Cricket Books

[archie mac]

Calling Archie Mac !!

The Top 12 Cricket Books and the Top 12 Cricket Biographies do not have any individual ratings. Do you mind putting them please.

No

No

No

Sorry mate I think I would find it too hard, nothing less then 4-5 starts for all of them. Do you not agree?

 

[archie mac]

By the way I can not find a scan for the Bill O'Reilly book anywhere on the net, I do have one, so I suppose I will have to scan it!

 

[SJS]

No

No

No

Sorry mate I think I would find it too hard, nothing less then 4-5 starts for all of them. Do you not agree?

I completely agree. I had already put it as 4.5 for all of them. I needed it for a purpose

 

[archie mac]

I completely agree. I had already put it as 4.5 for all of them. I needed it for a purpose

Can I give it to you here?

Or do you need it to appear on the reviews?

If you need it on the reviews, we will have to talk to James, as I can only change things for a short time, before they become locked, and only the boss can make changes

 

[SJS]

This is for Perm http://cgi.ebay.it/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...s=algo=SI&its=I%2BIA&itu=IA%2BUCI&otn=4&ps=42 not sure if you can afford them, but there are some great reads in there, and well worth the money

Go for it Perm

I very strongly recommend. I would have bought the lot but I have twelve of the eighteen books in that lot. Everyone of them is minimum 4 star rating as per me.

Great chance to start a library with great books.

You can check the prices of these books individually at Abe Books which in my experience has the biggest collection of cricket books at the best prices in the internet.

 

[SJS]

Can I give it to you here?

Or do you need it to appear on the reviews?

If you need it on the reviews, we will have to talk to James, as I can only change things for a short time, before they become locked, and only the boss can make changes

You can give it to me here for my purpose. I do think it would be good to put it on the review site as well. Otherwise the phrase "Multiple Ratings" has no meaning. It should be "Unrated"

 

[archie mac]

You can give it to me here for my purpose. I do think it would be good to put it on the review site as well. Otherwise the phrase "Multiple Ratings" has no meaning. It should be "Unrated"

Yes good point, I will do it for you tonight, it is about 3.00 here now

 

[SJS]

Yes good point, I will do it for you tonight, it is about 3.00 here now

Great.

I am wanting to do an article for CW on cricket books and how to go about starting a good collection.

 

[archie mac]

The Fleetwood-Smith Story=4 stars
Greg Growden

With Bat and Ball=4 stars
George Giffen

Boycs the true story=4.5 stars
Leo McKinstry

Googlies=4 stars
Dr H.V. Hordern

Give me Arthur=4 stars
Peter Wynne-Thomas

Batting from Memory=4.5 stars
Jack Fingleton

Basil D'Oliveira=4.5 stars
Peter Oborne

P.G.H. Fender=4.5 stars
Richard Streeton

10 for 66 and all that=4.5 stars
Arthur Mailey

The Big Ship - Warwick Armstrong=4.5 stars
Gideon Haigh

Wally Hammond: the reasons why=5 stars
David Foot

C.B. Fry, An English Hero=5 stars
Iain Wilton

 

[archie mac]

Cakes and Bails=4.5 stars
Henry Blofeld

A La Recherche du Cricket Perdu=4.5 stars
Simon Barnes

Turn of The Wheel=4.5 stars
P.G.H. Fender

The Players=4.5 stars
Ric Sissons

Talks With Old English Cricketers=4.5 stars
"Old Ebor" (A.W. Pullin)

Purple Patches=4.5 stars
Ralph Barker

Sing All A Green Willow=4 stars
Ronald Mason

Silence of The Heart=4.5 stars
David Frith

Great Characters From Cricket's Golden Age=5 stars
Jeremy Malies

Days in The Sun=5 stars
Sir Neville Cardus

Australian Test Cricket 1877-1981=4 stars
R.S. Whitington

The Summer Game=5 stars
Gideon Haigh

 

[Dave Gregory]

Great Characters From Cricket's Golden Age=5 stars
Jeremy Malies

Days in The Sun=5 stars
Sir Neville Cardus


The Summer Game=5 stars
Gideon Haigh

Hmmmm. Does this mean we need to re-evalute the ratings system? I put so much thought into developing it

Our Ratings System

1star - possibly useful in the event of running short of kindling, but not otherwise

1.5star - no significantly redeemable features, apart from the fact you can happily use it with no regret as one of your initial offerings on Bookmooch.

