Sports & Recreation

True and intimate short stories of a modern fisherman's life of luck and loss.

Written in chronological order, fisherman Brad Matsen gives a realistic look of frightening weather, good fishing, terrible fishing, great days, and sweet living in Alaskan waters from the decks of crabbers, trawlers, longliners, trollers, and gillnetters.

This book and others inspired film crews to trek to Alaska and cover the crabbing seasons for reality TV shows. Commercial fishing's home ports—Dutch Harbor, Kodiak, Naknek, Cordova, Petersburg, Sitka, and Seattle—are classic fishing towns, where docks, bars, and even quiet living merge in colorful portraits about life on the last frontier.

Included in this second edition are new stories and updates from the super-heated days when fishing fleets turned king crab into fortunes, to the annual circus of Bristol Bay's monster salmon runs, to the bucolic life of the open ocean trawler.

Whether in oceans or lakes, streams, or rivers; humans have been drawn to water and the unique bathing opportunities it offers. This title celebrates our connection with water, focusing on outdoor bathing locations around the world. From spots nature created expertly herself to places designed by humans to harness rugged and remote surroundings, this book examines in detail the long-standing relationship between humans and outdoor bathing in a way sure to charm the inner bather in us all.

Get ready to hit the slopes with Powder, showcasing some of the world's best destinations for skiing, snowboarding, and more.

Created in collaboration with Red Bull, this visually stunning book takes you on a journey through breathtaking landscapes, from iconic locations to hidden gems, and reveals the pure, contemplative beauty of snowcapped mountains.

With a mix of action-packed images featuring celebrated snow athletes and contemplative nature shots, Powder captures the exhilarating marriage between space and sport. Explore the Alps, Scandinavia, North America, and Asia through their unique natural wonders, while connecting with top athletes who have conquered the world's most challenging snowfields.

In addition to being a feast for the eyes, Powder is also an inspirational guide, providing practical tips, maps, and travel information to help you plan your ultimate snowy adventure. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or a first-time snow sport enthusiast, this book will enthrall you with the thrill and beauty of winter sports.

From short sailing trips with friends to longer cruises along coastlines or across the oceans, this book celebrates the nautical way of life.

Since the dawn of time, exploring the world by boat has been seen as the pinnacle of freedom. And what may often have seemed an impossible dream is now within reach, thanks to businesses offering boats for hire and specialist companies organizing trips that give people the opportunity to live that dream for a few weeks. 

Sailing the Seas will take readers on a series on adventures across the globe, from the coast of the US down to the Caribbean, through classic Mediterranean voyages and of trips in far-flung locations such as Thailand and French Polynesia. Presenting a fresh, younger side of sailing, this volume reveals the sights, sounds, tastes, and experiences that can be had on board a boat.

Join the celebration of the diverse, vibrant, and engaged community of women riding and making waves around the globe.

While surfing is usually seen as a male domain, women have long been nurturing their own water stories and claiming their rightful place in the world of this sport. She Surf hails the females, past and present, who are engaged in expanding the art of surfing. 

Through exclusive interviews and evocative imagery, the book travels from the iconic waves of Hawaii to remote locations in Morocco. Learn about the forgotten stories of Polynesian surfing princesses, pioneering wave riders from the 1960s, and the contemporary movers and shakers shaping the scene. This book is an exciting reflection on what it means to be a female surfer and what it means to be moved to action by the beauty of the sea.

Lift yourself into the world of bouldering and teach the body and mind new extremes.

Bouldering goes beyond being just a pastime, it is a sense of community that teaches you to challenge your physical and mental boundaries. Power, discipline, and pure focus that pushes you to new heights. Bouldern shows the different motifs behind bouldering and the inspirational figures of this high-performance sport. The joy of experimenting teaches perseverance and how to deal with failure, bouldering forces the body to new limits. Bernd Zangerl, known as the “natural born free-climber,” guides this book through his expertise. 

Along with his bouldering colleagues, he shows the fascinating and challenging aspects of rock and indoor climbing and explains bouldering for every age. Experiencing bouldering through gripping photography and specialist knowledge, this book is both for newcomers and skilled individuals looking to reach new heights.

When Rube Foster was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1981, his rightful place alongside baseball's greatest black heroes was at last firmly established. A world-class pitcher, a formidable manager, and a brilliant administrator, Rube Foster was arguably more influential in breaking down the color barrier in major league baseball than the venerable Jackie Robinson.
Born in 1879, Rube Foster pitched for the legendary black baseball teamsthe Cuban X-Giants and the Philadelphia Giants before becoming player-manager of the Leland Giants and the Chicago American Giants. Long a central figure in black baseball, he founded baseball's first black leaguethe Negro National League in 1920. From its inception, the Negro League served as a vehicle through which many of the finest black players could showcase their considerable talents. Challenging racial discrimination and stereotypes, it ultimately set the stage for future efforts to contest Jim Crow.
Despite the long-standing success of the Negro National League as an influential black institution, Rube Foster was deeply embittered by organized baseball's unmitigated refusal to lift the color barrier. He died a broken man in 1930.
The Best Pitcher in Baseball is the story of a man of unparalleled vision and organizational acumen whose passion for justice changed the face of baseball forever. It is a moving tribute to a man and his dream.

