Veteran baseball authors Bill Nowlin and Jim Prime first envisioned Blood Feud as an unbiased, evenhanded survey of the historical circumstances that have fueled the long-standing Boston Red Sox/New York Yankees rivalry ?? a rivalry even more contentious now than it was a century ago. While they remained true to the facts, lifelong Sox fans Nowlin and Prime found it difficult not to deviate from their goal of impartiality. When they finished, and regardless of what it says on the back cover of this book, what stood before them was a wickedly skewed, satirically barbed book delivered firmly from the perspective of the underdog Boston Red Sox. Blood Feud revels in the differences separating the Red Sox and the Yankees, including divergences in culture, geography, attitude, and personal grooming. Yet the authors also recognize the parallels and commonalities between the two ball clubs, which over the years have shared a surprising number of star players and coaches. From the Curse of the Bambino to the Zen of Zimmer, Blood Feud dissects the pivotal personnel trades and transactions, the tangles, and the tirades that continue to add gasoline to the fire. Drawing on historical research, original interviews with players from both sides, and discussions with partisans of each team among the fans, Blood Feud is leavened with humor, philosophical musings, anecdotes, and innumerable enlightening factoids. Though the Red Sox 2004 World Series triumph has altered the terms of engagement, Nowlin and Prime predict that the rivalry will only intensify as a result of a more level playing field. Now it??s the Yankees who have something to prove. Make no mistake ?? this is war?? Blood Feud features an Introduction by Bill "Spaceman" Lee and an Afterword by "Mr. Red Sox" - Johnny Pesky.