2star - not worth bothering with if you have to fork out money for it, but may still be worth reading if given to you free by a relative

2.5star - an average book that whilst still readable and enjoyable, fails to really provide anything substantially new or valuable to the cricketing community

3star - an above average book that is either well written or contains information of interest, but lacks polish

3.5star - a well written book on familiar subject matter, or a very well researched book but not perfectly presented

4star - A highly recommended book that should appeal to all fans, or a very specialised book that is of great value but only to a limited section of the cricketing community

4.5star - A book that should be in all cricket libraries. Essential reading.

5star - Has not yet been awarded, and until one of the review team manages to have one of their efforts published, it is likely to remain that way.

 

[SJS]

Hmmmm. Does this mean we need to re-evalute the ratings system? I put so much thought into developing it

I think it is possible to buy mostly good books with a bit of discretion.

Of the 130 books reviewed on CW I have only 52. BUT - I have all five of the five-stars, all but 4 of the 21 four-and-a-half stars, and half of the 38 four stars.

More importantly, I have just one of those rated less than 3 stars. That too is a gift from a dear Australian friend who keeps on sending me books on Bradman

Cricket books are expensive, particularly when new, and there is a lot of very bad work along with some great stuff. If one is not taken in by the celebrity-value of the author or the attraction of the book title, one can make very good choices and spend money very wisely.

The average rating of the 52 books of mine, which are rated on CW is over four and I have no doubt that if all the 500 or so books I have were rated here, the average would be higher.

So my advise to people starting cricket libraries is - use your discretion and if you are not familiar with the good writers on the game - ask. CW reviews are a good place to pick up hints on what to buy. That I think is the greatest service CW is doing to cricket lovers. I hope it is being used by many.

 

[archie mac]

Hmmmm. Does this mean we need to re-evalute the ratings system? I put so much thought into developing it

Not sure, but it make me smile so I vote we will leave it

 

[SJS]

Hmmmm. Does this mean we need to re-evalute the ratings system? I put so much thought into developing it

I think you could modify that last sentence suitable to define the 5 star rating.

 

[nightprowler10]

Made a CW influenced purchase today through Amazon. The Mystery Spinner: The Jack Iverson Story should be on my doorstep in less than a week.

 

[archie mac]

Made a CW influenced purchase today through Amazon. The Mystery Spinner: The Jack Iverson Story should be on my doorstep in less than a week.

Very good read Lets us know what you think

 

[fredfertang]

I think it is possible to buy mostly good books with a bit of discretion.

Of the 130 books reviewed on CW I have only 52. BUT - I have all five of the five-stars, all but 4 of the 21 four-and-a-half stars, and half of the 38 four stars.

More importantly, I have just one of those rated less than 3 stars. That too is a gift from a dear Australian friend who keeps on sending me books on Bradman

Cricket books are expensive, particularly when new, and there is a lot of very bad work along with some great stuff. If one is not taken in by the celebrity-value of the author or the attraction of the book title, one can make very good choices and spend money very wisely.

The average rating of the 52 books of mine, which are rated on CW is over four and I have no doubt that if all the 500 or so books I have were rated here, the average would be higher.

So my advise to people starting cricket libraries is - use your discretion and if you are not familiar with the good writers on the game - ask. CW reviews are a good place to pick up hints on what to buy. That I think is the greatest service CW is doing to cricket lovers. I hope it is being used by many.

