Mantle Biographer Leavy Reflects on Mickey's Remarkable Life

Mickey Mantle was an Oklahoma sports legend. On that point, everyone can agree.

But Mantle's life had as many downs as it had ups. He was fabulously gifted, of course, but also tormented. He was abused as a child. He drank too much. And much, much more—both wonderful and tragic.

We learned all this from a New York Times story on a new Mickey Mantle biography by Jane Leavy. It's called The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America's Childhood."

According to the Times, the book debunks numerous Mantle myths and tells the slugger's story in clear-eyed, sometimes painful detail. Leavy conducted more than 500 interviews over the five years she took to research and write the book.

Fans of Mantle will want to check out Leavy's work. In the meantime, you can read the Times article here.