BobHarris.com - Friday pudublogging: PUDUBALL! Game on!

Books! Actual books!

"A rollicking ride of intellectual discovery and emotional growth... his comic timing never fails"

-- The Wall Street Journal

"Pulls you in like a good sports story"

-- The New York Times Book Review

"Endearingly frank... jubilant... lighthearted and fast-paced"

-- New York Newsday

"A surprisingly touching memoir"

-- Entertainment Weekly

"Snappy and informative"

-- Associated Press

"Effortlessly funny and informative... tender, human, and very wise... A must for anyone who loves Jeopardy!, or has ever seen it, or is breathing."

-- Joss Whedon, creator, Buffy the Vampire Slayer

"I haven't seen Jeopardy! since I was a kid, and yet I was charmed and amused by Bob Harris's fascinating and surprisingly suspenseful book. Through sheer force of personality, he takes this brainy TV show and makes it funny and easy to relate to."

-- Ira Glass, creator and host, This American Life

"A surprisingly intimate, entertaining book."

-- Orson Scott Card, 4-time Hugo Award winner, author of Ender's Game

"Funny, enlightening -- and just might help you win a million bucks on Jeopardy!"

-- A. J. Jacobs, author of The Know-It-All

"A masterful job of describing the feel of Jeopardy! in the heat of battle... I knew Bob was a great guy and a fantastic Jeopardy! player. Now I've found that he's also a wonderful writer. I think I'm starting to hate him."

-- Brad Rutter, top money-winner in Jeopardy! history

Books I'm Getting

Who Hates Whom:
Well-Armed Fanatics, Intractable Conflicts,
and Various Things Blowing Up —
A Woefully Incomplete Guide™

“Revelatory... Harris's sly wit and infectious curiosity make understanding world chaos fascinating... witty, horrific, and necessary.”

— Boston Globe

"Brave... irreverent... charges into the thick of the globe's myriad simmering wars... hilariously relaxed."

— New York Observer

"Only Bob could make a user’s guide to our increasingly hostile world this absorbing, this breezy, and—ultimately—this hopeful.”

— Ken Jennings, author of Brainiac: Adventures in the Curious, Competitive, Compulsive World of Trivia Buffs

“Fascinating, enlightening, and surprisingly: NOT TOTALLY DEPRESSING. A gimlet-eyed look at the world we endure that’s also suitable for enjoying with a gimlet.”

— John Hodgman, author of The Areas of My Expertise
and correspondent for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

"All three [presidential] candidates should read all three of these [recommended] books, but McCain gets first crack at Bob Harris's "Who Hates Whom“... a lighthearted overview of the insurrections and civil wars in the world today."

— Steven Pinker, author of The Stuff of Thought, in the New York Times Book Review

Main

Juan Cole

Friday pudublogging: PUDUBALL! Game on!

Tag it now -

Friday, 07 September 2007

Unbelievable week of sport ahead, personally, given the teams I cheer for. Whatever sport you look at -- even Aussie Rules footy played with alpacas -- it's PUDUBALL on!

Baseball is in its stretch run, and the Indians are 11-1 since the very day they figured out what to do with their batting order. They've also found a damn nice second baseman and second hitter in Cabrera. And they're even in town this weekend.

The NFL begins its season this week, and the Browns will suck less this year. That's no small thing.

The Rugby World Cup kicks in France, despite a last-minute media boycott. The host team will surprise, I think. But I'm picking New Zealand over the Boks in the final.

Aussie Rules enters its postseason, with my two favorite teams, the Swans and Weagles, both in good form. (Yes, I normally back Sydney teams, but a close buddy from Perth is now living in the US, and he's an unhealthy influence.)

Even the Arses are kicking arses, despite losing Thierry Henry to Barcelona this year. Not playing this weekend, though, and thank goodness. My DVR would explode.

Oh -- and the cricket Twenty20 World Cup starts in Johannesburg on Tuesday. (Go Oz! Like there's any doubt.)

I could plotz. It's like a big sweaty harmonic convergence or something. It'll be weeks before I ever catch up with it all, but hey. Small world, too much fun here.

PS -- almost forgot: Australia's popular NRL starts its postseason this weekend, too. (Btw, NRL team names are to die for. Who wouldn't cheer for the Parramatta Eels, the South Sydney Rabbitohs, or the Manly Sea Eagles?) Thing is, I don't have a huge allegiance to any of these cross-country wrestling teams yet. I've watched a couple of Gold Coast games, curious to see how Mat Rogers from the Waratahs makes the transition to league, and I generally cheer for the Roosters, since I have happy memories of Aussie Stadium. Eh. Guess I'll cheer for the upstart Rabbitohs this week, despite Russell Crowe's looming presence and an offense which seems lately to consist of punching people in the face. Somehow "Go 'Tohs" should have more of a ring, though.