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Rating: 
Summary: Sports Illustrated's tribute to sport's greatest feats
Review: Here is what you should do before you read "Sports Illustrated: Greatest Feats." Get a couple of sheets of paper and make a list of the following: (1) The 23 greatest individual performances of all time; (2) The 10 greatest seasons of all time; (3) The 15 greatest streaks of all time; and (4) The 12 greatest careers of all time. Then you can see how well you do when you are stacking up your memory against that of the SI editors. Now, the top spots on some of these lists are going to be like the free space on a bingo card. If we are talking the most spectacular streak in the history of sports you know what it is going to be and are not going to need 56 guesses. But to name the greatest individual achievement of all time in sports you might have to be old enough for a certain accomplishment to leap into your mind. Reading a book like this is always a combination of taking a walk down memory lane and engaging in an argument over omissions, rankings, and the like. Maybe you do not think a horse belongs on a list of classic performances. Maybe you think Jesse Owens belongs on that list but would be surprised to learn that it is not for the 1936 Olympics. Then again, maybe you already know that Babe Ruth's best season was not 1927. But how many would even remember who Alexander Karelin is let alone why he should be included in this volume? There is plenty of room for debate here. After all, was the season Barry Bonds had when he set the single-season home run record in 2001 really a bigger accomplishment that the Mark McGwire/Sammy Sosa duel in 1998? There seems to be a tendency to go with more recent figures rather than golden oldies, so you will find Jack Nicklaus but not Bobby Jones. Then again, there is both Red Grange and Jerry Rice. Draw up your lists, make your case and keep on reading. The only rule is no double-dipping. You can only put Wayne Gretzky, Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, or anybody else from the sports pantheon of greatness on just one of these lists. Finally, feel free to have a list of honorable mentions, because this book has one in the back as well. "Greatest Feats" is illustrated just like "Sports Illustrated" magazine and is almost as much fun to read as it is to argue with as you read it.
Rating:
Summary: Sports Illustrated's tribute to sport's greatest feats
Review: Here is what you should do before you read "Sports Illustrated: Greatest Feats." Get a couple of sheets of paper and make a list of the following: (1) The 23 greatest individual performances of all time; (2) The 10 greatest seasons of all time; (3) The 15 greatest streaks of all time; and (4) The 12 greatest careers of all time. Then you can see how well you do when you are stacking up your memory against that of the SI editors. Now, the top spots on some of these lists are going to be like the free space on a bingo card. If we are talking the most spectacular streak in the history of sports you know what it is going to be and are not going to need 56 guesses. But to name the greatest individual achievement of all time in sports you might have to be old enough for a certain accomplishment to leap into your mind. Reading a book like this is always a combination of taking a walk down memory lane and engaging in an argument over omissions, rankings, and the like. Maybe you do not think a horse belongs on a list of classic performances. Maybe you think Jesse Owens belongs on that list but would be surprised to learn that it is not for the 1936 Olympics. Then again, maybe you already know that Babe Ruth's best season was not 1927. But how many would even remember who Alexander Karelin is let alone why he should be included in this volume? There is plenty of room for debate here. After all, was the season Barry Bonds had when he set the single-season home run record in 2001 really a bigger accomplishment that the Mark McGwire/Sammy Sosa duel in 1998? There seems to be a tendency to go with more recent figures rather than golden oldies, so you will find Jack Nicklaus but not Bobby Jones. Then again, there is both Red Grange and Jerry Rice. Draw up your lists, make your case and keep on reading. The only rule is no double-dipping. You can only put Wayne Gretzky, Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, or anybody else from the sports pantheon of greatness on just one of these lists. Finally, feel free to have a list of honorable mentions, because this book has one in the back as well. "Greatest Feats" is illustrated just like "Sports Illustrated" magazine and is almost as much fun to read as it is to argue with as you read it.
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