Sports Fact and Book Rec of the Day 10/26/2007

10/26/1996:
Unbeaten West Virginia is upended in the final 30 seconds when Tremaine Mack of Miami blocks a punt and Nathaniel Brooks runs it back 20 yards for the winning touchdown as the Hurricanes get out of Mountaineer Field in Morgantown with a 10-7 victory. It's a crushing defeat for West Virginia, whose fans also fail to comport themselves with distinction. They toss a stream of debris at the 'Canes as they leave the field, injuring an assistant coach, and dangerously jostle an ambulance as it leaves the grounds without a police escort.

Birthdays:
Primo Carnera b. 1906
Sid Gillman b. 1911
Jumpin' Joe Fulks b. 1921
Mike Hargrove b. 1949
Jessie Armstead b. 1970

“Remarkable.”—The Washington Post

“Brilliant.”—The Boston Globe

“Extraordinary.”—Newsweek

Critics raved about this utterly original novel, and readers made it an international bestseller. It’s the story of a teenage girl, Sophie, who enters into an unusual correspondence with a philosophy teacher. Sophie soon becomes involved in solving a mystery, and her philosophy lessons may hold the key to the solution. Edifying and entertaining.

SOPHIE’S WORLD: A NOVEL ABOUT THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY, by Jostein Gaarder (Berkley Publishing Group, 1996)