"Buying Back Dad's Cards" My book is finally published!
 

After three years of writing and research and interviews, my book is finally here. I owe a debt of gratitude to Leon and this board for a lot of insight and knowledge, and to several members for their assistance and encouragement. I am also grateful to the numerous former players who responded ttm to my questions and to the dealers, collectors, and to Dr. Beckett for allowing me to interview them.

The premise of the book is this: Back in the late 1970's my Dad, like so many middle-aged men, discovered that the baseball cards he collected as a kid were now valuable. One day he went over to his parents' house to fish them out of the attic, only to find out they had been tossed out and lost forever. Our story takes a different turn when this event actually spurred Dad on to "buy back" the cards of his childhood. He took me along for that journey and the memories we made will last forever.

The book is about the relationship between a father and son, the people we met, the cards we collected, and the experiences we had along the way.
Dad has been passed on now for almost eleven years and so this was in many ways an attempt to archive those memories and experiences. It is a personal book but not so personal that people who don't know me would not enjoy it. There are sections on the cards and players themselves as well as the market and the future of our wonderful hobby.

The book is printed in color and so it is not cheap. It cost me about $13 each to make. This is not a money making venture at all, but a labor of love to preserve the stories. If anybody happens to be interested in picking up a copy they are available online to the public at $18 but I will sell them shipped for $15 to any Net54 user. Any kind of payment method would be fine. My ppal is plymouthpastor@hotmail.com.

Thank you and God Bless!
Chris Partin

Looks great, good luck Chris. Will there be a kindle version?

Thanks,

Jeff

Congrats Chris....glad your book is finally published!

I have my copy.I'm half way through it and so far it is a great read!Awesome job Chris!!!

Thanks guys.
It is not on kindle at this time but I will check into that.

Chris,
Congratulations on the completion of this book. I know how much it means to you and your family to help write down the legacy your father had with you through this crazy hobby of ours. You have been a great friend and it's been fun getting to know you better these last few years. Adding in the short story your father wrote was a great touch and I appreciate you letting me in on you and your fathers journey.

To all others, I would encourage you to look into adding this book to your personal library. I received mine and read it in two days time. It's much more than a another book on our hobby but rather a reflection of one mans personal journey to recapture a part of his youth and allowing his son to join him for the ride. I love my father and have many great baseball memories with him but I do wish we shared an interest in this hobby. The only cards he had as a kid were from 1956 and when I get a new one in my collection I like to think that maybe there is a chance that it once belonged to him.

If you ever collected with someone else as a kid (ie, older brother, uncle, father, etc) and want to relive some of those cherished memories this book will warm your heart and bring a smile to your face.

Good luck with the book but more than that congratulations. You have been able to something most of would want to do but never quite know how... Leave a legacy to your children.

Your friend,
Drew

Just picked up a good. Chris is a great guy, congrats on the book.

Collecting
 

I am envious. My Father did not collect and my kids have no interest either

This is where I'm at. I have tried to get both my daughter and son interested, but they don't even like sports, let alone sportscards. My son actually asks how much the cards I have are worth. When I tell him, he tells me I am stupid to collect them.

Oh well, I enjoy it and I will continue on.

I will also take a book. Congrats on writing it and the memories with your father.

Thanks everyone or the encouragement. Shipping out the first stack today!

My wife bought me this book for our anniversary (after I printed out the instructions). Look forward to reading it. She also got me a framed map of all the MLB ballparks, since I want to visit each one on trips.

That's awesome! Really hope you enjoy it.
Very excited to see Rich review it for Sports Collector's Daily.
Here is the link if interested:
http://api.viglink.com/api/click?for...generations%2F

Borrowing from another thread running in the forum, it looks like there is a closer to home method for differentiating the "two types of people in the world: collectors versus non-collectors. The only person who ever collected cards with me was my brother, and these days, when I ask him if he has any recollection of cards we both pulled out of packs back in the 1950's, he reacts as if I'm wacky. Apparently, he doesn't even remember that decade, let alone want to relive it.