A Nice Little Place on the North Side: A History of Triumph, Mostly Defeat, and Incurable Hope at Wrigley Field

Now in paperback, the New York Times bestselling hundred-year history of America’s most beloved baseball park, Wrigley Field, by the author of baseball classics Men at Work and Bunts

In A Nice Little Place on the North Side, leading columnist George Will returns to baseball with a deeply personal look at his hapless Chicago Cubs and their often beatified home, Wrigley Field, as it turns one hundred years old. Baseball, Will argues, is full of metaphors for life, religion, and happiness, and Wrigley is considered one of its sacred spaces. But what is the ballpark’s true, hyperbole-free history?

Winding beautifully like Wrigley’s iconic ivy, Will’s meditation on oThe Friendly Confineso examines both the unforgettable stories that forged the field’s legend and the larger-than-life characters-from Wrigley and Ruth to Veeck, Durocher, and Banks-who brought it glory, heartbreak, and scandal. Drawing upon his trademark knowledge and inimitable sense of humor, Will also explores his childhood connections to the team, the Cubs’ future, and what keeps long-suffering fans rooting for the home team after so many years of futility.

In the end, A Nice Little Place on the North Side is more than just the history of a ballpark. It is the story of Chicago, of baseball, and of America itself.