Fifty Glorious Years

The Christmas frenzy is over and now it's time to sit back and relax for one of my favorite personal holidays:  Super Bowl Sunday.  This year marks the 50th game and, of course, we have the books to commemorate this momentous occasion.

The Super Bowl: the First Fifty Years of America's Greatest Game (2015) by David Fischer talks about most of the games and also includes insets such as "The Best Who Never Won".  Some highlights are lots of pictures and interesting statistics in the back.  It can be a bit confusing since there is no index and it's not written chronologically.

For that, I recommend The Ultimate Super Bowl Book by Bob McGinn.  Since it was written in 2009, it only goes up to Super Bowl XLIII but in a lot more detail.  Statistics, player and coach rosters, even the weather conditions are all listed.  I especially enjoyed reliving one of my favorites:  the Packers and the Patriots in XXXI.

Super Bowl: the Game of Their Lives (1997) by Danny Peary is also consecutive.  Each game is recounted by one of the actual players.  For example, the final chapter in the book is Super Bowl XXXI from the MVP Desmond Howard's perspective.  Since I've missed my chance to be a professional athlete ;) it's fantastic to play vicariously through these superstars' eyes.

If you want to learn about how it all began, there's When It was Just a Game: Remembering the First Super Bowl (2015) by Harvey Frommer.  After a brief overview of the beginning of professional football, it moves quickly into how this annual tradition came to pass.  Instead of footnotes, quotes from people who were there are interspersed within the usual text.

Lastly, The Pro Football Hall of Fame 50th Anniversary Book:  Where Greatness Lives (2012) by Joe Horrigan and John Thorn spotlights many outstanding players including those who may not have made it to the Big Game.  This is a coffee table book with a myriad of pictures and quotes.  The reproductions of printed materials is especially fascinating.  Each chapter is a decade so it's easy to see the changes over the years.

The football season may be over but these books celebrate fandom all year long!