@KeithOB

NYT bestselling author of HEARTLAND, a new book on the rise of Larry Bird in the 1970s. Available today! Bylines @NPR @TheAtlantic @nytimes & beyond.

 The wilds of New Hampshire
keithob.com
Joined April 2009
  • Tweets6.9K
  • Following2.2K
  • Followers2.1K
1.8KMedia
Keith O'Brien retweeted
Zach Lowe
@ZachLowe_NBAJul 30
Highly recommended. You can feel how much time Keith spent in/around Indiana on every page of this book. Overdue for a podcast appearance!
Keith O'Brien@KeithOBJul 30
HEARTLAND has gone into a second printing—and she got a glow-up to go with it. Thanks for reading, everyone! Without you, this wouldn’t be possible. The new books should be in stores soon. Go and get ‘em!
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
Vick Mickunas@BookNookVickJul 19
Just checked my podcast numbers for the first half of 2026. Can you guess which interview has attracted the most listeners? Did you guess my Larry Bird show with @KeithOB ?? You would be right. Hundreds have listened...Larry still shoots out the lights! wyso.org/podcast/book-nook/2…

Book Nook: 'Heartland: a Forgotten Place, an Impossible Dream, and the Miracle of Larry Bird' by...

The story of a basketball star who almost wasn't.

wyso.org
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Best basketball book I have ever read! And I am old!😂
Keith O'Brien@KeithOBMar 12
Thank you to readers everywhere; my family & friends; everyone at Atria Books who believed in me; all the indie booksellers who hosted events; and the people who lived this story & trusted me to tell it. This little underdog book has done it. We are a New York Times bestseller.
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
Kevin Gallagher
@KevG163Mar 26
I sure miss this dynamic duo on ESPN Jon Miller and Joe Morgan
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
Mike Stanton@projomikeMar 21
The perfect March Madness doubleheader, served up by @KeithOB & @LukeEpplin
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Loved the basketball conversation. @KeithOB @LukeEpplin
Luke Epplin@LukeEpplinMar 14
Keith O’Brien, Christine Brennan, and me before our packed panel at the Tucson Festival of Books.
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Replying to @CharlieBakerMA
@CharlieBakerMA Thanks for the rec on Heartland—picked it up right after seeing your post and wow, you’re spot on. Just finished the first four chapters and it’s already hitting hard. Bird’s upbringing in French Lick, the grit, the family struggles… no wonder he became that relentless competitor. Totally reassessing my own toughness levels here 😅 Makes you appreciate what real will and work ethic look like. Great call—highly recommend this one to anyone who thinks they know the Larry Bird story. @BryantSportsInd
Charlie Baker
@CharlieBakerMAMar 8
Halfway through - cannot put it down. Would recommend this book to just about anybody. If it wasn’t all true and someone wrote it up as a fable, I doubt most people would believe it.
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
Tom James@TJamesIndStateMar 12
“Heartland”, Keith O’Brien’s book on Larry Bird and the 1978-79 Indiana State Men’s Basketball team is on the New York Times Bestseller List. Now if ESPN can be convinced to do a 30-For-30 version.
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
GreggDoyelStar
@GreggDoyelStarMar 4
Larry Bird's 1979 Indiana State Sycamores gathered Monday night - and as the stories were flowing, Terre Haute fell in love all over again. indystar.com/story/sports/co…

Doyel: Did Larry Bird's 1979 Sycamores really happen? This night, that book prove it.

Doyel: Indiana State's 1979 team reunited in Terre Haute to talk Larry Bird, that season and author Keith O'Brien's new book on the topic, "Heartland"

indystar.com
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
Globe Magazine@BostonGlobeMagMar 4
Larry Bird was left out of pickup games in French Lick. He nearly slipped away entirely. trib.al/RbBgRDL

Larry Bird was left out of pickup games in French Lick. He nearly slipped away entirely. - The...

