Having been turned on to Ballard's witty and insightful prose through his frequent contributions to Maxim (check out his article on Russia!), Men's Health, and Point of View, I was ecstatic to finally sit down and read Hoops Nation. While the format does not allow the reader to fully appreciate Ballard's entire literary arsenal, it does nevertheless reveal his unmatched love for the game of round ball. I guarantee you will not be able to put this book down. Whether you find yourself frequently thumbing to the back for one more look at his devilishly handsome photo, or merely get caught up envisioning yourself as one of the road crew, you can be assured of the ride of your life.

Hoops Nation is not just for the basketball fan. As a reader with no previous interest in hoops, I can attest to its universal appeal. My ribs are still aching from laughter and I need to catch up on my sleep. I wait for the sequel with baited breath, now and forever a junkie of pick-up basketball and Chris Ballard!

Here's the drill: hit the road in a van; crisscross the country in search of pick-up basketball,wherever it's played with passion and verve; then write a lively and informative guide to the Hoops Nation that is America. That's what former college player Chris Ballard did. His guide judges the five best pick-up courts in the country, then continues on its full-court press to critique pick-up hoops games in every region. With descriptions of more than 700 gyms, parks, and schoolyards in all 50 states, this is the most comprehensive look at neighborhood basketball ever undertaken. The ratings system, complete with graphic symbols, covers such criteria as type of court (indoor or outdoor), level of competition, court quality, rough play, dangerous areas (only exceptional pick-up games in dangerous areas are included), and the regularity of female players. But this is so much more than a field guide. Ballard relates basketball lore and myth from all over the country, profiles pick-up legends, and, for rookies, covers tips on etiquette and basic play. Whether looking for a good game when out of town or just curious about hoops in other places, this fun and useful guide will put visions of jump shots in your head and get the adrenaline pumping.

Chris Ballard should be lauded for his wonderfully concise and sophisticated written journey through America's hoops heartland. Chris successfully boiled down a subject of extreme complexity into a an easy to use reference guide that has something for everybody. Of special interest is Chris' reasoned analysis of the changing nature of the sport and his expertise on the issue of basketball as a cultural and societal gap bridging mechanism. Hoops Nation is a rare jewel of humor, anecdotal variety, and thorough research. I'm quite pleased to have discovered this literary treasure and can be assured of Jordanesque status on Christmas day when my friends and relatives receive their own paperbacks. Anyway I can get an autograph?

The book tells us about what happened to John F Kennedy during World War two, how the Japanese sank his boat, so how he became a hero. There is a short biography( 1917-1940) too, with cute photos. There was a nice chapter on the Solomon Islands, the local people, the influence of Western culture, and the culture today. I suggest it to all Jack Kennedy fans or not.

Dr. Ballard lives in Lyme Connecticut, 10 miles from where I live. I saw this book in a local bookstore window this weekend, and realized that he was coming to town in 4 days to speak on the subject. Being a history buff, and certainly a Kennedy history buff, I bought the book (locally, so that he would sign it for free!), and read it last night. It's a short read, with only one or two chapters covering the actual exploration for the PT-109. The rest of the book contains Kennedy family history dating back to the Kennedy's in Boston from 1850. There was a nice chapter on the Solomon Islands, the local people, the influence of Western culture, and the culture today. There was also nice information on the crash that proves that the Hollywood movie on PT-109 took some liberties concerning his rescue of marines on a beach ... go figure ... Hollywood taking liberties...

The bottom line ... I believe Ballard has found the PT boat ... even though he couldn't quite prove it ... The fact a future president's boat was lost in this region has left a closeness with the locals towards the United States ... and the two local's that discovered Kennedy and his crew are still alive and still very much influenced by their part in history. This will be Ballard's last modern historical ship find ... after this he will move on to work on the Black Sea project ... I'm glad he found John Kennedy's boat before he moved on. Read the book

Dr. Ballard lives in Lyme Connecticut, 10 miles from where I live. I saw this book in a local bookstore window this weekend, and realized that he was coming to town in 4 days to speak on the subject. Being a history buff, and certainly a Kennedy history buff, I bought the book (locally, so that he would sign it for free!), and read it last night. It's a short read, with only one or two chapters covering the actual exploration for the PT-109. The rest of the book contains Kennedy family history dating back to the Kennedy's in Boston from 1850. There was a nice chapter on the Solomon Islands, the local people, the influence of Western culture, and the culture today. There was also nice information on the crash that proves that the Hollywood movie on PT-109 took some liberties concerning his rescue of marines on a beach ... go figure ... Hollywood taking liberties...

