I am always honored to introduce my friend and fellow Avon sister Jennifer Bernard--she writes the most wonderful, upbeat, fun-to-read stories and I know everyone will love them! Jennifer is joining us all the way from Homer, Alaska today with great news: she has a brand new series out--and it's about my favorite sport: baseball! Her awesome blog today about how baseball came to be The Great American Pasttime will leave you wanting your own copy of ALL OF ME. Enjoy--and give a big GLIAS welcome to Jennifer Bernard.
Hi Everyone,
Did you enjoy your July 4th weekend? Did it include
fireworks, barbecue, or maybe some baseball? I have a reason for asking this!
I’m writing a new romance series about “America’s pastime,” and it occurred to
me I wasn’t sure how baseball acquired that label.
I always assumed it came from being the nation’s favorite
sport, but that’s debatable these days. Football draws much bigger TV audiences
and revenue. So I checked with my close friend, Google, and discovered that
it’s not quite what I thought.
Yes, back in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, baseball was
the most popular sport. But that was before TV, before the Internet, before video
games and so many of the ways we entertain ourselves nowadays. When kids came
home from school, they didn’t turn on the TV. They ran outside and played
baseball in the streets or in fields. Baseball was how people spent their time. It was a topic that
everyone could talk about with coworkers, strangers on the bus, neighbors -- a
unifying bond, even between fans of rival teams. It truly was a big part of how
Americans spent their leisure time. That’s why the term “America’s pastime”
caught on.
Baseball was more than a sport, it was part of what wove
America together.
But that was back then … what about now? Can baseball still
be considered America’s pastime? Or has it been replaced with “Surfing the Web”
or “Netflix” or “Farmville”?
I don’t know the answer to that, but here are a few random
facts:
“Take Me Out to the Ballgame” is the third most frequently
sung song in America, after Happy Birthday and The Star-Spangled Banner.
73,739,622
tickets were sold for Major League baseball games in 2014. That means a LOT of people
actually left their TV’s or computers and went to a ballpark to see a game live.
Baseball, unlike so much of our other entertainment, is something to be experienced
in person rather than on a screen.
All
of Minor League Baseball’s top 10 attendance years have been in the last
decade. I’m including this fact because my series, LOVE BETWEEN THE BASES,
is about a Triple A team from Texas, and I love seeing how popular Minor League
Baseball is becoming. It’s just as competitive as the Majors, but more fun and
less high-stakes. And a blast to write about.
ALL OF ME is the first book in this new series:
Jennifer Bernard,
the USA Today
bestselling author of the Bachelor Firemen series, scores another homerun with
a brand-new series about sexy, single baseball players.
Playing for the Kilby Catfish is hotshot pitcher Caleb Hart’s last
chance to salvage his career after a major league meltdown. But the day of his
opener with the minor league team, Caleb strikes out with the gorgeous woman
who is delivering a petition to run the unruly Catfish out of town. Now to stay
in the lineup, Caleb will need to score big with the feisty brunette he can’t
keep out of his thoughts.
After the nasty lies Sadie Merritt’s rich ex-boyfriend spread about her
all over town, she’s lucky to have a job at all. She can’t afford to screw it
up by falling for the player who is supposed to be helping her change the image
of the fun-loving Catfish. But that’s easier said than done when Caleb’s voice
alone is enough to make her pulse race. And when he surprises her with a
mind-blowing kiss, she knows there’s no turning back.
WHERE TO PURCHASE ALL OF ME:
EBook
iBOOKS
Print
You can read the first chapter of ALL OF ME on my website.
So what do you think? Does America still have an “America’s
pastime,” or is our culture too fragmented these days? I have an e-copy of ALL OF ME to give to one commenter today!
Hi Jen! Welcome back to Get Lost in a Story. I'm so glad you had the time to come and visit. I LOVE your new series--I hope everyone falls in love with it as much as I have!
ReplyDeleteWonderful to have you at GLIAS, Jennifer! I love baseball and wish I went more often. Congratulations on your books.
ReplyDeletethink they do
ReplyDeletebn100candg at hotmail dot com
When I was younger I watched some baseball because it was a big thing at the firehouse that I grew up around... today not so much.. my sister and dad are the big baseball fans... my sister loves her Yankees and my dad is a Tigers fans... Me I will stick with NASCAR! :) greenshamrock at cox dot net
ReplyDeleteJust as an aside, once a summer my uncle's bicycling group goes on a trek to downtown Minneapolis and Target field to watch the Twins play. We've been going with them the past few years and this summer's outing is coming up on Wednesday. I love baseball, so exercise AND watching my Twinkies play--that's a good good day!
ReplyDeleteThanks for chiming in! In my opinion, it's a different time now and we don't really have a "pastime" that everyone takes part in. But baseball is still a beloved national sport and has a history and nostalgia to it that is incredibly rich. But this is a big country with room for many sports and many sources of entertainment. I just glad that baseball is still going strong over 150 years later!
ReplyDeleteHi Jennifer! *waves* I`m so excited to hear about your baseball book. First firefighters and now baseball players, I know everyone will love your series! Speaking as a Canadian, I do think baseball is still very popular in the US since I see so many ball games televised on TV. But like you mentioned, there are so many different activities competing for people`s time nowadays, whether it`s sports or the internet, baseball might have to share the title of “America`s pastime”. Thanks for stopping by today! :D
ReplyDeletethebigbluewall77 (AT) gmail (DOT) com
I'm in Australia, so I can't really help you. I have never even seen a baseball game - anywhere.
ReplyDeletemarypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com
Welcome Jennifer! I think people don't spend enough time being active and spend too much time online. I just don't think there's one pastime in America that everyone will participate in as much as we Canadians love our hockey!
ReplyDeleteahui89 at hotmail dot com
I have three books with me for this trip: ALL OF ME, GOOD GUYS WEAR BLACK & SOUTHERN COMFORTS.
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to dive into these.
I don't think there is one overall pastime anymore. But baseball is still an important part of our culture. As you probably know, baseball is a big element in Alaskan history, and there's an exhibit at the Anchorage Museum about it. Plus, it's still a highlight of Anchorage's 4th of July festivities. :-)
ReplyDeleteBaseball has been passed by Football I believe. Of course, I live in North Carolina where NASCAR and College Basketball are king.
ReplyDeleteyenastone at aol dot com