Author Peter C. Bjarkman (June 2005)
"All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dream with open eyes, to make it possible. This I did."—T.E. Lawrence
PETER C. BJARKMAN (born in Hartford, Connecticut on May 19, 1941) is author of 40-plus books on sports history, including academic histories, coffee table pictorials, and biographies for young adult readers. He is perhaps best known in recent years as the leading authority on post-revolution Cuban League baseball and is also the first American to write regular columns and analysis on two "official" Cuban League baseball websites. His 2007 book, History of Cuban Baseball, 1864-2006 is universally recognized as the definitive work treating the history of Cuba's national pastime.
Bjarkman's earlier pictorial history of Cuban baseball entitled Smoke: The Romance and Lore of Cuban Baseball (1999, Total Sports, with photographer Mark Rucker) is widely recognized as a landmark achievement in the field. His more recent volume, Diamonds around the Globe: The Encyclopedia of International Baseball (2005, Greenwood), was winner of The Sporting News-SABR Baseball Research Award and a finalist for Spitball magazine's CASEY AWARD as "Baseball Book of the Year." Bjarkman's 1994 study, Baseball with a Latin Beat: A History of the Latin American Game (McFarland), earned the Macmillan-SABR Baseball Research Award. He is a frequent radio/television guest and invited speaker on international baseball, plus a regular columnist for the Spanish-language monthly periodical Béisbol Mundial (New York).
Bjarkman—who splits his year between Lafayette, Indiana; Zagreb, Croatia; and Havana, Cuba—has traveled extensively throughout Cuba (30-plus visits) over the past decade and was the first American interviewed extensively about Cuban baseball on Cuban national television (2001-2005) during the 45-year history of the Cuban Socialist Revolution; he today ranks as the leading authority on the history of post-1962 Cuban League and Cuban national team baseball. Bjarkman has attended numerous major Olympic-style international baseball tournaments over the past ten years and recently covered Baseball World Cup XXXVI in The Netherlands (September 2005) for the Prensa Latina (Havana, Cuba) English-language website and the MLB World Baseball Classic (March 2006) for the Spanish-language magazine Béisbol Mundial. His latest books, entitled A History of Cuban Baseball, 1864-2006 (2007), Baseball's Other Big Red Machine: A History of the Cuban National Team (Forthcoming, 2009), and Who's Who in Cuban Baseball, 1962-2006 (Forthcoming, 2009) are published by McFarland & Company. Bjarkman writes and lectures in both English and Spanish.
A native New Englander, Bjarkman earned his Ph.D. in Linguistics (University of Florida) in 1976, M.A. in English (Trinity College, Hartford) in 1972, M.Ed. in Educational Administration (University of Hartford, Summa Cum Laude) in 1970, and B.S.Ed. in Education (University of Hartford, Magna Cum Laude) in 1963. He has been married since 1985 to Purdue University linguistics professor Ronnie B. Wilbur, a leading researcher and authority on deaf sign languages, and has two adult children. His avocations include model railroading (HO and N scale) and building the most extensive existing collection of Cuban League game-worn baseball uniforms.
Bjarkman is a member of The Author's Guild (2006) and the Society for American Baseball Research (since 1987).
MAJOR WRITING AWARDS
2008 Recipient—SABR Latino Committee Eduardo Valero Memorial Award (from the Society for American Baseball Research Latino Committee, for the best La Prensa newsletter article published in 2007-2008)
2007 Recipient—Robert Peterson Recognition Award (from the Society for American Baseball Research Negro Leagues Committee, for A History of Cuban Baseball, 1864-2006, McFarland & Company Publishers, 2007)
2005 Finalist—Spitball CASEY Award (Top Ten Nomination for Diamonds around the Globe: The Encyclopedia of International Baseball, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005)
2004 Winner—The Sporting News-SABR Baseball Research Award (Awarded for Diamonds around the Globe: The Encyclopedia of International Baseball, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005)
2000 Finalist—SABR Seymour Medal (Nominated with Mark Rucker for Smoke—The Romance and Lore of Cuban Baseball, Total Sports Illustrated, 1999)
1999 Finalist—Spitball CASEY Award (Top Ten Nomination with Mark Rucker for Smoke—The Romance and Lore of Cuban Baseball, Total Sports Illustrated, 1999)
1994 Winner—The Macmillan-SABR Baseball Research Award (Awarded for Baseball with a Latin Beat: A History of the Latin American Game, McFarland & Company Publishers, 1994)
Havana's Central Park and the Hotel Telegrafo (Bjarkman's Cuban home)
Bibliography of Books Published or Forthcoming by PETER BJARKMAN
Baseball's Other Big Red Machine: A History of the Cuban National Team. Jefferson, North Carolina and London: McFarland & Company, 2009 (in press).
Who's Who in Cuban Baseball, 1962-2007. Jefferson, North Carolina and London: McFarland & Company, 2009 (to appear).
The Baseball Scrapbook—The Men and Magic of America's National Pastime. Revised Fifth Edition. New York: JG Press (World Publications), 2008.
A History of Cuban Baseball, 1864-2006. Jefferson, North Carolina and London: McFarland & Company, 2007.
Diamonds around the Globe: The Encyclopedia of International Baseball. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005.
The Baseball Scrapbook—The Men and Magic of America’s National Pastime. Revised Fourth Edition. New York: World Publications, 2004.
New York Mets Encyclopedia. Revised Edition. Champaign, Illinois: Sports Publishing LLC, 2003. 320pp.
