Title: Holy Cow, Black Cats & Billy Goats: Memories of a Chicago Cubs Fan
Author: Joel Levin
Publisher: AuthorHouse
ISBN: 978-1-5246-9832-4
Pages: 200
Genre: Memoir, Autobiography, Sports
Reviewed by: Jessica Schmidt
Hollywood Book Review
Awarded to books of excellent Merit
Author Joel Levin uses his lifetime love of the Chicago Cubs as a backdrop for sharing his wisdom and life story. The book is about the love he has for his family, in particular his cousin who shared his love of baseball and his dear departed wife. He thrills fellow baseball fans with a detailed history of his beloved team and their home field. The book is extremely well written and error free, which makes it an especially pleasurable experience for the reader. Mr. Levin writes with humor and captivates his audience with stories from his life at work and at play.
Holy Cow, Black Cats & Billy Goats, Memories of a Chicago Cubs Fan is part memoir with wisdom gained over the author’s lifetime, and part baseball history with specific focus on the Cubs. I imagine this as a book to treasure for the author’s family and anyone who knows him or has worked with him or been a patient of his. Obviously, it would be of interest to baseball fans everywhere and Chicago Cubs fans especially. This book would be a great way for new fans to get excited about baseball and it is also a good book to read for inspiration about how to live a wonderful and blessed life.
I can certainly appreciate the author’s passion for his team and appreciated the opportunity to read about his life and to be inspired by him. I enjoyed reading the book and made note of many of the quotes the author shared. In particular, I like his statement at the end of the introduction, “I guess the message of the book, after my waiting so long, living through so much, and reaching a milestone in life, comes from Dr. Seuss: ‘Don’t cry because it’s over; smile because it happened.”’ Sharing love and positive messages with others is always helpful and Mr. Levin continues to set an excellent example in how he has lived his life.
Impeccably written, laden with wisdom and humor, and stuffed with all sorts of Chicago Cubs minutia and history, Holy Cow, Black Cats & Billy Goats, Memories of a Chicago Cubs Fan is a book which will appeal to a wide reading audience, just as baseball appeals to people from all backgrounds.