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American Reference
Books Annual 2002
Choice
Review
from: American Reference
Books Annual 2002
The classic library reference source Famous First
Facts (FFF) was originally published in 1933 and has been updated four
times since. The most recent 5th edition came out in 1997 (see ARBA 99,
entry 46), and H. W. Wilson has begun publishing a Facts Series in
intervening years. Recent releases have included an international edition,
a volume on American politics, and now this sports volume. Forthcoming
titles will cover the environment, American immigration, and human rights.
The sports volume closely follows the style of the
5th edition of FFF. Entries are topically arranged by sport and then
chronologically within each sport. Each entry is given a four-digit
number, and entry numbers run from 1001 to 6415 in this volume. Entries
are indexed by subject, year, month and day, personal name, and geography.
The indexes in this book take up twice as many pages as the entries
themselves, which makes finding things easy.
One might expect that all of the 500 sports entries
in FFF would be included in the 5,400 entries in this sports volume, but
several items are missing. There are also items that are incomplete and
some discrepancies between the two volumes.
There are inevitably some errors that need to be
corrected for the next edition of the sports volume. For example, item
3189 notes that the Chicago Bears were the first NFL team to win
consecutive championships in 1940 and 1941, but the Green Bay Packers won
three consecutive championships from 1929-1931. Also, item 3197 asserts
that Marion Motley was the first African American player on the Cleveland
Browns in 1946 and item 3252 says he was the first African American to
play in an NFL championship game in 1960 (which should be 1950). Actually,
according to the Professional Football Researchers’ Association, another
African American, Bill Willis, joined the Browns about a week before
Motley in 1946, and Willis also played with Motley in that 1950
championship game.
Regardless of these minor gripes, this is a
wonderful book full of odd and interesting sports facts that are easily
retrievable through an abundance of indexes. This volume is truly a “browser’s
delight” as the preface claims and is highly recommended for all
libraries and any self-respecting sports bar.
Review
from: Choice
Date reviewed: November 2001
Reviewed by: J. A. Badics, Eastern Michigan
University
Franck and Brownstone have compiled 5,415
"firsts" covering more than 110 sports. The hefty volume follows
the formula of Wilson's "Famous First Facts" series. Arranged
alphabetically by sport, the concisely described events are listed in
chronological order, with headers for time periods. Entries are given
consecutive four-digit numbers, which are cited in the five indexes
(subjects, years, days, personal names, and geographical locations). Since
professional, collegiate, and amateur events as well as men's and women's
athletics are combined within each sport, browsing to find something
quickly is difficult. The indexes provide essential access and are easy to
use; for instance, by looking up Martina Navratilova in the personal name
index, one can find her famous firsts without referring to the main
listings. The depth of coverage is impressive. Sports fans love trivia, so
they should enjoy this compilation. It will complement, but not replace,
other sports encyclopedias, dictionaries, and handbooks.
For all levels.
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