Best of Plimpton » (Reprint)

One of the 20th century's most beloved literary figures, Manhattan blueblood George Plimpton was the cofounder and longtime editor of The Paris Review and the originator of "participatory journalism," a literary style that plunged the writer into Walter Mitty-like arenas and translated those experiences into literature. Among his bestselling books are Out of My League, Paper Lion, and Edie: An American Biography.

Featuring such classic pieces as "The Curious Case of Sidd Finch" and "The Plimpton Small-Ball Theory of Sports Writing"--the smaller the ball the better the writing--this is a rich mix of profiles, essays, and articles from a most talented and unique American literary personality.

Library Journal

Founder of the Paris Review, humorist, adventurer, and contributing editor to Sports Illustrated, Plimpton has selected this anthology of his ``best'' writing from 35 years of work. Its motif is his ``participatory journalism'' and how it has enabled him to render more human and accessible such activities as football, baseball, boxing, golf, music, and fireworks; such personalities as John F. Kennedy, George Bush, Leonard Bernstein, Muhammad Ali, Vince Lombardi, Marianne Moore, and William Styron; and such landmarks as Las Vegas, Palm Desert, and Newport, Rhode Island. The pieces range from ``Fantasy: Sidd Finch'' to ``Parody: Truman Capote as Hemingway.'' Recommended as first-rate belles lettres , to be read in light of Bernstein's description of Plimpton as the ``amateur professional.''-- Kenneth Mintz, formerly with Bayonne P.L., N.J.