The Ground and Credibility of the Christian Religion: In a Course of Sermons Preached Before... Book

A little trip back down memory lane, courtesy of George Vecsey, the New York Times columnist and biographer. The book is a diary of Vecsey's travels during 1986 -- a year he details chronologically -- a look from behind the scenes regarding his writings that year. Published 23 years ago, it was entertaining to read the stories Vecsey told... using typewriters and the early stages of print journalism's electronic age. There was some flashback moments to his early days in sports writing, a few mentions of the days when he wrote national news, and there was glee in his return to the sports world as a columnist -- finding the little side story of human interest and critique while also continuing to write sports news.

The year 1986 was quite a year for Vecsey -- the Mets reclaimed the World Series title with their come-from-behind victory over the Red Sox. The Bears took the Super Bowl, there was a World Cup in Mexico; Ted Turner staged a TBS production called the Goodwill Games in Moscow, and Martina Navratalova (featured in one of Vecsey's books) was the reigning superstar of women's tennis. Through it all, Vecsey seemed to always find an angle unique to the event he's attending. His adventures behind the scenes in Moscow was excellent; his essays regarding boxing (hates), desighnated hitters (hates), pro basketball (leave it to his brother, Peter) are candid and to the point.

It turned out to be a wonderful read...another one of those books you find on the wall of a used book warehouse. It's also nice see how a truly wonderful columnist for a top-notch newspaper gets his ideas, his inspiration and his ability. The storytelling behind the storytelling makes for a wonderful work.