He wore glasses and played baseball poorly and that made life hard for Phil Hoose when his family moved to Speedway, Indiana when he was nine years old. Then he found out that his father's first cousin was Don Larsen, a starting pitcher for the New York Yankees. Life got a little better. But life would get even better than that on October 8, 1956. This wonderful childhood memoir recreates one of the great achievements in modern sports history and softened my heart (for once, for just one game 50 years ago) toward the Yankees.

“Disguised as a nostalgic, coming-of-age baseball memoir, this is a sly, spare meditation on the perils of childhood, the power of celebrity, the vagaries of human kindness, and how even tenuous family bonds can have a surprisingly steely impact.”—Joe Pilla, Paperbacks Plus

In pitch-perfect prose, and with a gift for conveying the fears and dreams of a young boy’s life, Phil Hoose recalls the magical year of 1956, when his cousin, Don Larsen, pitched a perfect game in the World Series, and the game of baseball helped him take root in a tough new town. Perfect, Once Removed is a wondrous ode to the glory of baseball and to growing up.

Praise for Perfect, Once Removed (A Book Sense Pick and 2006 Highlight):

“Inspires both author and reader.”—Time

“A charmer of a memoir.”—Philadelphia Inquirer

“Perfect, Once Removed is about the magic of baseball when the game wraps itself around a boy’s soul.”—Boston Globe

“With consummate skill Mr. Hoose evokes the era of apple pie and white picket fences…His tale is ascenduring as Don Larsen was flawless that one afternoon 50 years ago.”—Washington Times

Phillip Hoose is the author of Hoosiers: The Fabulous Basketball Life of Indiana, The Race to Save the Lord God Bird, and We Were There, Too. He lives in Portland, Maine, and still plays shortstop in his local softball league.

Imprint: Walker & Company
Distributor: MPS
Publication Date: 03-04-2008
Pages: 176
Measurements: 7.75in X 5.06in