12 in 12 - April Review

One of the few posts I had (somewhat) prepped before my brain decided to explode was my monthly book review.

Not sure what kind of reception these posts are getting.....and to be quite frank - I could care less.  I'm really enjoying the routine of reading.  There are some great books out there and I can now proudly say that I'm flipping through a few of them.

This month's offering was about a ball player that I remember hearing about when I was growing up.  But while I knew bits here and there, I never really got the whole story - until now.

April's book is about San Francisco Giants pitcher Dave Dravecky.

Comeback

Dave Dravecky with Tim Stafford

252 pages

Raise your hand if you've heard the name Dave Dravecky.  I had heard of him but unfortunately it was because of one specific pitch he threw against the Montreal Expos on August 15, 1989.

But this story begins a good bit before that.

Dave developed a cancerous tumor in his pitching arm that eventually required major surgery to remove.  The surgery was so damaging to his arm (he was left with only half a deltoid muscle) that doctors told him it would take a miracle to pitch again.

Challenge accepted.  We learn of Dravecky's career up to that point, the year of rehab to not only get use of his arm back - but eventually pitch in the majors and ultimately the fateful day where his progress took a permanent downturn.

There are lots of ups and downs in this read, lots of varied emotions and at times a bit of a confusing focus.  There were times where I felt completely engaged in what was being said and where the story was going.  Other times it felt as though subjects were being glossed over or generalized.

What I did find is that after reading Comeback, I went to do some research to find out what happened to Dave Dravecky.  The story ends pretty abruptly in the 1990 area so there is much that isn't revealed.

Overall it's a pretty good read.  I think it helped that I knew of Dravecky.  He pitched at a time when I was most into baseball (late 80's early 90's).  If you like books about overcoming adversity then you'd probably enjoy this read.

3 out of 5


May's book...

The cover alone has me sold on it.