Showing titles in Sociology of Sports

A Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist pulls back the curtain on the extraordinary inner lives of America’s most obsessive sports fans. There are fans, and then there are fanatics. In this wondrously immersive look at American sports fandom, George Dohrmann travels the country to find out what...

As a leading political and intellectual historian and a certified fitness instructor, Natalia Mehlman Petrzela is uniquely qualified to confront the complex and far-reaching implications of how our contemporary exercise culture took shape. She explores the work of working out not just as consumers have experienced it, but as it was created by performers, physical educators, trainers, instructors, and many others. For Petrzela, fitness is a social justice issue. She argues that the fight for a more equitable exercise culture will be won only by revolutionizing fitness culture at its core.

Are you a young athlete looking to compete with the best? How about a seasoned professional wanting to stay at the top of their game? One of the toughest aspects of being an athlete is consistency; not just performing well at one event, but being the best every time you enter a competition. No matter how hard you train or tweak your diet, you might feel like you’ve hit a plateau. You might not be making any more progress at all. You aren’t alone!

Skating on Thin Ice exposes the culture of toxic masculinity in professional hockey and suggests how sport and society can change the narrative on sexual assault and violence.

The extraordinary story of the small Vermont town that has likely produced more Olympians per capita than any other place in the country, Norwich gives “parents of young athletes a great gift—a glimpse at another way to raise accomplished and joyous competitors” (The Washington Post). In...

Becoming a True Champion: Achieving Athletic Excellence from the Inside Out fills a critical need by speaking in a frank and direct voice directly to today's aspiring athletes about crucial, controversial issues and the personal choices they face. At the same time the audiobook presents them with the antidote to these negative influences - the fundamental values, attitudes and concepts, both mental and practical, that support and lead to athletic excellence.

Professional wrestling is both a cultural phenomenon and a multibillion-dollar industry that has launched some of the biggest names in entertainment. But what does it take for a wrestler to break through? In Rough House, journalist Alison Lyn Miller introduces Hunter James, an aspiring star born into a family of wrestlers in Georgia. Hunter lifts, runs, and pounds protein, sculpting himself into a human action figure with the goal of being signed by a major promotion and finishing what his father started.

“This collection of Grant’s work is a great testament to not only what he did when he was here, but what he’s still doing to impact others.”—LeBron James The definitive collection of beloved late journalist Grant Wahl’s work—a masterclass in the art of sportswriting After Grant...

In Mallparks, Michael Friedman observes that just as cathedrals represented power relations in medieval towns, and skyscrapers epitomized those within industrial cities, sports stadiums exemplify urban America at the turn of the twenty-first century.

A New York Times bestselling and award-winning journalist uses cutting-edge sports research to make the case for why being a fan is good for us individually and is a force for positive change in our society. Larry Olmsted’s writing and research have been called “eye-opening” (People)...

Radical gender activists are using a pseudoscientific theory of human biology to hijack sports and subvert the long-established concept of fair play - forcing women and girls to risk their safety, pushing them aside for male athletes using the excuse of “inclusivity”.

From New York Times best-selling author Lars Anderson comes a revealing portrait of the first family of American sports. What the Kennedys are to politics, the Mannings are to football. Two generations have produced three NFL superstars: Archie Manning, the Ole Miss hero-turned-New Orleans Saint; his son Peyton, widely considered one of the greatest quarterbacks ever to play the game; and Peyton's younger brother, Eli, who won two Super Bowl rings of his own.

From the #1 NYT bestselling author often called the greatest living sportswriter, a countdown of the 50 greatest and most magical seasons in baseball history. Joe Posnanski is the go-to writer in sports, and Fifty Seasons delivers a joyful, stirring look at baseball moments and miracles that...

In Soccer in American Culture: The Beautiful Game’s Struggle for Status, G. Edward White seeks to answer two questions. The first is why the sport of soccer failed to take root in the United States when it spread from England around much of the rest of the world in the late 19th and 20th centuries. The second is why the sport has had a significant renaissance in America since the last decade of the 20th century, to the point where it is now the fourth largest participatory sport in the United States and is thriving at the high school, college, and professional levels.

Take Your Mark, Lead! is a self-help, go-to guide for people who urgently want to take charge of their lives. Leader, champion, and survivor Kelly Parker Palace delivers 11 entertaining, informative chapters chocked full of inspiring stories and actionable, practical strategies. This transformative book will empower you to triumph in all aspects of your life and to champion yourself, your business, and others.

Featuring interviews by former NBA player Etan Thomas with over 50 athletes, executives, media figures, and more - and interwoven with essays and critiques by Thomas - We Matter shares the personal tales and opinions of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Russell, Dwyane Wade, Russell Westbrook, Steve Kerr, Oscar Robertson, Mark Cuban, Michael Bennett, Carmelo Anthony, Derrick Rose....

Multiple grand slam tennis champion and entrepreneur, Venus Williams and 46 of her colleagues, friends, and mentors deliver a volume of invaluable wisdom, motivation, and inspiration. Come to Win demonstrates how the principles of competitive athletics translate into business success. With...

A bold and impassioned meditation on injustice in our country that punctures the illusion of a postracial America and reveals it as a place where authoritarianism looms large. Whether the issues are protest, labor, patriotism, or class division, it is clear that professional sports are no longer...

Sports fans, dads, and data analysts David Sikorjak and Ben Valenta argue that fandom can not only increase our sense of belonging but also serves as a powerful antidote to loneliness because sports fans experience increased social connection. What they didn't realize was how deep that connection was, the potential it carried for individual and societal wellness, or the opportunities it offered for adult friendships, making and keeping friends, and family ties.

From the sports documentarian and executive producer of the docuseries The Religion of Sports, a memoir-meets-manifesto about the overwhelming power of sports and how they provide meaning and purpose in people’s lives all over the world. Featuring never-before-heard stories about Tom Brady...