This biography by a veteran New York sportswriter who covered the team is anecdote-driven and not truly systematic, though it does include narratives for every season of McGraw's long tenure as Giants' manager, which covered the first third of the last century. The author writes about what he knew; hence, McGraw's playing career and early life are dismissed quickly. Much of the book also duplicates, if necessarily, the author's history of the Giants. Withal, it's a pleasant read for enthusiasts of baseball of the period. ( )

Biography of Giants manager John McGraw ( )