in particular!

Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable book
Review: This was a great book about the first day at the Reds new ballpark, Great American Ball Park. Unfortunately, I thought it would be a book about the financing, architecture, details of the construction, etc. Although an opening chapter does hit on these topics - I was hoping for a little more.

I do have some other complaints. Some of the photos in the book look a little dark and fuzzy. Also, I was hoping more of the book would have been devoted to the players and their reactions to the ballpark.

So why give it 4 stars?

Though the book wasn't necassarily what I expected, it was still really interesting. There were great photos from inside the clubhouse, the restaurants, fans, the parade and even the implosion of Cinergy Field - as well as neat tidbits about the whole day. I have it sitting in my living room, and its the first thing our guests pick up. Though a little pricey, its surely worth it to any Reds fan.