Josh Wilker

I have to preface this review by saying that I have never read anything else that Josh has ever written, including his blogs. This book was my first experience with his writing, and I have to say I wasn't a huge fan. I was not born yet, in the generation he is mostly focusing on in this book, and it makes me feel, kind of, detached, or distant from the book. Now, I am not saying that I cannot read a book that is written about a generation, more so, that this book didn't do its job of making me feel like a part of its generation.
Another problem I had with this book was the feeling that the baseball card link was used as too much of a gimmick. Like I said, I haven't read any of his stuff before, so it is possible that the baseball cards did really represent cardboard gods, whom he still reveres to this day, but as a casual reader just picking up this book, it came across as very gimmicky. The links from the authors life to the baseball card leading off the chapter, while sometimes proving to be very interesting and informational (Herb Washington for example), sometimes seemed very forced. Like psychic readings, and Nostradamus's predictions, the link from life story to baseball card feels very generalized, and if you look hard enough you could find some card to fit any life experience, or some life experience to match a specific card.
My third problem with this book is that, it feels like, just as the chapter is getting good, and we are building up to a great conclusion, the chapter just kind of ends. I don't know if that is done intentionally, letting the reader glean their own conclusions, or whatever, but I am not a big fan of that premise. I do not want to try to figure out what I "get" from the book, it is your life story, tell me what happens next.
I feel like I am being very harsh to this book, but it really wasn't all bad. It was well written. It was enjoyable. Like I said before, it was loaded with interesting facts and anecdotes. It was very well reviewed by most other people that I have seen. I guess it just wasn't really for me.… (altro)