The Bookshelf Conversations #187: Bill Littlefield

There was something about Bill Littlefield’s voice when he read his poetry (or as he refers to it, doggerel) on NPR’s Only a Game that was so soothing, as opposed to those loud-mouthed shouters on various sports talk programs. I miss him.

But to prove that the Bookshelf is timeless, I had him on recently to discuss his 1989 novel, Prospect. I had read it when it first came out but returned to it before we spoke.

Maybe it’s because I’m that much older now that I found it very sad. It’s the tale about Pete Estey, a retired scout living out his days in a retirement home, who’s yanked back into the world when one of the facility’s caregivers takes him into her own house after a fire displaces him. She just happens to have a grand-nephew who is a crackerjack player who just needs a bit of guidance and a chance. So our protagonist reluctantly takes on the task.

The book kind of reminded me of another aging scout scenario in Trouble with the Curve, one of the worst baseball movies in my opinion, full of cliches and characters straight out of Hollywood casting. It’s too bad Prospect never had its movie option picked up. Under the right leadership, I think it would have been a far superior film.

Littlefield also published Take Me Out, a collection of commentaries his sports show as well as never-before-published essays. He also served as editor for Fall Classics: The Best Writing About the World Series’ First 100 Years, a marvelous assortment of articles on the grand game.