( 16 reviews )
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Posted: Aug 4 2009
The sign of a good biography is when a reader can glean answers to specific questions that the author did not necessarily intend to cover. I picked up this book to form a personal opinion about what caused Lou Gehrig's eponymous disease, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, and I found what I was looking for. Beyond the customary smoking and drinking, Lou Gehrig's diet was exemplary, but one thing stood out: he was an avid fisherman. His favorite haunt for fishing was Long Island Sound. From the early 1800's to the mid-1900's, the hat-making industry of Connecticut used mercury to convert animal fur to felt, and polluted the waters and sediments of Long Island Sound with large amounts of the heavy metal, especially in times of flooding. It is noteworthy that after Lou Gehrig's symptoms commenced, playing ball away under the hot sun on trips away from New York seemed to ameliorate them slightly (sweating is one way to excrete mercury). At the same time that Gehrig's nervous system was breaking down, his wife, Eleanor, suffered from inexplicable rashes on her face and scalp, a clue to another potential symptom of mercury poisoning, which like any toxin, can affect different people in different ways. If Gehrig's doctors at the Mayo Clinic had any inkling that his condition might have been caused by his consumption of mercury, they did not let on, at the same time that they failed to inform him that he would likely die in a couple of years. In fact, we will never know for sure how much information his doctors possessed, because Gehrig's medical records have been sealed for all time.
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Posted: Jun 30 2009
If you like Lou Gehrig or just want to find out about his life, this is a great read.
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Posted: Jun 23 2009
Luckiest Man chronicles Gehrig's transformation from a shy and awkward son of immigrants to the Yankees' legendary first baseman and power hitter, and then through his decline from the illness that now bears his name. Using skills honed as a reporter for several of the nation's leading newspapers, author Jonathan Eig weaves threads of previously unpublished information from Gehrig's personal correspondence -- along with a mountain of newsprint and newsreel footage from the period -- to bring the hall-of-famer to life. For baseball fans, Luckiest Man provides a deeper understanding of the colorful characters and events that shaped the game in the `20s and `30s. Readers less familiar with America's favorite pastime will find themselves entranced by how Gehrig's work ethic enabled him to quietly rack up record after record, even as the flamboyant Babe Ruth dominated the headlines. Then, as the narrative begins to describe Gehrig's diagnosis and rapid decline, all readers will be moved by his heroic struggle. Luckiest Man is a thoroughly researched and well-rounded portrait that chips away at the myths surrounding Gehrig and exposes a humble man with tremendous athletic gifts, who lived his life with conviction and bravery.
