A review by barbie16
The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America's Childhood by Jane Leavy
4.0
In "The Last Boy" Jane Leavy gives us a lively and yet harrowing narrative of the life of Mickey Mantle. What I love about this book is that she didn't try to fit everything in but instead chose a few set dates to branch out the story from along with her own experience of meeting Mantle. I thought this was a good way for the reader to get a clear sense of who Mantle was without getting completely lost in what could have been an extensive character study.
While I wouldn't call this book a "tell all" she does get to the heart of the problem with Mantle which is unavoidable: his dangerous drinking habits. She had a lot of direct quotes from the Mantle family which for me made this account that much more real and true. She also was able to get many stories from his fellow players and friends another highlight while reading this bio.
What did I take away from this bio? Honestly Mickey Mantle sounds like a horrible human being. Leavy didn't shy away from the scandalous details of his very active sex life and his best relationship: with the bottle. It's clear the man had many demons that are not fully explained and I'm sure most of that is because Mickey never really confided in anyone. Clearly the rocky relationship with his father was a catayst for Mickey's issues his whole life and Leavy strings that through the whole book. There is also talk of molestation at a young age which may have led to his complete disrespect for women and complete distrust for everyone. There were sparks of goodness in the man. He seemed like a very generous person who was always willing to help a friend. However he was a terrible husband and father. His wife and his children had a lot of pain which I think can be directly linked back to Mantle. I did like what one of his sons said though: "I don't blame my father for my choices. I chose to drink and do drugs, it's on me."
As for Mantle the baseball player, he clearly had a god given talent that he mostly squandered away and he knew it. But the numbers don't lie and neither does the extensive kinematic diagrams and films that Leavy presents both in the book's index and on her website. Very interesting stuff. What I take away from it is this: Mantle had larger than life talent but if he didn't get hurt so early in his career and he didn't put his body through hell, he would possibly have been the greatest ballplayer ever.
I appreciate Mantle (I love the Yankees) but he wouldn't be one of my sports idols partly because through this bio I've come to find I don't like his behavior and partly because I am well beyond the generation that got to experience him and his talent. But he tried to redeem himself during the last year of his life and I respect that. This bio clearly shows a man who wanted to be the greatest but just couldn't handle the pressure. I don't doubt it was hard to be a living legend. And what a face! RIP Mickey I hope you found more peace in heaven than you did during your lifetime.
While I wouldn't call this book a "tell all" she does get to the heart of the problem with Mantle which is unavoidable: his dangerous drinking habits. She had a lot of direct quotes from the Mantle family which for me made this account that much more real and true. She also was able to get many stories from his fellow players and friends another highlight while reading this bio.
What did I take away from this bio? Honestly Mickey Mantle sounds like a horrible human being. Leavy didn't shy away from the scandalous details of his very active sex life and his best relationship: with the bottle. It's clear the man had many demons that are not fully explained and I'm sure most of that is because Mickey never really confided in anyone. Clearly the rocky relationship with his father was a catayst for Mickey's issues his whole life and Leavy strings that through the whole book. There is also talk of molestation at a young age which may have led to his complete disrespect for women and complete distrust for everyone. There were sparks of goodness in the man. He seemed like a very generous person who was always willing to help a friend. However he was a terrible husband and father. His wife and his children had a lot of pain which I think can be directly linked back to Mantle. I did like what one of his sons said though: "I don't blame my father for my choices. I chose to drink and do drugs, it's on me."
As for Mantle the baseball player, he clearly had a god given talent that he mostly squandered away and he knew it. But the numbers don't lie and neither does the extensive kinematic diagrams and films that Leavy presents both in the book's index and on her website. Very interesting stuff. What I take away from it is this: Mantle had larger than life talent but if he didn't get hurt so early in his career and he didn't put his body through hell, he would possibly have been the greatest ballplayer ever.
I appreciate Mantle (I love the Yankees) but he wouldn't be one of my sports idols partly because through this bio I've come to find I don't like his behavior and partly because I am well beyond the generation that got to experience him and his talent. But he tried to redeem himself during the last year of his life and I respect that. This bio clearly shows a man who wanted to be the greatest but just couldn't handle the pressure. I don't doubt it was hard to be a living legend. And what a face! RIP Mickey I hope you found more peace in heaven than you did during your lifetime.