1 comments about Lemond: The Incredible Comeback of an American Hero.

1. Greg LeMond seems to be a bit misunderstood. Samual Abt does a good job of clarifing some of those misunderstanding through this book. It gives a personal account by Greg of what he was thinking during and after key races and events (how he could have won at least one more Tour, how he believes he could have continued to win more Tours, his negotiation contracts and tactics). A very good look at what lead to the comeback of an American Cycling Hero. I had a problem with the book's order of events. There was a general chronological order but it was mixed with jumping around between time periods. I think this took a little bit away from the book. Overall though, I recommend it and can't wait to read Samual Abt's new book.

No comments about An Independent Man.

No comments about Marathon: The Clarence DeMar Story.

No comments about Lou Gehrig - The Iron Horse (Biography).

5 comments about The Miracle of Castel Di Sangro (Nova Audio Books).

1. This book really grasped my attention. The story throughtout the chapters captured my imagination.
   The book gave a realistic impression of an amazing country. "Joe" really explored the life of the team and the "Calcio" and every action was convincing in an unpredictable manor.
   The style of sentences and the chosen words really made up the base of an absoloutely fantastic book!!!delightful and inspiring journey through the football season.
   This is an exciting new addition to anyone's library.



2. I enjoyed this book. McGinnis was honest about his experiences and even about his own shortcomings. Just like there are no true fairy tales, there are no people without shortcomings. McGinnis portrayed himself and others in this manner.
   
   I applaud him and his book as a man who had the guts to experience something few would do and the skill to write it up artfully and truthfully.



3. Even though it is written for the football novice and can be facile at times - A WONDERFUL BOOK!



4. It's fitting that even after hearing about this book because of soccer, I ended up stumbing across it in the travel section. Soccer may be the glue of the book, but it's a travelogue at heart. McGinness starts with his newfound madness for soccer bringing him to Italy, yet quickly lets the game recede into the muddle of everyday life. The writing quickly becomes part Simon Kuper and part Bruce Chatwin. The book thankfully takes in as much lush description and hilarious anecdotes as it does tactical decisions and game descriptions. Instead of just an Italian version of a John Feinstein book, we get a truly unique story that evokes real and lasting emotion rather than the passing interest of locker room voyuerism.
   
   Much of criticism here seems to miss the point. It's true that McGinniss makes himself the main character, but it's not a weakness (some arrogance, maybe, but not mere narcissism). The book, after all, is mainly about the shock of the outsider looking in: on soccer, on the village, on Italian society as a whole, and especially the repulsive compromises between love of the game and its seedier elements. If McGinniss doesn't quite succeed at making some grand assessment of Italy or a master's analysis of soccer, who cares? The story he tells is fascinating, emotive, and tragic nontheless. It reaches far beyond the world of the game and its fans, and should be a must-read for anyone.



5. During the sixties Joe Mc Ginniss wrote about presidential campaigns and the selling of the president. He made a marvellous and unexpected comeback in 1999 with his The Miracle of Castel di Sangro. You will never regret buying this wonderful book about soccer in an isolated moutain region in Italy. Joe Mc Ginniss spends the season with this astonishing soccer team. In fact he depicts soccer as one of the pillars of communal life in this very peculiar village- like setting. But it is not an innocent setting. Innocence is definitely lost in this part of the continent and Mc Ginniss produces remarkable characters. The owner, Signor Rezza, straight out of the Sopranos, the coach Osvaldo Jaconi, "to argue with him is like throwing pebbles at a bulldozer" and the name of the team's principal sponsor, Soviet Jeans. Multiple plotlines develop in the story. The most exciting one is in the end when Castel di Sangro Calcio ultimately secures its position in the B series. The last needless game there is a smell of corruption when Castel di Sangro Calcio is defeated by 3 to 1 by Bari that thereby gains promotion. This stinking smell of corruption delivers an unhappy ending for Joe Mc Ginniss but the story is wonderful.

No comments about The Fastest Kid on the Block: The Marty Glickman Story (Sports and Entertainment).

2 comments about Expeditions.

1. What I like about Expeditions is its honest non-sensationalistic approach-it doesn't attempt to glamorize mountain climbing. Lindblade provides a personal view of climbing and what it means to him, the friends he has made, the successes and failures he has experienced, and the insight he has gained into himself in the process of climbing. With his friend, Athol Whimp, Lindblade describes episodes of exhaustion and exhilaration, doubt and courage, and he provides the reader with a glimpse of what climbing mountains might be like and what it might be worth.

   Includes some great photos, too!




2. I started reading this book on a plane trip and was totally drawn into Lindblade's story of climbs in Patagonia and the Himalaya--so much so that I felt chilled when I glanced out the window to see the cloud-filled horizon, feeling for a split second that I was out there on one of the summits I was reading about. This is an awe-inspiring account of some outstanding climbs made by Lindblade and his best friend, Athol Whimp. Over and beyond the adventures that are described, this is also a story of friendship and experiences shared on some really outrageous looking mountains. It is a deeply personal, intensely honest look into the world of high-risk, high-altitude alpine-style climbing.

