Skip to content
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • PodBean
  • Subscribe To My Pal Sammy Newsletter
  • ABOUT
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms

My Summer Lair

Think NPR's Fresh Air meets Kevin Smith: My Summer Lair with host Sammy Younan: interviews & impressions on Pop Culture.

  • Home
  • Podcast
    • My Summer Lair
    • Space Station Oddity
  • Set The VCR
  • New Book Alert
  • True Sammy Stories
  • Toggle search form

New Book Alert: April 6-10, 2020

Posted on April 11, 2020August 14, 2023 By Sammy Younan

My weekly collection of new and notable books for your pop culture pleasure and edification: #ReadMoreTweetLess.

Tanking to the Top: The Philadelphia 76ers and the Most Audacious Process in the History of Professional Sports by Yaron Weitzman (Grand Central Publishing; NBA on sale March 17, 2020): Often we turn to sports for inspiration and ruthless battles to be #1! But what if a team decided to not be the best and instead race to the bottom? From Bleacher Report writer Yaron Weitzman this is Tanking To The Top the (sad?) story of the Sixers. So hype to get into this; I don’t buy the Process at all. If you ain’t a winner…what does that make you? #NewBookAlert for April 6, 2020.

My book on the Sixers/The Process, TANKING TO THE TOP, is out today. Probably not ot ideal timing but, hey, we've all got lots of time on our hands now, right???

It's available wherever books are sold. https://t.co/FgCwi3xGbX

— Yaron Weitzman (@YaronWeitzman) March 17, 2020

The Sword and the Shield: The Revolutionary Lives of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. by Peniel E. Joseph (Basic Books; on sale March 31, 2020): Peniel Joseph’s The Sword And The Shield valiantly battles the lazy reduction we often succumb to with famous and polarizing individuals. Think Bigger: Malcolm X and Martin Luther King did. #NewBookAlert for April 7, 2020.

New at LQ: An excerpt from @PenielJoseph’s “The Sword and the Shield: The Revolutionary Lives of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.”, available now from @BasicBooks. https://t.co/yFJeCjg9S5 pic.twitter.com/TR3VxSHcyj

— Lapham’s Quarterly (@laphamsquart) April 6, 2020

Pencils You Should Know: A History of Ultimate Writing Utensil in 75 Anecdotes by Caroline Weaver (Chronicle Books; Creativity on sale February 4, 2020): Remember that Seinfeld episode about the Space Pen? “It writes upside down!!” Well, initially Americans and Russians used pencils in space. They write upside down! By Caroline Weaver and from Chronicle Books say hello: this is Pencils You Should Know. #NewBookAlert for April 8, 2020.

Pencils You Should Know traces the evolution of pencils over time and across the globe. From the humble, handcrafted pencil of the 19th century to the novelty writing implement of the 1990s, each object in this book tells a different story. https://t.co/PwvBtZbVjR pic.twitter.com/T5gysajmT2

— Chronicle Books (@ChronicleBooks) February 12, 2020

The Hot Hand: The Mystery and Science of Streaks by Ben Cohen (Custom House; NBA on sale March 10, 2020): Is there such a thing as being in the zone? Can someone have a “hot hand?” Or is it simply a case of seeing patterns in randomness? Those and many other pertinent questions inform Ben Cohen’s The Hot Hand. I like that: tell me upfront what questions prompted the book you wrote so I can follow your path. Often questions have more value than the answers. #NewBookAlert for April 9, 2020.

Happy on sale day to one of our all-time favorite projects, @bzcohen's The Hot Hand, a brilliant investigation into the existence (or not) of streaks, from @StephenCurry30 to the stock market to Shakespeare. 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/2BfTyNnpHI

— Custom House Books (@customhousebks) March 10, 2020

The Innovation Stack: Building an Unbeatable Business One Crazy Idea at a Time by Jim McKelvey (University Press of Kentucky; Business on sale March 10, 2019): It’s Hip To Be Square. Square’s cofounder has written The Innovation Stack a sensible business book. The book back description says: “It is an irreverent first-person look inside the world of entrepreneurship, and a call to action for all of us to find the entrepreneur within ourselves and identify and fix unsolved problems–one crazy idea at a time.” #NewBookAlert for April 10, 2020.

In this excerpt of The #InnovationStack, I discuss moments of wow. These subtle, yet memorable experiences teach us new things. E.g., Square's reader was kept small and slightly difficult to use on purpose in order to make the user pay more attention. https://t.co/UtLnjOnfZA

— Jim McKelvey (@2000F) March 10, 2020

Sammy Baltic Web

Sammy Younan @ W • T • F

New Book Alert Tags:Creativity, Handle Your Business, NBA, New Book Alert

Post navigation

Previous Post: Under-Review: NBA Jam
Next Post: New Book Alert: April 13-17, 2020