Boston Celtics Encyclopedia. Paperback Revised Edition. Champaign, Illinois: Sports Publishing LLC, 2002.
New York Mets Encyclopedia. Champaign, Illinois: Sports Publishing LLC, 2001.
The Biographical History of Basketball: More than 500 Portraits of the Most Significant On- and Off-Court Personalities of the Game’s Past and Present. Chicago: NTC Contemporary Books (Masters Press), 2000.
The Baseball Scrapbook—The Men and Magic of America’s National Pastime. Revised Third Edition. New York: Barnes & Noble Publishers, 2000.
Smoke—The Romance and Lore of Cuban Baseball (with Mark Rucker). Foreword by Hank Aaron. New York: Total Sports Illustrated, 1999.
Boston Celtics Encyclopedia. First Edition. Champaign, Illinois: Sports Publishing LLC, 1999.
Reggie Miller, Star Guard. Springfield, New Jersey: Enslow Publishers, 1999.
Hoopla: A Century of College Basketball. Paperback Edition. Chicago: NTC Contemporary Books (Masters Press), 1998.
Hoopla: A Century of College Basketball, 1896-1996. Indianapolis, IN: Masters Press (Howard W. Sams), 1996.
ACC—Atlantic Coast Conference Basketball. Indianapolis: Masters Press (Howard W. Sams and Bell Atlantic Media Publishers), 1996.
Sports Great Dominique Wilkins. Springfield, New Jersey: Enslow Publishers, 1996.
Sports Great Scottie Pippen. Springfield, New Jersey: Enslow Publishers, 1996.
Warren Spahn. “Introduction” by Jim Murray. Philadelphia and London: Chelsea House Publishers (Chelsea House Baseball Legends Series), 1995.
Top 10 Basketball Slam Dunkers. Springfield, New Jersey: Enslow Publishers, 1995.
Top 10 Baseball Base Stealers. Springfield, New Jersey: Enslow Publishers, 1995.
Big Ten Basketball. Indianapolis: Masters Press (Howard W. Sams), 1995.
The Baseball Scrapbook—The Men and Magic of America’s National Pastime. Revised Edition. New York: Barnes & Noble Publishers, 1995.
(Polish Edition) Mistrzowie Slam Dunk (Slam Dunk Superstars). Krakow, Poland: Wydawnictwo Ryszard Kluszczynski, Limited, 1995.
Baseball with a Latin Beat: A History of the Latin American Game. Jefferson, NC and London: McFarland & Company, 1994.
(Japanese Edition) Baseball & The Game of Life: Stories for the Thinking Fan (Editor). Tokyo: Shinjuku Shobo Limited, 1994.
Ernie Banks. “Introduction” by Jim Murray. Philadelphia and London: Chelsea House Publishers (Chelsea House Baseball Legends Series), 1994.
Duke Snider. “Introduction” by Jim Murray. Philadelphia and London: Chelsea House Publishers (Chelsea House Baseball Legends Series), 1994.
Slam Dunk Superstars. New York and Avenel, New Jersey: Crescent Books (Random House Value Publishing), 1994.
Shaq: The Making of a Legend. New York: Smithmark (W.H. Smith and Brompton-Bison Books), 1994.
The Encyclopedia of Pro Basketball Team Histories. New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers, 1994.
(French Edition) Histoire de la NBA. London and Paris: PML Editions, 1994. 176pp.
Baseball & The Game of Ideas: Essays for the Serious Fan (Editor). Delhi, New York: Birch Brook Press (Special Letterpress Limited Edition), 1993.
Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball: Team Histories—The National League (Editor). Revised 1993 Paperback Edition. New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers, 1993.
Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball: Team Histories—The American League (Editor). Revised 1993 Paperback Edition. New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers, 1993.
The Brooklyn Dodgers. New York and Secaucus, New Jersey: Chartwell Books (Booksales Publishers and Brompton-Bison Books), 1992.
The History of the NBA. New York and Avenel, New Jersey: Crescent Books (Random House Books), 1992.
The Inter-National Pastime: A Review of Baseball History (Editor). Number 12 (An Olympic-Year Appreciation of Baseball Around the Globe). Cleveland: SABR, 1992.
The Baseball Scrapbook—The Men and Magic of America’s National Pastime. New York, NY: Dorset Press (Barnes & Noble Publishers), 1991.
Roberto Clemente. “Introduction” by Jim Murray. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers (Chelsea House Baseball Legends Series), 1991.
Baseball & The Game of Life: Stories for the Thinking Fan (Editor). New York, NY: Vintage Books (Random House Publishers), 1991.
Baseball’s Great Dynasties: The Reds. New York: Gallery Books (Brompton-Bison Books and W.H. Smith Publishers), 1991.
Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball Team Histories: The National League (Editor). Westport, CT: Meckler Books, 1991.
Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball Team Histories: The American League (Editor). Westport, CT: Meckler Books, 1991.
Baseball & The Game of Life: Stories for the Thinking Fan (Editor). Delhi and Otisville, New York: Birch Brook Press (Special Letterpress Limited Edition), 1990.
Baseball’s Great Dynasties: The Dodgers. New York: Gallery Books (W.H. Smith Publishers and Brompton-Bison Books), 1990.
The Toronto Blue Jays. Toronto, Canada: B. Mitchell Publishers (Brompton-Bison Books and W.H. Smith Publishers), 1990.
The Toronto Blue Jays. New York, NY: Gallery Books Company (Brompton-Bison Books and W.H. Smith Publishers), 1990.
