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Wrigley Blues: The Year the Cubs Played Hardball with the Curse (But Lost Anyway) |  | Author: Will Wagner
Publisher: Taylor Trade Publishing
Category: Book
List Price: $16.95
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Rating:  5 reviews
Sales Rank: 1516207
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1st Taylor Trade Pub. Ed
Pages: 296
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.9
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 5.7 x 0.5
ISBN: 1589792122
Dewey Decimal Number: 796.357640977311
EAN: 9781589792128
ASIN: 1589792122
Publication Date: January 25, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Its baseballs longest-running tale of woe. Since the Cubs last won a World Series in 1908, their fans have been forced to endure season after season of unmitigated disaster. The Cubs had two of the best young starting pitchers in the gameMark Prior and Kerry Woodand the off-season acquisitions of starter Greg Maddux, first baseman Derrek Lee, and reliever LaTroy Hawkins added further strength to the roster. Sports Illustrated even did the unthinkable and picked the Cubs to win the 2004 World Series. Then the Cubs became, well, the Cubs. Prior got injured
and Wood got injured
and Slammin Sammy Sosa got injured
and the players began feuding with the teams TV commentators
and pieces of concrete started falling from Wrigley Fields upper deck
and a series in Florida against the Marlins was canceled because of a hurricane. Through it allthrough the season-long circus actthe Cubs still somehow entered the last week with a chance to reach the playoffs as a wild card. But an epic collapse in those final games officially quashed their bold dreams of October glory. In other words, it was business as usual for the Lovable Losers. This book is much more than a chronicle of the 2004 season. Its an examination of the entire Cubs culture. Veteran sportswriter William Wagner uses 2004and the unprecedented expectations that came with itto probe Cubdom in all of its quirky and absurd glory, from the players and fans to Wrigley Field and its surrounding neighborhood. Wrigley Blues is a must-read for anyone who has a soft spot for the eternal underdog.
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| Customer Reviews:
 I laughed, I cried, I cried some more. December 27, 2006
Dickie Betz (Panjandraville, Ark.)
This book rocks. Willis Wegner watched the Cubs for a whole season and managed to tell a sane, hilarious story about what could have been. God I'm tired of the "loveable Cubbies" books. This one looks a bunch of bums square in the face and calls them out. Between now and the eventual Cubs world champion (circa 2038), this is the defining Cubs book you need to read. Bye?
A GREAT LOOK AT CUBS 2004 SEASON April 14, 2006
COOL JEWEL (MACEDONIA, OHIO USA)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
THIS IS A STORY ABOUT THE DISAPPOINTING SEASON FOR THE CUBS OF 2004. THEY HAD HIGH HOPES THAT WERE CRUSHED AS USUSAL FOR THEIR FANS. THE TEAM WAS ON THE THRESHOLD OF GOING TO THE WORLD SERIES THE PREVIOUS SEASON, AND AS USUAL THEY BLEW IT. THE YEAR OF THE CUB WAS TO BE 2004. BUT AS YOU READ THIS BOOK, THE TEAM IS HIT WITH MANY INJURIES, A BAD BULLPEN, AND INCONSISTENCY. YET THEY STILL WON 89 GAMES AND WERE IN WILDCARD RACE GOING INTO THE LAST FEW GAMES OF THE SEASON. THE AUTHOR DOES A GREAT JOB DESCRIBING IN DETAIL WHAT TOOK PLACE AND WHY. I REALLY ENJOYED THIS BOOK AND SUGGEST IT FOR ALL BASEBALL FANS. WILL THE CUBS EVER MAKE IT THE WORLD SERIES? I CERTAINLY HOPE SO.
BLUES is excellent August 27, 2005
Mark F. Braun (Norridge, IL)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Hi all; I'm the Executive Director of the Old Timers' Baseball Association of Chicago as well as a board member of our local library and the guy who worked down the hall from BASEBALL DIGEST and INSIDE SPORTS; I kinda see a lot of this stuff. When it rocks, ya gotta share it.
BLUES is Chicago all-over perfection. If we have to keep suffering, you might as well throw it back at us in a great paperback and laugh. Wagner delivers. Well recommended!
A Comedy of Errors March 24, 2005
A Baseball Observer
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I love baseball, but I've never been a huge follower of the Cubs. Still, a friend recommended this book to me, and I found it to be a real page-turner. I knew how it was going to end -- every Cubs season ends the same way -- but it was a fun read. Mr. Wagner did a great job of capturing the comedy and absurdity of the Cubs and their fans. I particularly liked his historical tidbits, such as his description of Wrigley Field. This is everything a sports book should be -- it's light, humorous and entertaining. The Cubs may never win, but at least Mr. Wagner produced a winning book about them.
 Don't expect a Happy ending. February 17, 2005
Gary Tallman (Tarzana, Ca USA)
5 out of 6 found this review helpful
As a loyal life-long cubs fan who loves reading about his favorite team I have to say I was mildly disappointed in this book. The author did a good job in recreating the games but I felt that he lacked real access to the team. The quotes used in the book were all out of the newspaper or the internet. I wanted more substance. More behind the scenes stuff. There was plenty of drama off the field last year and it just seemed like the author glossed over it all. There were a few well written profiles included in the book. My favorite was about an elderly female fan who really loved the cubbies and went to as many games as she could despite her various maladies. I think Mr. Wagner made a bold choice in writing the book as the season unfolded as opposed to writing the book when the season was over. I just wish there had a been a happier ending.
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