It's almost summer time again, which means it's time to get involved with some classic American pastimes like fishing and baseball. We at the UGA Press are happy to help you get into the season with some quality literature and some of the latest news.
Fishing
One classic way to get into summer is to find a good spot for fishing, whether professional or not. Anglers in the Offshore World Championship last month started early as they set a new record for most billfish catches in 2014 with 2,314. If you are interested in learning more about billfish, we suggest picking up a copy of THE BILLFISH STORY.
In THE BILLFISH STORY, Stan Ulanski tells the saga of this unique group of fish and those who have formed bonds with them—relationships forged by anglers, biologists, charter-boat captains, and conservationists through their pursuit, study, and protection of these species. More than simply reciting important discoveries, Stan Ulanski argues passionately that billfish occupy a position of unique importance in our culture as a nexus linking natural and human history. Ulanski, both a scientist and an angler, brings a rich background to the subject in a multifaceted approach that will enrich not only readers’ appreciation of billfish but the whole of the natural world.Baseball
Do you have any Atlanta Braves players on your fantasy baseball team? While the Braves have had a slow start this season, they are now leading the National League-East after a three-game sweep of the Chicago Cubs this past Sunday. The Braves may be the best known baseball team in Georgia, but it certainly is not the first.
.jpg)
Tim Darnell tells of the early years of Georgia baseball in his book THE CRACKERS: THE EARLY DAYS OF ATLANTA BASEBALL. Beginning in an era before traffic jams, air-conditioning, and Atlanta’s ascension to international fame, Tim Darnell chronicles the emergence of amateur and minor-league baseball in various forms in Atlanta from just after the Civil War through the rise of the Crackers (1901–65). Through never-before-published player interviews, rare illustrations, extensive appendices of charts and statistics, a Cracker Trivia Quiz, and thorough research, Darnell examines the drama and politics that affected the Crackers over the years. Also profiled is the Black Crackers, Atlanta’s Negro Southern League franchise whose success and popularity paralleled those of their white counterparts. The Crackers is a light-hearted, fun, and engrossing history of a time, a people, and one very special centerfield magnolia tree whose stories are legend to this day.
