Ring: A Biography of Ring Lardner | 
 enlarge | Author: Jonathan Yardley
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Category: Book
List Price: $18.95
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Avg. Customer Rating:  4 reviews
Sales Rank: 1680429
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 448
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.4
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.9
ISBN: 074251160X
Dewey Decimal Number: 809
EAN: 9780742511606
ASIN: 074251160X
Publication Date: April 25, 2001
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Condition: New Copy - May have a small publishers mark
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Sportswriter, storyteller, humorist--Ring Lardner was an American original, and in this affectionate, entertaining, and authoritative biography, his personality is revealed
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| Customer Reviews:
 See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil January 8, 2006
3 out of 9 found this review helpful
Jonathn Yardley has written the most gutless autobiography of the last twenty years. Whatever you think of his literary gifts, (I think they were marginal at best) Ring Lardner was unquestionably a hopeless alcoholic, a spineless lackey of baseball management, and an all around second rate punk. Yardley does an amazing job of NOT addressing unpleasant issues in the life of Ring Lardner.
LARDNER, THE MODEL FAMILY MAN. Yardley reports with a straight face that Ring was a "wonderful" father and a "devoted" husband. Then he details year after year of destructive, compulsive binge drinking -- as if that didn't damage Lardner's relationships with his wife and sons. For the record, alcoholics make lousy fathers.
LARDNER, THE GREAT SPORTS WRITER. Yardley insists that Ring was "one of the all time greats" along with Grantland Rice, Fred Lieb, and all the other lying drunks. But, right along with them, Ring Lardner steered a gutless course throughout his career, never challenging the status quo. Yardley never even hints that there were major baseball issues Lardner refused to touch even after he attained the heights of eminence. Negroes were barred from major league baseball. Did Ring Lardner approve or disapprove? Gutless and silent. The White Sox were underpaid for years. Did Lardner approve or disapprove? Gutless and silent. The Reserve Clause made players slaves of management. Did Lardner approve or disapprove? Gutless and silent.
Yardley is the kind of bully-boy white conservative who can sneer at a genuine American icon like Elvis Presley for being a drug addict, but is determined to see no evil, hear no evil, and speak no evil when it comes to a spineless alcoholic -- sorry, I mean a great American writer -- like Ring Lardner.
 If you love Ring, you'll love this book February 18, 2004
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Yardley remains one of the best critics of American literature around, and this book does Ring justice. You may enjoy this book if you're interested in the period (America from the teens to the 30s), but it's mostly for those who have read Lardner's fiction and nonfiction and want to know more. I'd recommend you read it alongside the memoir written by his son Ring, Jr: The Lardners: A Family Remembered. Both books are wonderful, entertaining tributes to a great American writer.
For Those Who Like To Read Past The First 40 Pages Of A Book September 2, 2002
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Ring Lardner began his career as a sports journalist, writing mostly about BASEBALL. He had his first literary success with stories about a BASEBALL player. There is a good case to be made that BASEBALL events like the Black Sox Scandal greatly affected his world view. So guess what? Any biography of Ring Lardner is going to have a lot of stuff about BASEBALL in it! Kind of like a biography of George Patton might mention the army here and there.Jonathan Yardley sets the stage with a 38 page section about baseball as Lardner knew it. If you're allergic to baseball you can skip this part. The other 362 pages of text mention baseball no more than is necessary to tell Ring's story. Mostly this is an affectionate, critically insightful, well written biography of a vastly influential and still funny American writer who is sadly neglected today. Includes a decent sampling of Ring's newspaper journalism and personal letters.
Baseball 10 - Ring Lardner 0 May 15, 2001
3 out of 7 found this review helpful
I was delighted to finally find a biography of Ring Lardner. I had read all his stories, and the "You Know Me Al" articles. I was full of anticipation when I began reading Mr. Yardleys history of early baseball under the guise of a Biography of Ring Lardner. I realize that Ring Lardner wrote about baseball, but Mr. Yardley's coverage of this part of Ring Lardner's life is over done to put it mildly. When I read a biography I expect to learn about the details of the individual's life, not baseball stories during the teens. Mr. Yardley does cover some very limited events of Ring Lardner's life between his baseball history lessons. If I want to read a book on Baseball history, I would find a book on that subject. While some may find the stories entertaining, I found them boring and over done. If you are looking for a Biography of Ring Lardner's life do not buy this book. If you want a early history of Baseball you will be right at home. I rate this book in reality 5 yawns, the only way I could stay awake reading it was on a cross trainer at the gym and even then it was an effort.
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