"Sometimes sports mirrors society, sometimes it allows us to

understand the larger society a little better. But mostly, it is a world

of entertainment of talented and driven young men and women who do

certain things with both skill and passion."

—David Halberstam

David Halberstam was a distinguished journalist and historian of American politics. He was also a sports writer. Everything They Had

brings together for the first time his articles from newspapers and

magazines, a wide-ranging collection edited by Glenn Stout, selected

over the full scope of Halberstam's five decades as one of America's

most honored journalists. These are dazzling portraits of some of the

most compelling sports figures of our era, the superstars of popular

sports like basketball, football, and baseball, but also fishing,

soccer, and rowing, and the amateur athletes who play for the love of

the game.

In "My Dinner with Theodore," Halberstam recounts his long

anticipated—and unforgettable—meeting with Red Sox legend Ted

Williams. Against the backdrop of 1960s Nashville, he beautifully

recounts a lifelong love of football in "How I Fell in Love with the

NFL." And "Men Without Women," set on a fishing expedition in Patagonia,

is more than a hunt for giant brown trout—it is a story of fishing,

friendship, and fellowship. These and many more stories exemplify the

breadth and depth of David Halberstam's devotion to diverse sports and

his respect and fascination for the men and women who play them so well.

The result is an intimate and personal collection that reveals the

issues and the ideals David Halberstam cared about—racial equality,

friendship, loyalty, and character—and creates a vivid and

unforgettable portrait of the author himself. Everything They Had takes

its rightful place alongside Halberstam's bestselling sports titles,

which include The Breaks of the Game, The Amateurs, Summer of '49, and The Education of a Coach.