Ralph Henry Barbour was not the first to write about sports and schools, but he was the first writer of quality to focus upon sports and their ability to redeem and alter boys' lives. He wrote not merely about the vigor and fun of sports but also about school spirit and the importance sports potentially had. His books were, as Fred Erisman wrote, "didactic, idealistic, and absolutistic," but they were also highly readable, and their messages were understandable, believable, and noble to readers. Adults may have seen Barbour as moralistic, but younger readers were not bored because the messages came from characters who were coaches and athletes. For many readers, Barbour's advice seemed a sensible way to run one's life. Barbour created a special kind of book set at a private preparatory school. The book focuses on a game, often in great detail, though rarely enough detail to...