Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game

    Moneyball, by Michael Lewis is a baseball book that focuses primarily on the Oakland Athletics' 2002 season and their General Manager, Billy Beane.  The idea behind Lewis' book is that much of the conventional wisdom used in the valuing of baseball players may be wrong.  He delves a bit into Billy Beane's past, aiming at his motivations, and then follows him throughout the season as Beane approaches general managing from an entirely new perspective.

    Lewis is very good at writing for the reader.  His language is engaging and his writing style is fun and entertaining.  It seems that if he were to write a book on any topic at all, he would be able to make it interesting.  That said, he tells a very compelling story.  Due partly to the material and partly to the writing, it is almost impossible not to become caught up in the story of Billy Beane and his team.  Lewis writes the book from a first-hand perspective, as he was often speaking directly to the characters in his story.  This adds a further element of personality that makes the book even more fun to read.

    Aside from its entertainment value, Moneyball contains what seems to be an important idea for baseball.  Lewis brings to light a completely new way for a GM to manage a club; different than anything ever done before in baseball.  It is important for any baseball fan to read, if only to find out what could be going on within the game.  As Lewis says himself in his new afterword, "Even if you have your doubts, you grab the book, peek inside, check it out. Just to see" (Lewis, 294).  He is speaking primarily about other GMs, but this is good advice for anyone highly interested in baseball.

    Moneyball is a very entertaining book with a very intriguing message.  There is no doubt that Lewis has his own agenda, and while the writing does seem biased, it does not affect the quality.  As long as one approaches the book with an open mind, it should prove to be an enjoyable experience.  One thing to remember however, is that this book is really only for baseball fans.  A fairly advanced knowledge of the game is pretty necessary to get all there is out of this book.  However, if you are a baseball fan and you haven't read Moneyball, then it might be time to go get a copy.