   It is a beautifully produced book that has the feel of a hardcover--with photographs that will make you wonder if maybe, just maybe, in your next life...

4 comments about The Golden Boy: A Biography of Jackie Jensen.

1. The author himself explains on this Amazon page that he wrote the book as a non-baseball fan who wanted a subject for his writing fellowship, and had met Jackie's widow. This book is for people who admired Jackie, his quiet heroics, his battle with his inner pains. The sources the author says he used are apparent- they are Jackie's youthful and off-season coaches, friends and business associates, as well as his second wife. They are not primarily baseball players. The account of any given year is strong on Jackie's off-season activities and weak on Jackie's baseball season, or anecdotes relating to it. An unintentionally humorous error stemming from the author's lack of baseball knowledge occurs in the wrap-up of Jackie's stats for the season prior to his first retirement. Mr. Martin mentally transposed the numbers in two columns in his own appendix, and credits Jackie with 67 stolen bases in 1959! Maybe Luis Aparicio was overrated! (Jackie actually had 20 SBs and 67 SOs in 1959.)

   As one might expect from such a source, the book is better-written by far than the standard baseball bio. But the choice of a subject famous for an activity that does not captivate the author creates a certain monstrous gap in the purpose, and a real loss in describing Jackie's climactic voluntary retirement from the game at his peak, a mere one year after winning the MVP. If Mr. Martin was half the baseball fan he is a writer, the book could have soared to something like a Greek tragedy. As is, it will appeal to those interested in the man, in the personal foibles and flaws inherent in all humans, and in the efforts of spirited people to overcome them. These efforts better grip the reader when made by one, like Jackie, who has attained greatness in one of life's pathways.




2. THIS IS A WELL WRITTEN BOOK ABOUT A VERY INTERESTING MAN. JACKIE WAS TRULY A VERY GIFTED ATHLETE. HE HAD A LOT TO OVERCOME IN HIS PRIVATE LIFE. I REALLY ENJOYED HIS STORY. THE AUTHOR DOES A FINE JOB RETELLING JACKIE'S CAREER AND LIFE. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS TO ALL BASEBALL FANS.



3. What makes this book so great is that after reading it you have a new found respect for professional athletes and people who are thrust into the public spotlight. Jackie's life was not only interesting, but very demanding and trying for him and his family. This book dispelled my notion that people in Jackie's position were just part of the glitz and glamor of this nation and not so much a citizen like the rest of us. I wish everyone could read this not only because it's a great story of a man's life and all the historical events that took place around him, but also because it made me realize just how human and vulnerable even the seemingly 'mighty' are.



4. Although the book reads like a laundry list of quotes and anecdotes gathered over the last 12 - 15 years, the book reveals a goodly amount of information. The writer does a hard job at not being biased against any one person or event in the life of Jackie Jensen. Though the union of Jackie Jensen and Zoe Ann Olsen did not produce another pro or Olympic athlete, the children have gone on to be happy and successful in their lives in their own ways with the future of their grandchildren still wide open. I would have liked to have seen this documented by the writer. The story reads as if it was a failed generation. Not at all like the reality.

No comments about Beyond the Limit.

1 comments about Man on the Run: The Life and Death of Marco Pantani.

1. I think the phrase, lost in translation, applies to this book. I waited months for it to be sent after I pre-ordered it. It was available in Europe at the beginning of the year, but that's ok, they were probably translating it. Unfortunately, it "feels" very translated, if that makes sense.
   
   While I appreciate the insight from Ronchi because she was someone who was very close to Pantani and obviously tried to help him, at times I felt like it was her just justifying her actions to the world with a series of choppy responses to criticisms that were made about her part in his life.
   
   My feeling at the end of the book; it rambled, that's how I felt. BUT, there was no way I was not going to buy this book because as a cycling fan, Pantani was one of the unique talents from the recent batch. If only he could have straightened himself out, he would have given Lance some serious competition in the mountains during his other tour wins. This guy won 2 major stage races in 1998, the Giro and the Tour de France, beating Julich, Ulrich and other prominent riders at the time. He was on course to do it again in 1999, but a test registered a high Hemocrit level (same thing we are seeing today with top stars)the night before his Giro win. It really was all down hill from there.
   
   On a side note, I seriously wonder about these tests. One has to ask why would someone at the top of their game risk cheating when they know they are in the most highly tested sport in the world. I am thinking about Tyler Hamilton and Roberto Heras. Barry Bonds admits to steroid use but is still in baseball? Cyclists take a substance that is used for treating Anemia and they are vilified. (back off my soap box)
   
   The book by John Wilcockson, Marco Pantani: The Legend of a Tragic Champion was much better written, researched, put together, etc. It is a different perspective, that of a reporter, but this guy has been on the cycling scene forever, knows all the big names personally and just has a real historical perspective about him. His book on following Lance in his tour victory, stage by stage, 23 days in July was also outstanding.