Tie Breaker: Jimmy Van Alen and Tennis in the 20th Century
Tennis is steeped in tradition. At the same time, there has been considerable evolution in the rules of the sport over the past century. AnyRead More
2 responsesQueen of the Court: The Many Lives of Tennis Legend Alice Marble
Alice Marble was a prominent American tennis player who competed during the 1930s and 1940s. She left an indelible mark on the sport’s history. UsingRead More
1 responseTrailblazers: The Unmatched Story of Women’s Tennis
In 1988, Billie Jean King, in collaboration with Cynthia Starr, published We Have Come a Long Way: The Story of Women’s Tennis. To celebrate theRead More
Best Books on Women in Tennis
Last month, the Wall Street Journal ran a guest column from Madeleine Blais listing the Five Best Books on Women in Tennis. To her credit,Read More
The Goddess and the American Girl
Long before Chris Everet and Martina Navratilova brought rivalry to women’s tennis, there was Suzanne Lenglen and Helen Wills. Despite the fact that the earlyRead More
Althea: The Life of Tennis Champion Althea Gibson
Althea Gibson was the first African American to break the color barrier in tennis. She won the French Championships (now French Open) in 1956 andRead More
Break Point: The Inside Story of Modern Tennis
For the past few weeks, I have been reading books about the “inside story” of professional tennis. Last up in this genre for a whileRead More
3 responsesHard Courts: Real Life on the Professional Tennis Tours
In 1990, John Feinstein spent the year traveling with the professional tennis tours. Hard Courts: Real Life on the Professional Tennis Tours peels back theRead More
Short Circuit: Michael Mewshaw
In 1982, novelist Michael Mewshaw set off to follow the men’s professional tennis tour for six months. He expected to relax in the sun whileRead More
The Wild Card: Judy Murray
While reading The Wild Card by Judy Murray, I kept flipping to the cover and the book jacket to check for a secondary author. ThereRead More