Bang the Drum Slowly

Mark Harris's most celebrated baseball novel, a sequel to The Southpaw (1953). First published in 1956 and made famous by television (1956) and film (1973) adaptations. Harris's narrator Henry Wiggen, a star pitcher, tells the story of a baseball season with the New York Mammoths -- a season notable for the team's success but blighted by the terminal illness of catcher Bruce Pearson. Wiggen tries to be supportive of Pearson while concealing his illness. Lyrical and emotional without becoming melodramatic; one of the best of all baseball stories.

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