Our love affair with the baseball jersey continues in this major new book on the evolution of the iconic shirt as sportswear, streetwear, cultural icon, and fashion must-have.

San Francisco Chronicle Bestseller

"From the speedy rise of the Big Three to their stunning breakup, Urban's book says it all." —John Shea, National baseball Writer, San Francisco Chronicle

During the 2004 season, each of Oakland's Big Three aces had something to prove. Tim Hudson was determined to demonstrate his recovery from a recurring injury. Barry Zito had to show the world that after a ho-hum 2003, his 2002 Cy Young Award was not a fluke. Mark Mulder missed the 203 playoffs entirely with a stress fracture, but the way he saw it, he simply needed to be himself—the natural-born pitcher.

Given unprecedented access to the Big Three, Mychael Urban recreates their tumultuous season through their eyes. he explores the nuts and bolts of major league pitching, examining each player's unique approach to this craft while revealing how three very different personalities cope with the demands, rewards, and challenges of sports stardom.

Now with a new afterword on the 2005 season

Urban traces the fortunes of the Big Three after Hudson was sent to Atlanta and Mulder to St. Louis, trades which held the dramatic promise of them being reunited again-as opponents-in the playoffs.

Few things in sports evoke as much emotion as the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field. Love them or hate them, the Cubs have a mystique all their own. In Classic Cubs: A Tribute to the Men and Magic of Wrigley Field, artist John Hanley and writer Chris De Luca celebrate the glorious history and milestones of the team and highlight a galaxy of Hall of Fame ballplayers with lively text and more than 125 original oil paintings and drawings created exclusively for this book.

Classic Cubs evokes moods that only fine art can create. Hanley’s paintings record the legacy and beauty of the game and the valor of the men who played it, illustrating the ivy-covered walls and manually operated scoreboard of Wrigley Field and recounting the legendary players, announcers, owners, and “The Curse.” All are beautifully depicted through art and text.

Wrigley Field and the Chicago Cubs have been the subject of many books, but this is the first to capture the spirit of the team through the powerful skill of an artist’s brush. A beautifully painted history of the team, Classic Cubs dramatically depicts where some of baseball’s most exciting and bittersweet moments have occurred.

Why does your team float around the .500 mark year after year while other franchises always seem to be in contention? How do some teams make that incredible leap from worst to first in just a season or two? If you could corner your team's owner and general manager—say in mid-October when neither you nor they have anything better to do—what advice would you give them so that you can spend next October at the stadium? Plenty of ideas, but you're not sure which ones really work? You need to read Winners!

In this raucous, entertaining, and sure-to-be-controversial guide for the dedicated fan and unpaid organizational watchdog, Baseball Prospectus columnist Dayn Perry dives deep into the stats and comes up with some mind-blowing answers to the most important question in baseball: How to winners win?

Analyzing record, lineups, defense, and pitching staffs of the 124 teams that made it to the playoffs between 1980 and 2003, Perry separates baseball myth from hardball reality, slays some sacred cows, and gives you new, more accurate ways to analyze both individual and team performance.

You'll discover why stats like batting average, RBI, and even OBP don't tell you what you really need to know about a hitter's contribution to the team; why that much ballyhooed trading-deadline pickup probably won't help your team move up in this year's standings; and why you need only one certified ace in the rotation to make it into the post season. You'll also find out why:

• A huge payroll doesn't guarantee success (but it helps)
• Slugging percentage is a hitter's most important traditional slat
• There's no such thing as a player who "knows how to win"
• Middle relievers are typically the most important people in the bullpen
• Speed helps, stealing bases doesn't

Perry backs up every one of his brash claims with solid statistical evidence. He illustrates each point with colorful, engaging stories about some of the most successful teams and admired players of the last quarter century, from dynasties like the Braves and the Yankees to one-season wonders like the '87 Tigers and the '01 Diamondbacks. He shows you how to identify the young players most likely to have long and successful careers; analyzes the achievements of such greats as George Brett, Rickey Henderson, Pedro Martinez, and Barry Bonds; and reveals how one of the greatest teams of all time managed an eleven-year winning spree using ten (count 'em—ten!) different closers.

Whether you're buttonholing the GM, dialing your local sports call-in show, or commiserating with your buddies as the local nine go down in flames yet again, Winners gives you a leg up in every baseball argument. maybe your team still can't win—but you can!