""You Know Me Al: A Busher's Letters"" is a collection of humorous short stories written by Ring W. Lardner, first published in 1916. The book is written in the form of letters from a fictional baseball player named Jack Keefe, who is a self-proclaimed ""busher"" (a minor league player) trying to make it to the big leagues. Through his letters to his friend Al, Keefe shares his experiences and thoughts on baseball, life on the road, and relationships. The stories are filled with Keefe's unique language and dialect, as well as his comical misunderstandings and misadventures. The book is a classic example of American humor and satire, and is considered one of Lardner's most famous works.1916. Lardner, American humorist and short-story writer, is known for his mordant wit, exemplified in satirical stories and sketches of American life in the early 20th century told in the language of athletes, stockbrokers, secretaries, chorus girls, etc. Contents: A Busher's Letters Home; The Busher Comes Back; The Busher's Honeymoon; A New Busher Breaks In; The Busher's Kid; and The Busher Beats It Hence. See other titles by this author available from Kessinger Publishing.This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.
In his day, Ring Lardner was a legendary humorist (a job-description he disavowed), and
You Know Me Al shows why everyone loved him so. In the letters of Jack Keefe, a bush-league pitcher who finally gets his chance in the majors, Lardner shows not only a faultless ear, but also a keen eye for the amusing details of human folly. Keefe is no comical bumbler--he has talent--but also possesses astonishing naïvete, and a lack of self-awareness that is unerringly hilarious. The busher blames everyone but himself for his failures (a trait that Lardner uses to wonderful comic effect in the story "Alibi Ike"). Still, thanks to Keefe's mixture of hubris and puppy-dog trust, you want to see him come out all right.
Lardner--who played a role in breaking the infamous "Black Sox" scandal of 1919--wrote You Know Me Al while covering pro baseball in the teens; for baseball fans, the book is an intriguing glimpse into the past. Athletes haven't changed much, poor devils. They're just as funny as ever, only richer.
