Rave
Neil Best,
Newsday
The result is the most complete account yet of Ruth’s complicated, tragic family life, including siblings who died young, parents who separated and, most famously, being shipped off to St. Mary’s Industrial School for Boys in Baltimore.
Positive
Scott Detrow,
NPR
Leavy documents a personal life marked by tragedy.
Mixed
John Swansburg,
The New York Times Book Review
Leavy’s conceit allows her to stake out some untrod turf. But she also makes a compelling case that to appreciate the adulation Ruth soaked up in October 1927 is to understand his contribution to American life in full. He was not merely a hitter of towering home runs, but the progenitor of our contemporary conception of what it means to be a celebrity.
Positive
Katherine A. Powers,
The Wall Street Journal
...magnificent.
Positive
Eric Liebetrau,
The Boston Globe
Another winner.
Positive
Ed Sherman,
Chicago Tribune
Jane Leavy, though, manages to mine new material in her wonderful book on the baseball legend.
Positive
Erik Spanberg,
The Christian Science Monitor
All of these aspects of Ruth’s life, and many more, come into focus in The Big Fella.
Positive
Aram Goudsouzian,
The Washington Post
The Big Fella omits many of Ruth’s feats as a ballplayer, but previous biographies have trod all over that ground. Instead, Leavy shines light on Ruth’s place in American cultural history. She paints a sensitive and humorous portrait.
Positive
Bill Schwab,
Missourian
Jane Leavy brings an extensive knowledge of sports history to her latest biography.
Rave
Ron Kaplan,
Bookreporter
I am happy to report that The Big Fella may be [Leavy's] best work yet.
Positive
Aram Goudsouzian,
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The Big Fella omits many of Ruth’s feats as a ballplayer, but previous biographies have trod all over that ground. Instead, Leavy shines light on Ruth’s place in American cultural history. She paints a sensitive and humorous portrait of a flamboyant figure who exploited public appetites and his athletic prowess to forge a new sporting celebrity.
Rave
Jackie S. Atkins,
Philadelphia Inquirer
In The Big Fella, Jane Leavy... goes a long way toward filling in many of the blanks in the story of George Herman 'Babe' Ruth, and in the myths surrounding his exceptional talent.
Positive
Sam Shapiro,
The News & Observer
The Big Fella is not only about baseball, but a richly detailed social history of America in the Roaring Twenties.
Positive
Dennis Snelling,
The New York Journal of Books
Wisely, this is not a recitation of the great slugger’s career season by season. The book instead utilizes nonlinear approach...Those unfamiliar with Ruth may find this unsettling, but those knowledgeable about baseball and Ruth in particular will understand. Leavy takes advantage of the book’s nonlinear structure to take the reader down interesting side roads that branch off Ruth’s story before meandering back. As a result, the book employs some necessary repetition to provide context.
Rave
James A. Percoco,
Washington Independent Review of Books
While The Big Fella is a lush and engaging biography of one of the most enigmatic and iconic characters of the 20th century, author Jane Leavy knocks this one out of the park by also giving readers an aperture into a transformative time in American history.
Rave
Bryce Christensen,
Booklist
Few sports analysts explain the sabermetrics certifying Babe Ruth’s baseball achievement more lucidly than Leavy.
Rave
Publishers Weekly
Leavy energetically narrates Ruth’s larger-than-life story in an entertaining and colorful biography.
Rave
Kirkus
Does the world need another biography of Babe Ruth (1895-1948)? If it’s this one, then the answer is an emphatic yes. The ever excellent Leavy brings her considerable depth of knowledge of sports history.