Thou Shalt Not Steal:
The Baseball Life and Times of a
Rifle-Armed Negro League Catcher
The award-winning autobiography of Bill 'Ready' Cash
by Bill 'Ready' Cash & Al Hunter Jr.
Bill Cash was one of the best baseball catchers you probably never heard of. But that will surely change after reading Bill's lively, award-winning autobiography, Thou Shalt Not Steal: The Baseball Life and Times of a Rifle-Armed Negro League Catcher (Love Eagle Books).
As a player for the Negro League’s Philadelphia Stars from 1943 to 1950, Bill “Ready” Cash had a nasty arm, a potent bat, and knowledge of the game that would embarrass most of today’s major leaguers. He consistently threw out some of the Negro League’s best base stealers, was named to the East-West All-Star Team in 1948 and 1949, and enjoyed successful seasons in Cuba, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Canada, and Venezuela.
A born storyteller, Bill weaves plenty of tales about his life on and off the field in Thou Shalt Not Steal. Yes, there are stories about Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, Roy Campanella, Larry Doby, Jackie Robinson, and other great players. But Bill’s life also reflects the struggles and disappointments of a special generation of black Americans born in the early 1900s -- a generation that migrated from the south to the north, with promises of a better life.
Considered one of the Negro Leagues’ best defensive catchers, Bill is not a household name like Paige or Gibson and, perhaps because of a controversial incident involving a white umpire, didn’t make it to the majors. But like many other little-known players, he was the backbone of the league. Bill died in September 2011, just three months before his book was published. He was 92.
This is not a sports book filled with boring statistics or a sense of “I am great!” It is a story of baseball and American history, a story of love and loyalty, a story of struggle and success.
As a player for the Negro League’s Philadelphia Stars from 1943 to 1950, Bill “Ready” Cash had a nasty arm, a potent bat, and knowledge of the game that would embarrass most of today’s major leaguers. He consistently threw out some of the Negro League’s best base stealers, was named to the East-West All-Star Team in 1948 and 1949, and enjoyed successful seasons in Cuba, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Canada, and Venezuela.
A born storyteller, Bill weaves plenty of tales about his life on and off the field in Thou Shalt Not Steal. Yes, there are stories about Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, Roy Campanella, Larry Doby, Jackie Robinson, and other great players. But Bill’s life also reflects the struggles and disappointments of a special generation of black Americans born in the early 1900s -- a generation that migrated from the south to the north, with promises of a better life.
Considered one of the Negro Leagues’ best defensive catchers, Bill is not a household name like Paige or Gibson and, perhaps because of a controversial incident involving a white umpire, didn’t make it to the majors. But like many other little-known players, he was the backbone of the league. Bill died in September 2011, just three months before his book was published. He was 92.
This is not a sports book filled with boring statistics or a sense of “I am great!” It is a story of baseball and American history, a story of love and loyalty, a story of struggle and success.
2020 Booklife reading list selection: indie books by black authors that address systemic racism, explore African American history, or reflect diverse living experiences of blacks in America
Winner, 2012 Robert Peterson Recognition Award,
Society for American Baseball Research, Negro Leagues Committee
2015 FEATURED SELECTION, 31st ANNUAL CELEBRATION OF BLACK WRITING
PHILADELPHIA, PA
What others are saying about Thou Shalt Not Steal:
"He tells it like it is and fills in many historical gaps ... (O)ne of the best autobiographies written."
-- Larry Lester, Chairman, Society for American Baseball Research, Negro Leagues Committee
"Thou Shalt Not Steal, within its chronicle of (Bill) Cash's life, includes passages that shed light on larger issues in American society, particularly with respect to African Americans within that society, that imbue the book with value beyond recounting the life of one player... (I)t thoroughly earns its place as a worthy addition to the established canon of Negro League autobiographies." -- A.J. Taylor, Black Ball: A Negro Leagues Journal, Vol. 7
"A moving memoir of a Negro League all-star, recommended."
-- Midwest Book Review
"Cash offers a detailed look at his life in this fiercely opinionated memoir...His bitterness at not making it to the majors is palpable -- and certainly justified -- based on his talents...Even readers who are not fans of our national pastime will be moved by Cash's devotion to his wife of more than 60 years and his impressive work ethic, dating back to his pre-baseball days."
-- Publishers Weekly
"I couldn't get enough of the voice, which here is the thing. I'm not a baseball enthusiast...(b)ut I do know first-rate writing and exceptional storytelling ... Historical, informative, humorous, candid, charming...there is so much covered in this highly laudable autobiography."
-- OEBooks Review
"Truly an enjoyable, informative read...(the) writing stellar. What a fun way to teach any age reader about history, the '40s, baseball, the Negro Leagues, and Americana. Although we do not personally know Bill, it seems you captured his voice in your writing style."
-- Judge's commentary, Writer's Digest 20th Annual Self-Published Book Awards
"... A fast-paced narrative of a gifted baseball talent. "
-- Reid Champagne, Wilmington (Del.) News Journal
"Stands out from other athlete biographies. It feels like you are sitting on the couch next to Cash as he reels you in with the details of his life and career, while neither bragging nor complaining."
-- Nick Diunte, Examiner.com
"I am not a baseball fan, but this memoir of the career of Bill "Ready" Cash in the Negro Baseball League held my attention. It was my first in-depth look into the globetrotting feistiness needed to not only survive but excel in arguably the toughest league in the nation."
-- Author Gloria Blakely, Shelfari Book Review
"Al Hunter Jr. has written a tremendous book on Cash."
-- Donald Hunt, Philadelphia Tribune
Thou Shalt Not Steal: The Baseball Life and Times of a Rifle-Armed Negro League Catcher. (Love Eagle Books, $12) ISBN 978-0615445465
Available:
Amazon.com (http://amzn.com/0615445462); CreateSpace (www.createspace.com/3557730); and as a $2.99 Kindle e-book
