'Thin Books' offer fans easy reading

Visit a bookstore these days and you find that many sports books have reached epic lengths. Baseball historian/guru Bill James' "The New Bill James Historical Abstract" checks in at about 1,000 pages, and Lord knows you need to train at the SRSC before you can become able to carry home "Total Hockey: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Hockey League."\nOn the other hand, there are some less lengthy tomes that you might not have noticed. They're called, with a debt of gratitude for the idea to Chicago radio talk show host Mike Murphy, Thin Books. Thin Books don't have much to them, and they leave you wanting more. For example. . .\n"A Pronunciation Guide For the Baseball Broadcaster" by Harry Caray\n"My Collection of Italian Silk Ties" by Bob Knight\n"Times When the Player Is Right and the Coach Is Wrong" by Dick Vitale\n"The Coward's Way Out" by Lance Armstrong\n"Things I Won't Do For Money" by Dennis Rodman\n"The Keys to Longevity" by Joe Kerrigan\n"Coming Through In the Clutch" by Michelle Kwan\n"The Joys of Afro-Centric Culture in Fayetteville, Ark." by Nolan Richardson\n"Keeping Trim In Your Later Years" by Diego Maradona\n"Reasons Why We Lost Other Than the Officiating" by Todd Leary\n"Days In Which I Have Avoided Lawsuits" by Don King\n"All the Details Between Tyra and Me" by Chris Webber\n"The Lost Art of Articulation" by Eric Dickerson\n"The Mild-Mannered Way To Get Along With People" by Theo Fleury\n"What the Salary Cap Left Us With" by Brian Billick\n"Time to Cry 'Uncle'" by Bille Beane\n"How CNN/SI Changed the World" by Rudy Martzke\n"Don't Give Up, Don't Ever Give Up" by Jim Hazlett\n"Bribes That I've Turned Down" by Juan Antonio Samaranch\n"The Modern Haircut" by Tony LaRussa\n"With Kindness in My Heart" by Carl Pohlad\n"A Collection of My Good Columns" by Rick Reilly\n"The Way to Shoot Free Throws, Bro" by Shaquille O'Neal\n"Proper Technique For the Hat Dance" by Dan Issel\n"Fairness and Honesty in Business Dealings" by Denny McLain\n"Sanity in the MIlwaukee Bucks Locker Room" by George Karl\n"Times I Have Misspoken" by Vin Scully\n"Russian Hockey Players That I Haven't Dated" by Anna Kournikova\n"Churning Out Those Winning Records" by Phil Garner\n"The Incredibly Fascinating Vijay Singh" by Tim Finchem\n"Times I Have Not Used "Gettin' It Done" In a Sentence" by Digger Phelps\n"Shamelessly Exploiting Myself" by Jim Shea\n"Yeah, I Realize What Gandhi" Did by Earl Woods\n"Worldwide Problems That I Have Not Yet Cured (But Plan On Later)" by Shane Battier\n"My Ideas That Haven't Worked" by Billie Jean King\n"Relating With the Homies" by Steve Fisher\n"My Squeaky Clean UCLA Basketball Program" by John Wooden\n"How My Shtick Stays So Fresh" by Chris Berman\n"All My Losses" by Larry Coker\n"Stability in the Modern Family" by Larry Brown\n"Friends Forever" by Larry Bird and Isiah Thomas\n"Nobody's Bigger Than the Game" by Nykesha Sales\n"Toughing Out Those Little Aches and Pains" by Serena Williams\n"I Thought They Were Flintstones Vitamins" by Ben Johnson\n"Public Charm: The Key to Winning a Big Ten Title" by Kevin O'Neill\n"No Pressure at All" by LeBron James\n"How to Lie and Look Smooth Doing It" by Jeff Kent\n"How To Win at Jeopardy!" by the University of Cincinnati Basketball Team\n…and finally\n"What's In a Last Name?" by Chip Caray