In his long, fascinating account, Hirsch tells us the full story of Mays baseball life . . . The result: Hirsch has given us a book as valuable for the young as it is for the old, [and] the story of Willie Mays reminds us of a time when the only performance-enhancing drug was joy.
The New York Times
James S. Hirsch . . . has produced a piece of artistry worthy of Mays in center field. . . The writing here matches the grace of the feats it chronicles.
David Shribman, Bloomberg News
This is a superb baseball book, but it’s also a riveting narrative of Mays’ life and times . . . More impressive — and what distinguishes this book from the run-of-the-mill sports biography — is Hirsch’s extensive and cogent take on race relations and the civil-rights movement both within and outside of baseball.
The Seattle Times
Hirsch has produced a masterful biography that has the same freshness and excitement that Mays generated as a player. All the highlights are there in shining, solid detail. It’s a must read for any baseball fan.
Tampa Tribune
A superb biography of baseball’s greatest player. . . It is no small claim to contend that James Hirsch has done Willie Mays justice in this book.
Bill Littlefield, NPR
Hirsch is . . . incisive on the racial tensions roiling a fast-integrating baseball during Mays’s career, and on the shift to a faster, more aggressive style of play that Mays helped inaugurate. The author is at his best probing the strategy and mechanics behind Mays’s feats of fielding and baserunning; his detailed exegeses of individual plays, including an epic account of the over-the-shoulder catch in the 1954 World Series, reveal just how much art and science went into being Willie Mays.
– Publishers Weekly
Hirsch’s biography deserves a place alongside the work by top chroniclers Roger Angell, Bill James, Roger Kahn, and Robert Creamer. Highly recommended for all baseball fans.
– Library Journal
It’s really a pleasure to read the true facts about the life and career of the greatest center fielder of all time.
– Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
You can make a strong case for Willie Mays as the most complete player in baseball history. And now, at long last, here is the complete and definitive biography of the “Say Hey Kid.”
– Bob Costas
In the hands of James S. Hirsch, the amazing career of the Say Hey Kid is a framework around which is built a story of baseball, civil rights, human nature, & America’s national character. But the focus always stays on Mr. Mays . . .What you learn about the times is as important a lesson as what you learn about him. . . an amazingly crafted story.
Deborah L. Horn, Barnes & Noble
James Hirsch has written a wonderful authorized biography of baseball great Willie Mays. I’m reading it now — “Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend” — and I offer an enthusiastic recommendation.
Bernie Miklasz, St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The New York Times, January, 31, 2010
Willie Mays, At 78, Decides to Tell His Story
Sports Crackle Pop, February 3, 2010
The Crackle Wonders: James S. Hirsch
USA Today, February 3, 2010
Book ‘Em: Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend
The Wall Street Journal, February 6, 2010
A Giant of the Diamond
The San Francisco Chronicle, February 7, 2010
Willie Mays, by James S. Hirsch
The Tampa Tribune, February 7, 2010
Biography Reveals Mays’ True Greatness
The Seattle Times, February 7, 2010
Willie Mays: The Life and Legend of a Pioneering Baseball Player
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 7, 2010
Willie Mays:The Life, the Legend
New York Post, February 7, 2010
New Book Illuminates Willie Mays’ Life and Career
New York Post, February 7, 2010
Mom Made Mays the Man He Is
Bloomberg News, February 8, 2010
Willie Mays, Acrobat of the Outfield, Wins Graceful Biography
Associated Press, February 8, 2010
Montreal Gazette, February 11, 2010
The Timeless Glory of Willie Mays
NPR’s Bill Littlefield, February 11, 2010
Willie Mays
The Los Angeles Times, February 12, 2010
The Definitive Biography of the Hall of Fame Baseball Player
The Boston Globe, February 14, 2010
Up Close, Not Personal
The San Francisco Examiner, February 17, 2010
Mays Biography a Complete Look at Complex Star
The Philadelphia Inquirer, February 21, 2010
The Man Who Made The Catch
Around the Horn, February 23, 2010
Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend
Sports Book Review Center, February 23, 2010
Willie Mays (2010)
Arkansas Democrat Gazette, February 23, 2010
Say Hey
Dugout Central, February 23
Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend
Ron Kaplan’s Baseball Book Shelf, February 25, 2010
Willie Mays
The Gospel Coalition, February 26, 2010
Willie Mays
The New York Times Sunday Book Review, February 28, 2010
Willie Mays, the Say Hey Kid
San Antonio Express News, February 28, 2010
Willie Mays: The Life, the Legend
