{"product_id":"9780399536748","title":"The Secret History of Balls: The Stories Behind the Things We Love to Catch, Whack, Throw, Kick, Bounce and Bat","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eYou may fancy yourself a sports fan, but chances are you don't know: \u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA fish eyeball was used as the center of some nineteenth-century baseballs \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe race to make better billiard balls led to the invention of plastics \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Nerf ball was originally created to be part of a board game featuring cavemen \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBalls are the unsung heroes of sports. They are smacked, flung, dribbled, crushed, thrown, and kicked. They're usually only the subject of scrutiny when something goes wrong: a tear, the application of an illegal foreign substance, or a dent from overuse. Nevertheless, if you're watching nearly any major sporting event from around the world, you're likely following the ball wondering where it will go next... \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Secret History of Balls\u003c\/i\u003e mines the stories and lore of sports and recreation to offer insight into 60 balls-whether they're hollow, solid, full of air, or stuffed with twine or made of leather, metal, rubber, plastic, or polyurethane-that give us joy on playing fields and in every arena from backyards to stadiums around the globe.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Penguin Publishing Group","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47025213473008,"sku":"9780399536748","price":13.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9780399536748_p0.jpg?v=1763698847","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9780399536748","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}