"Brooklyn August" is a poem by Stephen King that first appeared in 1971 in ''Io'' magazine and was later collected in King's ''
Nightmares & Dreamscapes'' in 1993. It also pairs with another story in that collection, "
Head Down." An audiobook of the poem was read by evolutionary biologist
Stephen Jay Gould
Stephen Jay Gould ( ; September 10, 1941 – May 20, 2002) was an American Paleontology, paleontologist, Evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist, and History of science, historian of science. He was one of the most influential and widely re ...
.
Synopsis
The poem is reflective in tone, a nostalgic look back at what many consider to be the glory days of baseball as America's national pastime, focusing on the heyday of the
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
in their days as the Brooklyn Dodgers under the management of
Walter Alston. The poems title reflects the tone of the poem, as it describes the team's 1956 heyday at their
Ebbets Field
Ebbets Field was a Major League Baseball stadium in the Flatbush, Brooklyn, Flatbush section of Brooklyn, New York City, New York. It is mainly known for having been the home of the History of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn Dodgers baseball tea ...
ground, now long since demolished. The poem mentions many of the players associated with the club, celebrating their accomplishments and ends on a wistful note, that the writer can still see it if he closes his eyes, again bringing in the main theme of the poem, of a golden age past.
See also
*
Stephen King short fiction bibliography
References
Poetry by Stephen King
American poems
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