Calico Joe

a novel

No cover

John Grisham: Calico Joe (2013, Bantam Books Trade Paperbacks)

228 pages

English language

Published Dec. 30, 2013 by Bantam Books Trade Paperbacks.

ISBN:
978-0-345-53664-8
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4 stars (1 review)

Review Written by Bernie Weisz, Historian Pembroke Pines, Florida, U.S.A. September 30, 2012 Contact: BernWei1@aol.com Title of Review: The Code of Baseball, A Ruined Childhood & A Trip Down Memory Lane! Anyone that became a teenager in the early 1970's will immediately take to John Grisham's "Calico Joe." Especially one that grew up in New York and liked baseball. I know, I was one of them. Grisham's book revolves around a washed up, aging picture for the New York Mets named Paul Tracy and his mercurial, volatile relationship with his son Paul. Added in is a rookie phenom for the Cubs named Joe Castle. Castle, dubbed "Calico Joe," sets major league records in his 1973 rookie debut for consecutive games safely hit. Paul Castle fell in love with Calico Joe, even keeping a scrapbook of his accolades unbeknownst to his father. Grisham portrays Warren as a philanderer, a beanball artist, …

9 editions

Review of 'Calico Joe' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

The author is a pretty big baseball fan and it shows in this story, part coming of age and part reconciliation. Told in two eras, this is the story of a rookie hitter and a veteran pitcher in 1973 coupled with the story of an aging, distant and difficult father and his son.

I found the baseball credible (though the rookie accomplishments cross the line to in-credible) and the story believable. Both the characters and small town America are well fleshed out. This is the first John Grisham novel I have read, though it won't be the last.

Subjects

  • Baseball players
  • Fiction
  • Fathers and sons
  • Life change events