CONTENTSForeword by George PlimptonPrologue1. The Joints Trembled on the SpitThe origins of racquets sports with real tennis and racquets; the invention of squash at Harrow School in England2. Heaven's Heaviest ArtilleryThe birth of squash in America at St. Paul's School in 1884; infancy in Philadelphia; the strange and sad history of the game of squash tennis; the saga of standardization and why North American squash developed the narrow court and harder ball.3. Don't Keep Late HourHarvard's squash dynasty, 1922-1937; Harry Cowles, genius coach of seven national champions.4. Hollow-Eyed and SqueakyThe start of women's squash; Yale and intercollegiate squash; squash on the Titanic; a tour of squash cities and tournaments in the 1920s and '30s.5. Send for the Drama CriticThe Merion Cricket Club juggernaut; the Diehl Mateer/Henri Salaun rivalry of the 1950s; the start of the U.S.Open and the arrival of the Khans.6. A Clam in Mud at Low TideVictor Niederhoffer; the game expands across the nation; women, juniors and colleges in the 1950s and '60s; Harvard dynasty redux under Jack Barnaby.7. Sex, Scandal and CelebritiesPublic squash in the 1970s -- the great explosion.8. Box of RainThe North American professional tour of the 1980s.9. 18-16 in the Fifth Mark Talbott versus Jahangir Khan, November 1984.10. Bait and SwitchThe tortuous change from North American to international standards.11. The Infinitely Greater GameA short history of squash doubles.12. This Mollycoddled AgeSquash in the twenty-first century; rebirth and expansion; dreams of Olympic gold and a new generation of players.AcknowledgmentsBibliographyNotesAppendix: Record of ChampionsIndex

Tom Wolfe The squash world has been waiting for a book like this. I bet even the most dedicated and knowledgeable maestros of tight rails and feathery drop shots will learn lots of fascinating stuff they never knew before.