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Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig | 
 enlarge | Creators: Jonathan Eig, Edward Herrmann
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Category: Book
List Price: $29.95
Buy New: $19.99
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Avg. Customer Rating:  69 reviews
Sales Rank: 747799
Format: Abridged, Audiobook
Media: Audio CD
Edition: Abridged
Number Of Items: 5
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 5.8 x 5.2 x 1.1
ISBN: 074353011X
Dewey Decimal Number: 796.357092
EAN: 9780743530118
ASIN: 074353011X
Publication Date: March 29, 2005
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Amazon.com
Lou Gehrig started his professional baseball career at a time when players began to be seen as national celebrities. Though this suited charismatic men such as Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio, Gehrig avoided the spotlight and preferred to speak with his bat. Best known for playing in 2,130 consecutive games as well as his courage in battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (a disease that now bears his name), the Iron Horse that emerges from this book is surprisingly naive and insecure. He would cry in the clubhouse after disappointing performances, was painfully shy around women (much to the amusement of some of his teammates), and particularly devoted to his German-immigrant mother all his life. Even after earning the league MVP award he still feared the Yankees would let him go. Against the advice of Ruth and others, he refused to negotiate aggressively and so earned less than he deserved for many seasons. Honest, humble, and notoriously frugal, his only vices were chewing gum and the occasional cigarette. And despite becoming one of the finest first basemen of all time, Jonathan Eig shows how Gehrig never seemed to conquer his self-doubt, only to manage it better. Jonathan Eig's Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig offers a fascinating and well-rounded portrait of Gehrig, from his dugout rituals and historic games to his relationships with his mother, wife, coaches, and teammates. His complex friendship with Ruth, who was the polar opposite to Gehrig in nearly every respect, is given particularly vivid attention. Take this revealing description of how the two men began a barnstorming tour together following their 1927 World Series victory: "Ruth tipped the call girls and sent them on their way. Gehrig kissed his mother goodbye." Eig also shares some previously unknown details regarding his consecutive games streak and how he dealt with ALS during the final years of his life. Rich in anecdotes and based on hundreds of interviews and 200 pages of recently discovered letters, the book effectively shows why the Iron Horse remains an American icon to this day. --Shawn Carkonen
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| Customer Reviews: Read 64 more reviews...
 even a sox fan recommends June 5, 2008
I read this book while in middle school and it inspired me. Yes even a Red Sox fan enjoyed this book. This is not a book about a Yankee or baseball but a story about an amazing person.
An outstanding biography April 29, 2008
Author Jonathan Eig has written a fantastic character study of New York Yankees great Lou Gehrig, a shy, Momma's boy who always followed the rules and didn't want to let anyone down. A proud man, Gehrig always handled himself with class. He had few equals on or off the field.
Eig paints a sensitive portrait of Gehrig while discussing his relationships with his mother, his wife, Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio and his other teammates as well as Yankees management.
Never considered colorful enough to merit the press' attention, Gehrig played in the shadows of Ruth and DiMaggio.
Thanks to locating letters between Gehrig and his physicians at the Mayo Clinic, Eig is able to shed light on the relationship the Yankee great had with his physicians, what the doctors told him about his disease (ALS) and how he handled it.
After reading Eig's biography, you'll have a deeper understanding of Gehrig, the man, and a better appreciation of Gehrig, the baseball player.
Outstanding, detailed account February 21, 2008
Lou Gehrig has always been an interesting subject for me. I'm a so-so baseball fan, but I am a fan of individual's who appear to have the same values and morals that I hold.
Jonathan Eig does a very nice job in this book of focusing on Gehrig's baseball qualities and his qualities as a man. I really enjoyed the book that gave a tremendous insight into how Gehrig acted behind closed doors.
A few things that really interested me:
I didn't know he was nearly that good of a baseball player. If ALS wouldn't have ended his career he might have gone down as the greatest first baseman ever. Eig did a very nice job in citing statistics and comparing those to other players in Gehrig's era and in the modern era.
I also didn't know that a number of times Gehrig would play an inning or two and get credit for a game. I appreciate the fact that the writer didn't get caught up in the legend of Gehrig and pointed out the streak and how it lived basically because of the manipulation of Gehrig and Yankee manager Joe McCarthy. That definitely diminshes the accomplishment of consecutive games played in my mind... not by much because Gehrig did play with a lot of injuries and issues.... but it does diminish it. It also puts that much more of a wow factor into the consecutive games streak of Cal Ripken because I believe he had to play 5 innings to get credit for a game.
That said, Eig did a really nice job in pointing out that Gehrig really was much more than just "An Iron Horse" at first base. The stats, the clutch hitting, etc. were well documented by Eig.
I also liked the detail that Eig provided on ALS and Gehrig's final years. As I was reading the book, I was thinking we are sure flying through his playing career and there is a whole lot of book left here. That was because Eig wanted to take some time to describe in detail Gehrig's final years and he did a very nice job.
I would suggest this book to anyone wanting to know more about Gehrig, Yankees history, or if you just want to read a great account of a man who should be well-admired for his work ethic and moral values.
A great book and great subject matter.
The best biography I've ever read! February 2, 2008
I'm a Yankee hater, but I loved this book. I always found the story of Lou Gehrig to be an inspirational one. Jonathan Eig did a great job of not only telling Gehrig's story, but also making you want to root for Gehrig to survive. At times I found myself forgetting that he dies in the end, only wanting to read more about his amazing feats on the ball field. A great book that everyone should read.
 A real baseball hero January 20, 2008
Looking through the glass of hindsight, everyone just flat out looks better. Life is funny that way. If you were mean in reality, history may classify you as "gritty." If you were thoughtful, history may remember you as "genius." Or if you were fat, you may be labeled as "stout and strong." The story of Lou Gehrig is not necessarily an example of this. In reality I will never know. The author will probably not know either. Lou is painted as larger than life in "Luckiest Man." He was thoughtful, kind, humble, and amazing. Not only that, but he brought to the public the story of ALS and its affects. It became real and tangible to the whole world. His personal health tragedy no doubt amplifies his kinder qualities, as it would in most people's remembrance. Not to say it is undeserved, but in this book, it seems exaggerated. Gehrig is not really made into a real person. He is made into a monolithic figure. In baseball, he was one, but in his personal life, he would have hated this.
I have always had a soft spot for heroes, especially heroes in baseball. No doubt Lou Gehrig is a hero in this regard. He played in the shadow of one of the largest figures in history, Babe Ruth. Not only did he thrive, but he made a name for himself that, in my opinion, out shined Ruth on the field. No one could outshine him off of it. I have no doubt that if the opposite had occurred, Ruth would never have made it in Gehrig's shadow. His accomplishments, unlike his character and personality, are in black and white. His statistics say it all. Amazing in his steadfast play, he also shone when it counted most, the World Series. Back in those days baseball meant something to everyone, and he had the privilege of playing and delivering in those times.
Gehrig was a great role model, and a great player. His character and approach to the game are things I would teach my children, and plan to. These type of stories may not be completely true, but sometimes it is the legend and myth that build from simple beginnings that can shape our lives and build on our own morality.
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