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An amazing number of books have been written about Babe Ruth or contain information and/or stories about Babe Ruth. While we may or may not agree with all of the points made in these books, we do think they are worthy reading about the Babe. Decide for yourself whether you agree with the portrayals of the Babe. If you'd like to review the books or discuss them, please visit Section 10: Interact to express your opinions.

BRC recommends some of its favorite books below, as well as presents a small selection of other "stuff" that you may find of interest.

  • Books About Babe Ruth
  • Other Books We Recommend
  • A Few Fun Books for Kids with Babe Ruth Themes
  • Other Stuff We Like
  • Even More Good Books

    Books About Babe Ruth

    "Babe Ruth" reunites Julia Ruth Stevens, daughter of Babe Ruth and Bill Gilbert, a former Washington Post reporter and best-selling author, for their second book together on the Babe. This is the ultimate book for any true baseball fan, telling the story of his groundbreaking career as well as memorable tales from his often-colorful life off the field. Featuring a winning line-up of rare and never-before-published photographs, the book also includes pull-out facsimile reproductions of memorabilia such as World Series tickets from 1916 to 1932; newspaper articles chronicling the Babe’s record-breaking achievements; the official souvenir program from opening day at Yankee Stadium in 1923; and Babe Ruth’s first professional baseball contract. A glorious memento of an incredible career, "Babe Ruth" is a fitting tribute to one of the 20th century’s towering personalities.
    "Babe & The Kid", by Charles Poekel, tells the famous story of Babe Ruth and Johnny Sylvester: "On the eve of game four of the 1926 World Series, Ruth heard that a young New Jersey boy, Johnny Sylvester, was laid up with a deadly illness. Ruth autographed a ball for Johnny, inscribing it, I'll knock a homer for you in Wednesday's game - Babe Ruth. The rest was history. Ruth delivered on his promise, and Johnny made a miraculous recovery."
    "Babe Ruth and the 1918 Red Sox", by Allan Wood, is a Red Sox tale which backtracks to George Herman Ruth's youth as a rebellious kid who was reoriented to his Hall of Fame career under a mentor at a Baltimore orphanage. Wood proceeds to provide an admiring story of the Red Sox triumph, despite depleted rosters and threats of a government shutdown and players' strike. 1918 would end up being the last World Series the Red Sox won for the next 86 years.
    "The Year Babe Ruth Hit 104 Homeruns: Re-Crowning Baseball's Greatest Slugger", by William Jenkinson, comprehensively focuses on Babe's batting power:

    "Ty and the Babe", by Tom Stanton, analyzes each player's character in detail and explains their fierce 14-year competition in the Majors, which ultimately lead to respect and friendship:

    "Babe: The Legend Comes to Life", by Robert Creamer, is often considered the most definitive of the Babe Ruth biographies:

    "The Big Bam", by Leigh Montville, one of the most comprehensive biographies of the Babe, for today's generation:

    "Babe Ruth: A Daughter's Portrait", by George Beam with Julia Ruth Stevens, is a pictorial look at Babe Ruth's life, career and family:

    "Major League Dad: A Daughter's Cherished Memories", by Julia Ruth Stevens with Bill Gilbert, is a smaller presentation of photos and memories direct from Babe's daughter:

    "Babe Ruth's Own Book of Baseball", by George Herman Ruth, Jr., is a book originally written by the Babe, himself, in 1928 and reprinted in recent years:

    "Babe Ruth: A Biography", by Wayne Stewart, describes the highlights of Ruth's career and investigates the reasons for his unprecedented impact on the game. The author draws new insights into Ruth's life and career through interviews he conducted with members of Ruth's family and with other baseball players who knew him.

    "Young Babe Ruth: His Early Life and Baseball Career from the Memoirs of a Xaverian Brother", by Brother Gilbert and Harry Rothberber, is a unique look into the early life under the Xaverian influence of St. Mary's Industial School in Baltimore. This book is written by one of the Xaverian brothers who shaped Ruth's early life and makes for an interesting insight.

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    Other Books We Recommend

    "Memories of a Ballplayer", by Bill Werber and C. Paul Rogers III, recalls the baseball career of Bill Werber. Mr. Werber also shares a few stories while he was with the Yankees and a teammate of the Babe:

    "The Babe Signed my Shoe", by Ernie Harwell, the Hall of Fame broadcaster of the Detroit Tigers, recalls memories from his many years involved with baseball:

    "The Road to Cooperstown", by Tom Stanton, is a sentimental story of a roadtrip made to The Baseball Hall of Fame by the author, his brother and their father:

    "Baseball: A History of America's Favorite Game", by George Vecsey, provides an overview of the sport from this New York Times columnist:

    "Baseball: An Illustrated History", by Kenneth Burns and Geoffrey C. Ward, is the complement to the Emmy Award-winning documentary series "Baseball" by Ken Burns, which originally aired on PBS. The book includes images from the film, essays from notable sportswriters, as well as interesting narative regarding baseball's role within American History.

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    A Few Fun Books for Kids with Babe Ruth Themes

    "The Babe & I", by David A. Adler, is a tale of the challenges and magic of a depression-era childhood spent in the Bronx, New York (for ages 5-9):

    "Babe Ruth Saves Baseball", by Frank Murphy, is a tale of people all over America giving up the country's national pastime, with Babe winning back fans and saving baseball (for ages 4-8):

    "Cam Jansen and the Mystery of Babe Ruth's Baseball", by David A. Adler, is a tale from the Cam Jansen series in which the heroine must identify the person who stole a valuable autographed baseball (for ages 4-8):

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    Other Stuff We Like

    "Baseball: A Film by Ken Burns", is the DVD collection of the Emmy Award-winning documentary series by Ken Burns, which originally aired on PBS. Narrated by former NBC News Anchor, John Chancellor, the documentary captures a mix of film footage, interviews and voice over of written works, including speeches and letters. In addition to an in-depth look at some key players such as Cobb, Ruth and Jackie Robinson, the documentary also focuses on race, business and labor relations within baseball. The collection is broken out into 9 DVDs, each representing an "inning".

    HelmarBrewing.com is the official website of the company that makes Big League Brew, with unique bottle caps, logos and packaging featuring baseball stars from the past:

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    Even More Good Books

    "Life After Baseball", by Ernie Harwell, is a collection of newspaper stories written by this Hall of Fame broadcaster:

    "The Final Season", by Tom Stanton, recalls the 1999 baseball season in which the author attended all 81 games during the last season that Detroit played in Tiger Stadium:

    "Sultans of Swat" contains coverage from the New York Times on the Babe, as well as Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle:

    "Gift of the Bambino", by Jerry Amernic, is an example of how a book can successfully combine sports history and fiction to create an entertaining baseball novel for children, parents and grandparents to share together.

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