More Related Articles

New Book Alert: January 11-15, 2021 New Book Alert
Ethan Strauss (The Victory Machine: The Making & Unmaking of the Warriors Dynasty) and Sammy Younan in My Summer Lair Under-Review: The Victory Machine: The Making & Unmaking of the Warriors Dynasty Books
Under-Review: Vibrate Higher: A Rap Story Books
Batman: Detective Comics Vol. 1: Gotham Nocturne: Overture Under-Review: Detective Comics: Gotham Nocturne: Overture Books
New Book Alert: April 5-9, 2021 New Book Alert
Under-Review: Steve Kerr: A Life Books
  • #SetTheVCR: January 19-25, 2026
    by Sammy Younan
    From Black activists to a Black Phone, from a Running Man to a 99 Year Old Man these are more than just TV Recommendations. Take the Bold #SetTheVCR Journey.
  • #SetTheVCR: January 12-18, 2026
    by Sammy Younan
    I won’t Tell You Lies…even The Night Manager believes these Bookish TV Recommendations earned an M grade. What does that mean? Why that’s it’s #SetTheVCR.
  • #SetTheVCR: January 05-11, 2026
    by Sammy Younan
    Take a Long Walk to each of these TV Recommendations that celebrate The Spirt of Radio? Welcome to #SetTheVCR in 2026.
  • #SetTheVCR: December 29, 2025 – January 04, 2026
    by Sammy Younan
    A moment of silence for Stranger Things. A moment of silence for 2025. Happily these TV Recommendations will turn your Christmas Break into a celebratory wake. Make #SetTheVCR a 2026 New Year's Eve resolution. Watch More TV.
  • #SetTheVCR: December 22-28 2025
    by Sammy Younan
    Tis the season to spend with the Life of John McClane and the Life of Chuck. Season's Greetings from #SetTheVCR.
  • #SetTheVCR: December 15-21, 2025
    by Sammy Younan
    This time of year TV is all ICK with corny Christmas. But don't have a Breakdown or a Fallout with TV. I offer lots of non-Christmas TV recommendations for this week's #SetTheVCR.
  • #SetTheVCR: December 08-14, 2025
    by Sammy Younan
    I'm not an Influencer with TV Recommendations, though I have most excellent #SetTheVCR suggestions that'll make you say Boo-Yah!
  • #SetTheVCR: December 01-07, 2025
    by Sammy Younan
    Your Mission Impossible is to enjoy this week's TV Recommendations which range from Paul Anka to Jeff Buckley. Clearly with music that good it's time to #SetTheVCR.
  • #SetTheVCR: November 24-30, 2025
    by Sammy Younan
    This week's TV Recommendation is all about Conjuring Stranger Things. Which is fun because if I start Acting My Age #SetTheVCR isn't as cool.
  • #SetTheVCR: November 17-23, 2025
    by Sammy Younan
    I bet if you are a Good Boy you'll enjoy these TV Recommendations. Funny You Should Say That as it is #SetTheVCR.
  • #CouchWorthy: Star Trek: Starfleet AcademyJanuary 15, 2026
    Young cadets train to become Starfleet officers all while facing a mysterious threat to both the Academy and the Federation.
  • Toronto After Dark: This Is Not A TestOctober 19, 2025
    Sloane and a small group of her classmates take cover in their high school to escape the apocalypse. And maybe find the will to live?
  • #CouchWorthy: Smell Ya Later Ozzy OsbourneOctober 3, 2025
    Ozzy Osbourne: Coming Home is one documentary way to say...Smell Ya Later Ozzy Osbourne. Thanks for the music.
  • #TIFF50: Eleanor the GreatSeptember 25, 2025
    In Eleanor The Great, June Squibb brings to life the proudly troublesome Eleanor Morgenstein, who after a devastating loss, tells a dangerous tale.
  • The Savant vs The Idiot…September 24, 2025
    The series follows The Savant an undercover investigator as she infiltrates online hate groups to stop domestic extremists before they act.
  • New Book Alert: Cesar Romero: The Joker Is WildAugust 26, 2025
    My Summer Lair host Sammy Younan reviews Yaron Weitzman's Tanking to the Top. Trust The Process of The Philadelphia 76ers?

  • New Book Alert: Cesar Romero: The Joker Is Wild
    by Sammy Younan
    My Summer Lair host Sammy Younan reviews Yaron Weitzman's Tanking to the Top. Trust The Process of The Philadelphia 76ers?
  • Batman: Detective Comics Vol. 1: Gotham Nocturne: Overture
    Under-Review: Detective Comics: Gotham Nocturne: Overture
    by Sammy Younan
    My Summer Lair host Sammy Younan reviews Batman - Detective Comics: Gotham Nocturne: OvertureL Volume 1,
  • New Book Alert: California Bear
    by Sammy Younan
    New Book Alert is just that: A useful Yo for a fresh book. from your pal Sammy. What Are You Reading?
  • New Book Alert: The Music Was Just Getting Good
    by Sammy Younan
    New Book Alert is just that: A useful Yo for a fresh book. from your pal Sammy. What Are You Reading?
  • New Book Alert: The Ascent
    by Sammy Younan
    New Book Alert is just that: A useful Yo for a fresh book. from your pal Sammy. What Are You Reading?

Copyright © 2026 My Summer Lair.

Powered by PressBook Premium theme