The bottom line ... I believe Ballard has found the PT boat ... even though he couldn't quite prove it ... The fact a future president's boat was lost in this region has left a closeness with the locals towards the United States ... and the two local's that discovered Kennedy and his crew are still alive and still very much influenced by their part in history. This will be Ballard's last modern historical ship find ... after this he will move on to work on the Black Sea project ... I'm glad he found John Kennedy's boat before he moved on. Read the book.

This is a frightening world so close to our own. A world where one small mistake leads to a world wide drought. A world where communities, lives and loves fall apart. This was the first book that moved me, and I can still smell the salt of those drying oceans. This is Ballard at his best.

The Drought is another apocalyptic novel by futurist author J.G.Ballard. In narrative as spare and dry as the expanding deserts he envisions, Ballard describes an earthwide ecological catastrophe when industrial pollution causes a breakdown of the water cycle. Man and planet parch together. This disruption of the elements is accompanied by bizarre disturbances of the human landscape; old friendships fail while old enmities take sinister new courses; teams of "fishermen", their boats stranded in the dust of former harbors, cast their nets for a new, easier prey. Idiots become prophet kings in this redefined world. While not as vividly drawn as some of Ballard's other works, The Drought is an expertly written book; full of cryptic symbology, poetic flashes, casual violence and "Ballardian" prose. Another five star effort by this under appreciated writer.

The world dies. Ballard ends it with a flood in Drowned World, with wind in Wind from Nowhere and so on. In this book it is a drought. Think for yourself how you would write it. In a few paragraphs Ballard sucks you into his version, peopled with characters strange and as unbelievable as the premise. I know the exact location to shoot the movie of this, and have always cherished a secret dream that one day I'd help make that movie. Now comes Crash - and now millions of otherwise literary Americans will come to know some of JGB's work and some lucky soul with cash will buy the option to my dream. Ah well, the greater good is that JGB may become recognized at last as one of the finest minds in SF, a creator of worlds and a master of psychologies. Please read the book, but please leave the movie rights for me

we just came back from our south africa tour using the footprint handbook to zig zag more than 10 000 kilometres through the country. this book is a five star travel companion: very much up to date in sections like accommodation addresses, price categories, timetables - and the footprint kept us entertained as well. With little personality stories and well researched history background. the best thing for us: footprint calls it a handbook and not a guide book and that is what you need if you are self sufficient travellers like us in our vw kombi. look up the little sleepy karoo towns you are passing through on your way to major tourist destinations and even there you will find interesting details about the country. also well researched are the route descriptions if you are tending to go off the beaten track and for instance go off exploring some of the winding roads, that thomas baines designed more than 100 years ago along the garden route. if you use this book as a reference book while having your own ideas what to see and where to go, you won't get lost. instead you will get an idea what living in the rainbow nation is all about. one regret: a pity that the cool story about johnnie, the cave man, who explored big parts of the oudshoorn cango caves, got shortened in the new edition.

It is rare to find such a well written, comprehensive and detailed guide. The maps are excellent and cover more than just the essential. Information is as up to date as you can get it - this guide gets reprinted yearly. I also understand that from the time editing is finished it appears on the shelves within 3 months. The print is smallish and the paper is thin. However, the information is absolutely incredible - about 8 times more comprehensive than its nearest rival! From hiking trails to detail on less frequented places. This is deservedly the no. 1 selling book for South Africa - probably as timetables of trains, busses and Baz Bus is published and it makes trip planning really easy. It is also not written only for budget travellers - it is a book for everyone. Highly recommended.

This is by far the best guide to South Africa. The information is very comprehensive, accurate and informative. The format is a sturdy hardback that's small enough to be easy to pop into your bag but won't get battered easily.

