THE YANKEE YEARS

The first thing that strikes you about THE YANKEE YEARS is that, despite being ostensibly cowritten by legendary manager Joe Torre, it's narrated in the third person: a biography rather than memoir. While the book has become known for what it reveals about baseball giants such as Alex Rodriquez, as well as life under the ornery George Steinbrenner, Michael Kramer's narration has nothing like a gossipy tone. On the contrary, there's not much energy in his voice, especially when compared to Tom Verducci's much more spirited narration of the abridged version. Nonetheless, the low-key approach that Kramer brings to his reading suits Torre, who is known for his thoughtfulness and restraint rather than histrionics. D.B. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2009]