Cardboard Gods Paperback – March 15, 2011

I bought this book for my dad, who has been a great lover of baseball all of his life, and an avid baseball card collector. Although, I can't personally vouch for the quality of the content of this book, my dad completed this book in about a day in a half, and that is a rave review in itself! My dad doesn't read many books, and to see him so enthralled by this one, and unable to put it down, showed me that without a doubt, this was a good gift for him. That alone would me have made me praise this book, but he also told me he enjoyed it very much, and wanted to know where I had heard about it. I would recommend this book for the baseball lover or baseball card collector in your life!

This is a great book. The author weaves baseball (and life lessons from baseball) into the story of his off-beat childhood. And it's funny, too. I laughed out loud on more than one occasion. I typically have several books of different genres on my nightstand and alternate between them regularly. But this book I picked up for five evenings straight because I wanted to know what happened next.

I mentally connected with Josh's writings earlier, through his blog, also called Cardboard Gods. His stories reminded me so much of my childhood, and re-living it through the viewing and analysis of baseball cards. To me as well they signified much more than just a picture, a team, a position, but rather were more like windows into a glorious world. And, much like Josh, this lasted throughout my younger childhood, until puberty ushered in other more adult thoughts (however, many years later, I wonder if I was ever happier than when opening packs of 84 Donruss, hoping for Donny Baseball). Josh's writing style is unique; I've never quite read any quite like it. I'm no literary genius, so I can't talk finer points, but I'll just say it is highly relatable and has humor that breaks on you like a late breaking backdoor curve...seemingly benign until it has just crossed the plate as a strike, and you are left in stitches. A must read for anyone who has ever a) grown up in the 70's or 80's b) loves baseball c) loved baseball cards or d) ever struggled mightily and later found humor and a stronger character as a result. Baseball cards figure strongly in Josh's book, only this book is a much broader story of the sense of wonder of childhood, brotherhood, and growing up in the last decades of 20th century America.

Love this book. Although the author is just a few years older than I am (I was born in 1971), I still recall the 70's experience that he recounts so well. To say he had a unique childhood is an understatement, and you'll recall the days that you rode your bike down to the store to buy cards, when you read the various stories from his past. Love the use of cards (so many that I recognize) at the start of each chapter. My wife thinks my card collection is just that - a box full of cardboard rectangles. But they're not - these are tie-ins to childhood memories, pieces of art, and Josh's book (though not my story) explains this so well. (And I'm not just saying this to get an autographed copy of his next book - I already have a copy).

If you collected baseball cards, this is a must read. It's really good vacation read, because the chapters are really short and it gives you time to relax and reflect on how it relates to your own life when you were a little kid opening packs of cards. I recommend following this on facebook as well because 1) there are more cardboard gods to read about there. and 2) I think this author is getting better with age and really coming into his own as a writer.

I came across author Josh Wilker’s Cardboard Gods website while searching Roy White and thought, wow, this guy’s take on White is dead on. So I bought this book, read it in a matter of days and enjoyed it immensely. Parts of it are very very funny, while others are quite sad. It’s such a creative and entertaining approach to a memoir. Absolutely recommended.

As a reader of a variety of books, I occasionally like to read a book just for sheer entertainment value. This book has loads of entertainment value in abundance! It was not just fun, but very genuine & authentic for those of us that can launch ourselves via our imagination into those places that only baseball cards could take us. This is truly one of the best books that I have ever purchased and I am a "get it at the Library kinda Guy!!"

I have followed the work of Josh Wilker on his baseball card blog since around 2008. He is an astonishing writer, able to reach your heart with the simple things in life. You feel the struggles, heartbreak, and joy of many events in his life and perhaps gain some insight into your life as well.When I first learned that Josh was writing this book I felt it was long overdue. I bought it soon after it came out, and it did not disappoint.This would be the perfect gift for any dad, card collector or not.