In my humble opinion based on reading perhaps 1,000 books on golf over the past 40+ years, this may be the single best golf instructional book ever written. It's short, it's clear, it's well-illustrated, and it's an approach to instruction that WORKS. As I recall, Ballard was selected as the "teacher of the decade" for the 1980's by Golf Magazine, and with good reason. His fundamental principle of "connection" is, as he says, not merely the key to golf but to any number of sports. He has identified the fundamental principle that distinguishes the great ball-strikers from the hacks and also-rans. Regardless of what they may SAY they do, or FEEL they do, Ballard has identified what the great ball-strikers really DO. I recently took some lessons at the Kapalua Golf Academy and came home thinking "That sounds just like what Jimmy Ballard was saying 20 years ago." I picked up a copy of this book and confirmed that it indeed was what Ballard was saying 20 years ago. You may need some professional guidance to confirm that you are grasping what Ballard is saying, but I'm convinced that what he is saying is pretty much the one overriding key to the golf swing. I'm astounded that this book is out of print because it deserves to live alongside of Hogan's Five Lessons and a handful of other indisputable classics.

It's a real shame that this book is out of print. This is the best book I've read on the golf swing. Applying concepts learned in just the first few chapters, I saw immediate improvement.

This instruction is the most direct approach and makes more practical sense then any of many many books that I have read. The method just simply WORKS.

These Augusta Goodnight mysteries are wonderful with a cup of tea. This third installment of this clever and unique series, introduces the reader to Arminda who is recently widowed and visiting with her grandmother. Her cousin, Otto, is murdered and she finds the body! The story weaves around an antique quilt and family members from the past and present interlock to solve this mystery.

I'm looking forward to Mignon's next Augusta Goodnight read.

Arminda Hobbs has returned to her hometown of Angel Heights after the sudden death of her husband. She needs the comfort of her family. Unfortunately, she finds the body of her cousin Otto in the Ladies Room of Holley House, formerly the Minerva Academy. She also finds a curious pin. The design is reflected in an Alma Mater sampler done by her great grandmother, and a mysterious quilt passed along from member to member of a group of friends. How does this all tie into Otto's murder? Fortunately, she has her family and a guardian angel to help her.

The Augusta Goodnight series is fast becoming one of my favorites. The temporary guardian(her real job is tending heavenly strawberry fields) once again steps in to solve another mystery, in this case, she is tying up loose ends from a previous job. I found it very hard to put this one down and can't wait until the next one.

This may be the worst moment in Minda Hobb's life because she is mourning for her young husband she loved very much who died in a freak lightening accident while they were on a picnic. She moves back to her hometown of Angel Heights, South Carolina where she has another traumatic incident. In the woman's bathroom of Holley Hall, in the stall next to the one Minda was using, she comes upon the body of Cousin Otto.

At first everyone believed he died a natural death but the coroner rules it a murder. Feeling alone and frightened, Minda moves into the family home where she meets her temporary guardian angel, the heavenly Augusta Goodnight. Working together with some help from Minda's family, it is discovered that Otto's death and an attempt on Minda's life has its origin in a secret society two generations back who made a quilt that contained a deadly message somebody today doesn't want made public.

SHADOW OF AN ANGEL is a delightful and whimsical cozy costarring a protagonist that fans will like and sympathize with and her charming guardian angel. Augusta discreetly nudges Minda in the direction she wants her to go. The mystery itself is a cerebral teaser that will confound most readers but the joy in this novel is not the answer but the quest to find it.

Harriet Klausner

What starts off as a Nazi thriller quickly tips the hand of the author with handwriting analysis, code-breaking of German Army messages and then a slick commando attack on the British code-breaking factory north of London. Just as you think you're reading just another interesting action war book, the hero tips his hand--he's so strongly against war, he's going to treasonously help the Germans attack the Oak Ridge atom bomb plants. But why? Suffice it to say the answer is unexpected, but works well. A perfect beach blanket page-turner

Talk about strong historical realism--I thought I was reading a history of the Third Reich. All the plyaers are there--Hitler, Bormann, Goering and Eva Braun. Then along comes the hero, Robt Ballard. Genial, secretive and really clever, but a man with faults writ large. Unlike most works of this type, there is a aching love story and some graphic sex. The best WW-II book I've read since "The Eagle Has Landed."

Hello!, I'm an enthusiast of the Kriegsmarine, I was waiting for the book, I've searhcing it for months, and finally it came!!!, as I expected from the Ballard's books, this is an amazing book. I began to be intrested in the Battleship Bismarck since I was 7 years old, and one day of 1989 I hear that: "the man who found Titanic, now has found the Battleship Bismarck". Since then I was looking for the book.
It shows the aspect of the wreck and a lot of information about the ship. It also has a nice paints, which represents the descicive moments of the battle. A book that must be in the library of every one intrested in this subject.

