In 1989 David Halberstam published Summer of '49, which became a #1 New York Times bestseller. It was a compelling portrait of baseball in an America as yet unchanged by affluence, technology, and social progress. The players, almost all white, had been raised in harsh circumstances, the games were played in the afternoon on grass and were broadcast on radio, the teams traveled by train, and the owners had dictatorial power over the players. Here also was the story of the Yankees winning the first of their pennants under Casey Stengel before going on to become baseball's greatest dynasty.

October 1964 is Halberstam's exciting new book about baseball — this time about the last season of that Yankee dynasty. Like the previous book, it is both sports and history, and it is a fascinating account of an electrifying baseball championship against the background of profound social change.

The Yankees, like most American League teams, reflected the status quo and, in contrast to the National League teams, had been slow to sign the new great black players (indeed, for a time, their best scouts were ordered not to sign them). Though the Yankees boasted such great names as Mantle, Maris, and Ford, theirs was an aging team: Mantle, hobbled by injuries, was facing his last hurrah in post-season play. By contrast, the St. Louis Cardinals were a young tough team on the ascent, featuring talented black players — Bob Gibson, Curt Flood, Lou Brock, and Bill White — who were changing the very nature of the game with their unprecedented speed and power.

Halberstam has once again given us an absorbing tale of an exciting season and a great Word Series that reflected a changing era in both baseball and the rest of society as well: The fabric that insulated baseball from the turmoil in the rest of the country was beginning to tear. We get intimate vignettes not only of the players but also of the scouts who signed them including the black scouts who had been denied the chance.

"By any standard, this is a thoughtful, entertaining, and illuminating examination of two intriguing teams from baseball's golden era. Expect high demand among boomer-age fans." Wes Lukowsky, Booklist

"[R]iveting....A powerful and entertaining examination of the forces transforming baseball, and the country, in a pivotal period in the history of America and its national pastime." Kirkus Reviews

"October 1964 should be a hit with old-time baseball fans, who'll relish the opportunity to relive that year's to-die-for World Series....It should be a hit with younger students of the game, who'll eat up the vivid portrayals of legends like Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris of the Yankees and Bob Gibson and Lou Brock of the Cardinals. Most of all, however, David Halberstam's new book should be a hit with anyone interested in understanding the important interplay between sports and society." The Boston Globe

"Compelling....1964 is a chronicle of the end of a great dynasty and of a game, like the country, on the cusp of enormous change." Newsweek

"Halberstam's latest gives us the feeling of actually being there — in another time, in the locker rooms and in the minds of baseball legends. His time and effort researching the book result in a fluency with his topic and a fluidity of writing that make the reading almost effortless....Absorbing." San Francisco Chronicle

"Wonderful....Memorable....Halberstam describes the final game of the 1964 series accurately and so dramatically, I almost thought I had forgotten the ending." The Washington Post Book World

"Superb reporting....Incisive analysis....You know from the start that Halberstam is going to focus on a large human canvas....One of the many joys of this book is the humanity with which Halberstam explores the characters as well as the talents of the players, coaches and managers. These are not demigods of summer but flawed, believable human beings who on occasion can rise to peaks of heroism." The Chicago Sun-Times

Following his #1 baseball bestseller Summer of '49, David Halberstam gives us the Yankees-Cardinals World Series that concluded the '64 season — a transformational American moment, both inside and outside the ballpark. A book of deep insight and importance, October 1964 is also, like Halberstam's previous baseball work, a great read.

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER<BR>THE BEST SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR<BR>"October 1964 should be a hit with old-time baseball fans, who'll relish the opportunity to relive that year's to-die-for World Series, when the dynastic but aging New York Yankees squared off against the upstart St. Louis Cardinals. It should be a hit with younger students of the game, who'll eat up the vivid portrayals of legends like Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris of the Yankees and Bob Gibson and Lou Brock of the Cardinals. Most of all, however, David Halberstam's new book should be a hit with anyone interested in understanding the important interplay between sports and society."<BR>--The Boston Globe<BR>"Compelling...1964 is a chronicle of the end of a great dynasty and of a game, like the country, on the cusp of enormous change."<BR>--Newsweek<BR>"Halberstam's latest gives us the feeling of actually being there--in another time, in the locker rooms and in the minds of baseball legends. His time and effort researching the book result in a fluency with his topic and a fluidity of writing that make the reading almost effortless....Absorbing."<BR>--San Francisco Chronicle<BR>"Wonderful...Memorable...Halberstam describes the final game of the 1964 series accurately and so dramatically, I almost thought I had forgotten the ending."<BR>--The Washington Post Book World<BR>"Superb reporting...Incisive analysis...You know from the start that Halberstam is going to focus on a large human canvas...One of the many joys of this book is the humanity with which Halberstam explores the characters as well as the talents of the players, coaches and managers. These are not demigods of summer but flawed, believable human beings who onoccasion can rise to peaks of heroism."<BR>--Chicago Sun-Times

Includes bibliographical references (p. [377]-380) and index.