The Eastern Stars; How Baseball Changed the Dominican Town of San Pedro de Macoris

New York: Riverhead Books [a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.], 2010. First Printing [Stated]. Hardcover. Very good/Very good. [14], 272, [2] pages. One Illustration noted. Appendix One: The First Seventy-nine: Major League Baseball Players from San Pedro de Macoris. Appendix Two: A Dominican Chronology. Bibliography. Index. Mark Kurlansky (December 7, 1948) is an American journalist and writer of general interest non-fiction. He has written a number of books of fiction and non-fiction. His 1997 book, Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World (1997), was an international bestseller and was translated into more than 15 languages. His book Nonviolence: Twenty-five Lessons From the History of a Dangerous Idea (2006) was the non-fiction winner of the 2007 Dayton Literary Peace Prize. His work and contribution to Basque identity and culture was recognized in 2001 when the Society of Basque Studies in America named him to the Basque Hall of Fame. That same year, he was awarded an honorary ambassadorship from the Basque government. Derived from a Kirkus review: The bittersweet tale of San Pedro de Macorís, the struggling Dominican town that has sent 79 players to the Major Leagues since the early 1960s. The author tells a compelling, multifaceted story. He examines little-known cultural contributions of the Dominicans and explores the various economic forces that have driven San Pedro over the years, including fishing, sugar cane, tourism and, throughout much of the last century,baseball. Kurlansky examines the careers of some notable stars, including Julio Franco, Juan Marichal, George Bell and Sammy Sosa. The author notes how returning MLB players remain celebrities in a town where many struggle to eke out a living from seasonal work in sugar cane harvesting or other occupations. The author also looks at the baseball culture in the town, which features fields, scouts, training schools and academies and local teams. He effectively addresses the principal question-why San Pedro? The answer is Baseball is hope.