For once SJS I am inclined to disagree with you

Were it that I were going to start collecting tomorrow I wouldn’t bother with ABE, Amazon or dealers or using any discretion – I’d get myself along to the next specialist collectors auction with a vehicle with a large carrying capacity – Auctioneers, understandably, always pick out the choice items from collections and sell them individually and just lump the “run of the mill” stuff together in large lots that go for very little – it needs to be stressed of course that what is “run of the mill” to a dealer/collector tends to be that because it’s sold well and is therefore common so these bulk lots will generally contain all the best cricket writing and as an added bonus because they will almost certainly have belonged to a real collector they will be in excellent condition – books bought this way can work out at less than a pound a volume

Since I have started going to auctions any delight at securing a prized target is always tempered by frustration at the realisation that I should have started going years ago . Last time I went the auctioneer had split one collectors run of the mill stuff into around 15 lots and around 500 beautiful books went for about 300 pounds

 

[archie mac]

For once SJS I am inclined to disagree with you

Were it that I were going to start collecting tomorrow I wouldn’t bother with ABE, Amazon or dealers or using any discretion – I’d get myself along to the next specialist collectors auction with a vehicle with a large carrying capacity – Auctioneers, understandably, always pick out the choice items from collections and sell them individually and just lump the “run of the mill” stuff together in large lots that go for very little – it needs to be stressed of course that what is “run of the mill” to a dealer/collector tends to be that because it’s sold well and is therefore common so these bulk lots will generally contain all the best cricket writing and as an added bonus because they will almost certainly have belonged to a real collector they will be in excellent condition – books bought this way can work out at less than a pound a volume

Since I have started going to auctions any delight at securing a prized target is always tempered by frustration at the realisation that I should have started going years ago . Last time I went the auctioneer had split one collectors run of the mill stuff into around 15 lots and around 500 beautiful books went for about 300 pounds

How do you know when they will have cricket books? Or do you just go and hope?

 

[SJS]

For once SJS I am inclined to disagree with you

Were it that I were going to start collecting tomorrow I wouldn’t bother with ABE, Amazon or dealers or using any discretion – I’d get myself along to the next specialist collectors auction with a vehicle with a large carrying capacity – Auctioneers, understandably, always pick out the choice items from collections and sell them individually and just lump the “run of the mill” stuff together in large lots that go for very little – it needs to be stressed of course that what is “run of the mill” to a dealer/collector tends to be that because it’s sold well and is therefore common so these bulk lots will generally contain all the best cricket writing and as an added bonus because they will almost certainly have belonged to a real collector they will be in excellent condition – books bought this way can work out at less than a pound a volume

Since I have started going to auctions any delight at securing a prized target is always tempered by frustration at the realisation that I should have started going years ago . Last time I went the auctioneer had split one collectors run of the mill stuff into around 15 lots and around 500 beautiful books went for about 300 pounds

Oh I would love to do that if I had such book shops (or auctioneers) within a thousand miles of my home !!

I started my library (after the first hundred or so books that I had bought over time when I was younger) by going to Book Barn in Bristol. Imagine, going all the way from Bombay to England and over two days, went through their massive collection in an industrial warehouse, picked up 150 books and brought them to London from where I shipped them to India and came back

If I was as lucky as you guys, as regards availability of cricket books here in India, I would have had as big a library as Archie's by now.

 

[fredfertang]

How do you know when they will have cricket books? Or do you just go and hope?

Check the online catalogues

Oh I would love to do that if I had such book shops (or auctioneers) within a thousand miles of my home !!

I started my library (after the first hundred or so books that I had bought over time when I was younger) by going to Book Barn in Bristol. Imagine, going all the way from Bombay to England and over two days, went through their massive collection in an industrial warehouse, picked up 150 books and brought them to London from where I shipped them to India and came back

If I was as lucky as you guys, as regards availability of cricket books here in India, I would have had as big a library as Archie's by now.

Fair point SJS - I tend to be blinkered by my frustration at not being able to acquire a handful of not particularly costly books published on the sub-continent which I fondly assume (no doubt quite wrongly) are readily available from every purveyor of books in India - this means that I tend to overlook the enormous difficulties that must apply when you are based in India and want to acquire books published elsewhere - presumably there are no specialist cricket book dealers in India? - perhaps there is a business opportunity there - I am given to understand by a couple of UK dealers that their client bases in India are growing rapidly