Lewisburg Bookstore features WVW author Rody Johnson

Rody Johnson will chat with readers and sign copies of “The Rise and Fall of Dodgertown” during Lewisburg's First Friday, June 6 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Open Book, on Washington Street in downtown Lewisburg. He is also the author of “In Their Footsteps,” a West Virginia history, and “Different Battles,” the story of a U-boat attack off the Florida coast during World War II. He is currently working on a book on wind energy.

“The Rise and Fall of Dodgertown” is the story of the most hallowed spring training site in baseball. A review in the “Los Angeles Times” said: “For Dodger fans, spring training has meant Vero Beach. The club has been based in the sleepy Florida beach town since 1948, when they were the Boys of Summer from Brooklyn. The symbiotic relationship between the team and the town is the basis for Rody Johnson's “The Rise and Fall of Dodgertown.”

“I've been to Dodgertown many times and I know how special it is,” said Fay Vincent, former Commissioner, Major League Baseball. “There's no other spring training site quite like it. Rody Johnson was there from the beginning so he's able to take us on an entertaining trip down through Dodgertown's long and colorful history.”

Granted special access to the team's archives and personal interviews with players, management, and staff, Rody Johnson presents a fascinating and remarkable history of the sometimes rocky relationship between the city and the team. Beginning with the signing of Jackie Robinson in 1946 and ending with the recent departure of the Dodgers to Arizona, “The Rise and Fall of Dodgertown” traces the changes in baseball and society for more than a half century. It is a story of community, passion, and the beauty of an American sport.

The book was the basis for an ESPN piece on Dodgertown and was featured on Fox and CBS TV affiliates in Florida, nation-wide XM Radio, and Japanese national television.

Rody Johnson is a long--time resident of Vero Beach, was born in Charleston, and spends his summers in Lewisburg.

For more information contact:
Rody Johnson, 647-9905