The Chicago Cubs: Story of a Curse

In his new book, Cohen (Monsters: The 1985 Bears and the Wild Heart of Football) takes a spin through the history of the Chicago Cubs, including the team's numerous curses and the already legendary roster that finally broke them all in 2016. The Curse of the Billy Goat is as much a part of the team's lore as first baseman Ernie Banks, Wrigley Fields's ivy, and announcer Harry Caray declaring that someday the Cubs would win the World Series. Cohen, who is known for writing about popular music as well as sports, brings a brash, kinetic style to his many stories of the figures in Cub history. The people he writes about—Ron Santo, Hack Wilson, Mordecai Brown, Grover Cleveland Alexander—almost feel like rock stars in Cohen's hands. This book moves along rapidly through Cubs history up to the 2016 team, to which the volume's largest portion is dedicated. Cohen's love for the Cubs and baseball, along with his well-developed style, put this book above other recent Cubs-related releases.