All My Octobers

(Book summary from inside jacket cover)

To all Americans, Mickey Mantle epitomizes the Golden Age of American sport: He is the quintessential hero of a time when much was right with the world, and nothing was ever wrong with the New York Yankees.  In All My Octobers, Mickey recounts his career as an athletic phenomenon in the greatest dynasty baseball has ever seen: the days when he and his Yankee teammates made it to twelve World Series in fourteen years.

In this unparalleled memoir, Mickey Mantle recounts both the joys and agonies of his rise from small-town Oklahoma, where he listened to the World Series on the radio, to his successes on the field and the many injuries he overcame in order to make it to twelve World Series.  From the 1951 Series, when he played alongside Joe DiMaggio, to 1964, when he belted three Series home runs, Mantle relives every one of his World Series games, moment by moment. These were the games that counted, when the nation held its breath on every pitch and Mantle and his Yankee teammates rose to the occasion and achieved the legendary string of championships that remains unsurpassed, even in this era of superstar athletes.

Mantle also speaks candidly about the parties and celebrations that were part of a young professional athlete's lifestyle; there was never a shortage of alcohol in the world of baseball, and here, in a moving epilogue, Mantle traces the roots of the alcoholism with which he recently came to terms and conquered with the help of a loving family, friends, and thousands of fans.

The classic tale of a player and his team seizing their destiny and reaching the pinnacle of success over and over again, All My Octobers is also the story of a man from small-town America who remains an idol to this day, his raw talent, grace, and courage bridging generations and confirming his place as a living legend.