In 1989, Robert Ballard, Discoverer of the Titanic, located the legendary German warship Bismarck three miles below the Atlantic. This book includes some excellent photos of the the ship as she origanally appeared and of the ship as she appears today. Also includes much info about the sea chase (About half the book as a matter of fact). What's most amazing is that Bismarck took so much damage but yet is shown well preserved in these photos. The only problem is there is no reprint. A second expedition to the wreck would also be nice. Oh Well!

"Nathan," the autobiographical story of Nathan Ballard, is the moving narrative of a man who has lived with cerebral palsy much longer than the usual life span allows someone in his condition. The reader is given a world-wind look at the trials and accomplishments of Ballard's life. The book immediately engages the reader and teaches him or her not to feel sorry for the disabled. Ballard has accomplished much more in his life than many people who are in perfect health. He is multi-lingual and has participated in many national activities regarding the well being of disabled persons, including the panel which helped create the Americans with Disabilities Act. Overall, "Nathan" is very easy to read and gives great detail of each period in Ballard's life. However, the book does tend to skip from one point in time to another. This can be discouraging to the reader in several instances, where it jumps quickly from childhood to the present. The character development in "Nathan" is exceptional. Readers quickly feel as though they know Ballard, his family and his friends. "Nathan" will truly open your eyes to the life of a disabled person. It is amazing to hear a first hand account of how people in wheelchairs are actually treated by their peers. Ballard is a fixture on the University of Alabama campus and is very friendly and positive to the students. As a student at Alabama, I know the author and his determination to succeed in his writing career. A screenplay is currently being written on Nathan, and he is now working on a book of poetry.

Many a year ago, when Nathan approached me on the University of Alabama campus to read a book he had spent 20 years writing, I did not think much of it. After spending that weekend reading what then were mere pages in a box, my life has forever been changed. My perspective on life and my attitude toward life has been irrevocably altered. Nathan's brutal honestly and total willingness to sacrifice his all to make a differnce resonates on each page as Nathan's story is brought to life. I wish everyone could read this book. Is it a literary masterpice, probably not. Will it change your life, I bet it will. If you are looking for a book that will inspire you and lift you up, this is the one. And, as one that has been blessed to have gotten to know the man behind the book, yes Nathan is the real deal!

This guy is something else. I heard about him from a friend who read a story of his friendship with Dave Matthews online somewhere. When I bought the book, I thought there would be something about DMB in it. They are mentioned at the end, but this book is what it claims to be. It's about Nathan Ballard. What an interesting life. The book reads well, it is full of surprises and keeps you guessing.

I had no idea what life for a badly disabled person was like. The writers do a fantastic job of spelling out what the experience "feels" like, inside and outside. Nathan is honest about himself. He doesn't spare self-criticism. To me, that makes him more human. He's funny, too. I can see why Dave must like him so much. The dude has been through a lot.

The middle is a little lengthy about some lady who tried to rip him off and steal the book, but it doesn't detract from the story too much. If you are reading this, then by all means buy it. It's a great story. When I finished it I gave it to my mom.

This is a historical novel about life in rural Georgia in during the World War Two era. If you like the works of Ferrol Sams, you will also like this one. As a baby-boomer, this gave me an insite into my parents childhood. The character are charming, and well-drawn.

Having grown up in a small southern town with the curses and blessings of larger than life small town characters and their intense involvment in each other's lives, The War in Sallie's Station rang true on every front. It is a marvelous book which has more than a few turns of phrase which remind me of my literary idol, Harper Lee--I could not reccomend it more highly. The War in Sallie's Station is a story of friendship and love that span not only changing years but cultures, of evil that transends imagination, and of ultimate good that conquors all.

I know Sallies Station, in fact I know Mignon Franklin Ballard.
We grew up in the same small town that Sallies Station is based on.
She has captured my town and all other small towns in America.
I have enjoyed her angel series and eagerly await the new one due in April of next year.
Sallies Station goes between the years of WW II and present day and the characters are wonderful.
I only wish she would write faster and hope she will write a sequel to this book.