Heart of a Tiger: Growing up with My Grandfather, Ty Cobb Book

Herschel Cobb's moving account of his relationship with his legendary grandfather reveals a side of Ty Cobb that few people ever saw, that of loving nurturer. A baseball icon and arguably the best player who ever lived, Ty Cobb's infamously cold, competitive nature allowed him to excel on the ball field but undermined his relationship with his children. Devastated by the untimely death of two of his sons, Cobb relished the opportunity to reconnect the broken family ties when young Herschel and his siblings visited him during the summers. In the pages of this book, Herschel, whose cruel, abusive father and adulterous, alcoholic mother filled his childhood with turmoil, recounts how his grandfather provided the stability, love and guidance that Herschel desperately needed. Beautifully written and insightful, this memoir describes the healing bond between Cobb and his grandchildren, and constructs a wholly different legacy for the notoriously tough Cobb as gentle and affectionate "Granddaddy."