Were it not for a string of unlikely events and minor miracles, the world might have never known a basketball legend.

bostonglobe.com
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
The Ringer
@ringerMar 3
First, Larry Bird punched a fan. Then, a miracle shot nearly erased the incident from memory. This is how a remarkable yet little-known game set the course of Bird’s college career—and gave rise to March Madness itself. @KeithOB: theringer.com/2026/03/03/col…

The Forgotten Larry Bird Punch That Almost Changed Everything

How a remarkable, rarely discussed game set the course of Bird’s career—and gave rise to March Madness itself

theringer.com
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
Luke Epplin@LukeEpplinMar 3
Happy publication day to @KeithOB, whose book "Heartland" is wonderful--deeply researched and expertly told, about the pivotal chapter in Larry Bird's career, when he could've been a garbageman or a professional basketball player. Don't miss it.
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
GreggDoyelStar
@GreggDoyelStarMar 2
Tonight at the Terre Haute Convention Center, most of that 1979 Indiana State team will be there to discuss one of the best books I've read in years ... and I read a lot!!!! The author 👇will be there too, of course. Get tickets on the @TerreHauteCC site terrehautecc.com/calendar
Keith O'Brien@KeithOBMar 1
The HEARTLAND book tour begins, unshaven and way too early, on a bus headed south through the snow. But I promise I’ll pull myself together before my first event on Monday... Hope to see you on the road in the next two weeks! We’ve got some fun plans on the schedule. 🏀💙☘️📚
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
GreggDoyelStar
@GreggDoyelStarMar 1
In Terre Haute tomorrow night. Dang near the whole 1979 Indiana State team will be there, minus, you know... him. But almost everyone else! Plus me, as the emcee or discussion-wrangler or whatever. See you there??!?!
Keith O'Brien@KeithOBMar 1
The HEARTLAND book tour begins, unshaven and way too early, on a bus headed south through the snow. But I promise I’ll pull myself together before my first event on Monday... Hope to see you on the road in the next two weeks! We’ve got some fun plans on the schedule. 🏀💙☘️📚
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
Cam Miller 🎥@cammillerfilmsMar 1
A MUST read this spring!
Keith O'Brien@KeithOBMar 1
The HEARTLAND book tour begins, unshaven and way too early, on a bus headed south through the snow. But I promise I’ll pull myself together before my first event on Monday... Hope to see you on the road in the next two weeks! We’ve got some fun plans on the schedule. 🏀💙☘️📚
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
David Abel@davabelFeb 21
Just got my hands on the latest oevre by the great @KeithOB. Keith can tell a story like no one else. In my opinion, he's one of our nation's greatest writers. I can't wait to read "Heartland," which is now available anywhere you buy books, like here: tinyurl.com/y9thcb3w
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
Don Van Natta Jr.
@DVNJrFeb 20
It’s an outrage that @jkbjournalist has never won the Pulitzer Prize for her trailblazing, courageous work. A question for everyone serving on the Pulitzer board: Why?
julie k. brown
@jkbjournalistFeb 19
Prince Andrew's Arrest Never in a million years did I fathom this when I resurrected the Epstein story in 2018. open.substack.com/pub/jkbjou…
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Here's a great new book by Keith O'Brien--it focuses on the crucial period in Larry Bird's life, around ages 18-22. Brilliant writing, great story. @SethDavisHoops @SethOnHoops @indianastate @IndianaStateU @KeithOB @nmstatembbnews
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
Annalisa Quinn@Annalisa_QuinnFeb 5
The Boston Globe has some truly great jobs open, including a sports investigative reporter and a food editor. If anyone affected by Post layoffs wants to talk about working here or freelancing for the Sunday magazine, reach out.
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Keith O'Brien retweeted
Bill Simmons
@BillSimmonsFeb 4
Thanks to the LA Times for continuing to report on everyone who (a) caused the LA fires thru sheer incompetence/stupidity, (b) had no real plan for stopping the fires, and/or (c) tried to cover up their own mistakes/liability afterwards. What a disgrace. latimes.com/california/story…

Bass directed watering down of Palisades fire after-action report, sources say

One Bass confidant told a source that 'the mayor didn’t tell the truth when she said she had nothing to do with changing the report.'

latimes.com
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