Rickey: The Life and Legend of an American Original

4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars | 486 ratings

Price: 30.7

Last update: 12-22-2024


About this item

From the author of The Last Hero: A Life of Henry Aaron comes the definitive biography of Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson, baseball’s epic leadoff hitter and base-stealer who also stole America’s heart over nearly five electric decades in the game.

Few names in the history of baseball evoke the excellence and dynamism that Rickey Henderson’s does. He holds the record for the most stolen bases in a single game, and he’s scored more runs than any player ever. “If you cut Rickey Henderson in half, you’d have two Hall of Famers,” the baseball historian Bill James once said.

But perhaps even more than his prowess on the field, Rickey Henderson’s is a story of Oakland, California, the town that gave rise to so many legendary athletes like him. And it’s a story of a sea change in sports, when athletes gained celebrity status and Black players finally earned equitable salaries. Henderson embraced this shift with his trademark style, playing for nine different teams throughout his decades-long career and sculpting a brash, larger-than-life persona that stole the nation’s heart. Now, in the hands of critically acclaimed sportswriter and culture critic Howard Bryant, one of baseball’s greatest and most original stars finally gets his due.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.


Top reviews from the United States

  • Craig Barker
    5.0 out of 5 stars An exceptional read
    Reviewed in the United States on October 24, 2024
    Thoughtfully construction coupled with masterful storytelling and strong establishment of context made this a wonderful book to read, and that's before the loving retelling (and thoughtful debunking) of some Rickey stories.
  • Jbenny
    4.0 out of 5 stars Overall very good, a little messy-kind of like Rickey himself
    Reviewed in the United States on January 2, 2024
    Howard Bryant is obviously a very talented writer, but maybe even more a of a talented researcher. This book is incredibly well researched, and the writing is well done to match that research. Provides a great look at Rickey Henderson and his career. Bryant presents a fair and biased review of Rickey's career, and highlights what a truly special talent he was on the diamond.

    My only criticism of the book is, in the early stages of Rickey growing up there is exhaustive detail on Oakland. Bryant alludes to in the epilogue that originally this book was maybe supposed to be a dual portrait of Rickey and Oakland, but then morphed into just more Rickey. However, the early part of the book gets incredibly tedious with all of the names, and places of Rickey growing up. Every single player Rickey may have run across, or went up against gets more than enough ink. I don't know if Gary Pettis has a biography or not, but if he doesn't, this book would be great starting point.

    Overall, I recommend this book if you remember Rickey Henderson and want insight into what made him an incredible and complicated talent.
  • Bama Fan
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great book!
    Reviewed in the United States on May 30, 2024
    This book was tough to put down and Bryant does a masterful job of recounting the details of Rickey's career as well as the other events and people that were involved in making him one of the greatest players of all time. Rickey Henderson is clearly misunderstood, but after reading this book, you will be able to have a better picture of what drives him, who he is and what he stood for. He is an amazing athlete who is deserving of such a thorough and well written book! I loved Bryant's book on Henry Aaron and this one is just as comprehensive and hard to put down. If you are a baseball fan, then this is a must read!!
  • Barry Sparks
    5.0 out of 5 stars One of baseball's greatest players
    Reviewed in the United States on July 2, 2022
    Rickey Henderson is one of the greatest players in baseball history. Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2009 with 94.8% of the votes, he is the only player to collect 3,000 hits, score 2,000 runs and draw 2,000 walks.

    He's the all-time leader in stolen bases with 1,408 (468 more than second-place Lou Brock), first in runs scored with 2,295 and fourth in games played with 3,038.

    Because Rickey played for nine different teams in a career that spanned 25 seasons, fewer fans appreciate his achievements.

    Author Howard Bryant puts his career in perspective while giving us insight into Henderson, who he labels arrogant, flamboyant, cocky, a showboat, as well as someone who was obsessed with greatest.

    When Rickey was 17, he declared he wanted to be the greatest base stealer of all time.

    Rickey grew up in Oakland, a hot bed for talented Black players. He had more than 100 college scholarship offers to play football, but chose baseball, partially because of his poor grades.

    In 1980, at age 21, he stole 100 bases, something only two other players had achieved--Maury Wills and Lou Brock. He also batted .303, scored 111 runs and walked 117 times. Despite his production, the A's criticized him for a lack of power (he hit 9 home runs that season). Rickey later developed into a decent power hitter. He slugged a high of 28 homers twice and notched a lead-off homer on 81 occasions.

    By 1981 (a strike-shortened season), he may have been the best player in the game. Some were calling him the new Willie Mays. He finished second in MVP voting, losing to reliever Rollie Fingers. Henderson called the voting "a disgrace."

    Oakland A's manager Billy Martin nurtured the young star, encouraged him to run and maximize his talents. He became like a father to Rickey.

    In 1983, Henderson stunned the baseball world with 130 stolen bases. He challenged the convention of how the game was played. Rickey irritated opponents, his teammates and the media. He wasn't always a team player and was accused of not wanting to play at times.

    He and the A's battled over contract terms. Money would always be an issue for Henderson, who equated it to respect. He fought to get paid what he thought he was worth.

    One reviewer wrote that he thought author Howard Bryant spent too much time discussing race. You really can't tell Rickey Henderson's story, or that of many other Black players, without delving into race. Henderson and others were disrespected, slighted and stereotyped.

    While there are some humorous Rickey stories, Bryant reminds us, however, that not all of them are true. Yet, they persist.

    Henderson was often criticized during his career. A San Francisco Examiner sportswriter said, "Rickey was often held back by his own unprofessionalism and simply did not always meet the threshold of consistent team-oriented greatness set by Aaron, Mays and DiMaggio. There is more to greatness than numbers."

    Yet, it's clear that there's never been a player like Rickey Henderson.
  • R. Harper
    5.0 out of 5 stars American Rickey, Rickey's America
    Reviewed in the United States on July 3, 2022
    I've been a Rickey fan for 37 of my 44 years on earth, so I was predisposed to liking Bryant's book. However, the true gift of this biography is how full a picture emerges of the worlds that produced Rickey--the worlds that shaped him, that he shaped, and to which he had to respond. This book has its share of entertaining stories about Rickey--and stories about the stories as well (Bryant does a nice job unpacking how and why some of the Rickey mythology took shape). But it is also a tale of Bay Area sports and social-racial politics, of a baseball industry and market in multiple transitions, of the nuances and differences between post-Jackie Robinson generations of African Americans in baseball, and the distinct-but-related burdens they each faced. If you are looking for a simple, fun-loving compendium of Rickey stats and stories, this book might disappoint (though it has its share of that stuff, too). But if you want a truly well-rounded sports biography about a complex, unique figure in a wildly-complicated national subculture, this book is tremendous.
  • baseball fan
    4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting story of Ricky Henderson. Affordable price
    Reviewed in the United States on July 24, 2023
    Ricky is an entertaining character, baseball and life. Can't wait to read the book on vacation.
  • Triple R
    5.0 out of 5 stars A Very Good Biography.
    Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2024
    A lengthy book about about one of baseball’s flamboyant superstars.
    I found it interesting and what Rickey had to overcome to make as a big league player.
    His entire life is here good and bad. I read Rickey refuses to sign this book at autograph shows perhaps because he didn’t like it or because he wasn’t paid for it.
    Whatever the reason I enjoyed the book.
  • Alonso Sanchez
    5.0 out of 5 stars great baseball bio
    Reviewed in the United States on February 1, 2024
    I really enjoyed this biography I got to learned a lot that Indidnt know about rickey. this is one of the best baseball biis i have ever read

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