Ten Holiday Book Suggestions…

For those looking for some good reads to gift or read during travel and the holidays, see below.

The list are books which were released first in 2025…I have had to actually have read them and felt like I walked away knowing more than when I opened them, and they are certainly not any kind of countdown. They are worthy of your time, or of those who might enjoy them.

A side note though. We lost our friend and colleague John Feinstein this past year, and it does feel like this exercise gets hollow without a Feinstein read on it. So here is a list. Go read or gift any of them, they are all worthy of any year. I also have not yet gotten this year’s “Best American Sportswriting,’ so it’s off the list, but always worthwhile. I have them all. By the way what did I miss? Suggestions welcomed at joefavorito1@yahoo.com. Oh by the way, my latest edition also came out this year, can be found here.

Congrats to all the storytellers below…some I know, a few I don’t all I admire.

On Her Game by Christine Brennan: Christine’s book is not the only book on Clark from this past year, it’s just the one I read, and I learned a great deal about the superstar’s family, her humanity, her humor and why we should love her game.

Every Day Is Sunday by Ken Belson. We did a podcast with Ken, which you can listen to here, and he gave us some additional tidbits even before I read the book. It is a must read for NFL fans wondering how we got here and why.

The Last Manager by John W. Miller Earl Weaver, the longtime Orioles manager, had an uncle who was a bookie while he was growing up, and he introduced young Earl to the analytics of sports…what else is needed? Well, a lot in this book that really shares Weaver as a human and someone who overcame lots of his own demons to succeed as a leader and a teacher.

The Warrior: Rafael Nadal and His Kingdom of Clay by Christopher Clarey  The Big Three, or at least the recent big three of men’s tennis, are in their twilight, and Chris Clarey, the premier tennis storyteller and insider not named Jon Wertheim, gives is a great read on Nadal’s rise, his quirky personality and his likeability. A champion on and off the court, you will learn more than you ever hoped by reading this one, tennis fan or not.

The American Game: History and Hope in the Country of Lacrosse by Scott Price. Anything Scott writes is always at the top of my list, and this book did not disappoint in any way. Lacrosse has long been one of those “permanent emergent” sports, always on the cusp of the big time, but how many really understand not just its origins but the value that Indigenous Peoples bring to the game today and into the future. Price went deep for a long time with the families and the athletes, and if you don’t walk away challenged and inspired you should read it again.

Uncommon Favor by Dawn Staley. I am a huge Staley fan, from when I first saw her at a distance in Philly to all she has done with her career as a teacher, a coach, an athlete and a leader. This book gives us her why and her how, and lets us inside her amazing life and her career. A great amount of teachable moments for all.

Never Stop by Dan Hurley with Ian O’Connor. Like Staley’s book, this work between the UConn coach and master storyteller Ian O’Connor brings us the origin story we thought we knew with lots of other twists and turns. It is a very human look at a championship level coach and leader and gives us a much deeper and interesting perspective on his career and all those around him.  

Play It Forward is a compilation of stories and leadership anecdotes put together by the leadership at the media platform Togethxr. It celebrates and elevates the gutsy true stories of activists and dreamers who are changing the game, and the world of sports, for the better.  A foreword and afterword by world-class athletes and Olympians Alex Morgan and Sue Bird set the stage and offer key context for this inspirational collection of stories of women who are defying the odds and breaking the rules.

The Rise of Major League Soccer: Building a Global Giant by Rick Burton and Norm O’Reilly. This may be the year…2026…for soccer in America, o how did we get here? These two industry leaders lay out the history of MLS and provided a solid primer for anyone wanting to know more about the league, way before Lionel Messi arrived.

Baddest Man: The Making of Mike Tyson by Mark Kriegel: Like Scott Proce, anything Kriegel writes I read. His amazing attention to detail and ability to expand upon stories we thought we knew is tremendous, and he doesn’t disappoint again with all things Iron Mike.  

 “Fast Tracks and Dark Deals” by Michael Payne. Full disclosure. This one is late to the list and is literally the heaviest lift, over two and a half pounds, but if  you want to learn about the inner workings of global sport…from the Olympics to F1 and beyond, Michael has lived it and shares literally hundreds of insider stories. I also haven’t fully finished it as of today (lol) but it is worth the time for those who want the insider’s view on the business.

Enjoy them all, and thanks to the authors and their teams for doing the work.