1 comments about Jeff Gordon: Burning Up the Track.

1. As the title says, this is not just another Jeff Gordon book! This book is an excellent gift for any JG #24 fan...a friend, a family member, or to yourself!! It is on quality paper, and the book as lots and lots of awesome photos. He's a top driver, of course, so has many fans, make one happier today.

No comments about Thrust Through the Sound Barrier.

1 comments about Stealing Home: An Intimate Family Portrait by the Daughter of Jackie Robinson.

1. I guess I went into this book with the wrong expectations. I thought this would be a book about Jackie Robinson. But it was almost exclusively about Sharon, his daughter. And though she had an interesting life, I feel like her book didn't go far beyond the surface.

   I felt like she really didn't know her father all that well, or at least she didn't express that in the story. I have no doubt that Jackie Robinson was as great a man as the public believed him to be. However after reading this book, it seems like Sharon got parts of her life from reading articles from past newspapers. I don't feel like I understand the workings of her family any better than I would if I had simply watched old news clips.

   I wasn't ever bored with the book and I am glad that the Robinson's were a functionsl black family amidst so much external societal strife. Sharon does do a good job of showing the rest of us the priveleages and the tribulations of being the child of a famous African-A! merican in the 1950's and 60's. She also shows that there are still racial conflicts even when blacks and whites are on the same economic level. Overall its a B+, Robinson was not only a premiere ballplayer, but an outstanding father!

No comments about Muscle: A Minor League Legend.

5 comments about Michael Schumacher: Formula for Success : The Gripping Inside Story of One of Motor Racing's Greatest Champions.

1. I have read this book i bought it because i am a michael schumacher i never went to bed until i read all the book, its a must for all schumi/ferrari fans,its a kind of book you dont want to put down check it out and you will see i am right.



2. TELLS THE STORY OF A TRULY GREAT CHAMPION WHO LOVES HIS SPORT, AND REMAINS MODEST EVEN HAVING REACHED THE PINNACLE OF MOTOR RACING. THIS BOOK BRINGS YOU THE EMOTION AND DRAMA FROM HUMBLE BEGINNINGS RIGHT UP TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP YEARS AND BEYOND. A MUST FOR SCHUMACHER FANS, WHO IS WITHOUT DOUBT NOT JUST ONE OF THE GREATEST F1 CHAMPIONS THIS DECADE, BUT ALONGSIDE SENNA THIS CENTURY.



3. THIS BOOK IS AWESOME! everything you need to know about , and don't need to know about the greatest driver in all times , MICHAEL SCHUMACHER. the book tells about everything!



4. Although the book does not go as in depth as I first hoped, it is still a rare look into a man that seems as separated from F1 fans as a head of state is separated from the general public. Many insights were given that explained alot of what we see over the short T.V. bursts that we get here in the States. If you admire Michael now, you will adore him after reading this book. If you are neutral about him I bet you will be cheering him on at the next GP you watch. If you hate him now you at least will understand a lot of what he thinks about himself and why. I really enjoyed it.



5. For one who loves formula one racing and of course when your favourite driver is none other than the Michael Schumacher, Derick Allsop's book on the twice world champion provides every detail from the start to what Michael is now. It is so splendidly written, one can't help but increase their admiration for Schumacher, least to say put the book down

5 comments about Good Bounces & Bad Lies: The Autobiography of Ben Wright.

1. Wright's tales are stupendous, but to the point of being absurd. This is one of the few books in years that I finally just put down. He defects from the army to watch Hogan, his house is reduced to rubble but he and his sister miraculously survive; his overzealous buddy grabs a waiter and pulls him outside to beat him senseless...sheesh. I liked Wright as a commentator but leave this book on the shelf.



2. Wright's book basically, after he gets through some obligatory stories about golf in England when he was young, is a tell all about most of the peole he has worked with at CBS Sports. If it is not a tell all, it will do 'til one comes around. Most of the problem is with alcohol...we hear of interventions, wild partys, stupid episodes of behavior...yet through it all...even after an intervention which sent him to Betty Ford...one of the staff told him before he left that he was not an alcoholic but an abuser of alcohol. What that distinction is remains lost to me but was understood by Ben. No matter. You wonder how CBS managed to produce a cohesive telecast of the Masters or any other tournament they were assigned to based on Ben's recollections. He also ran into some world travelers that he thought behaved badly. It is a "tell all" from one who is still in the dog house for telling all about his opinion of women's golf and the difference betwen the men's game and theirs. No matter that he had that just right,,,he was PC'd out and the world of golf broadcasting is the worse for it. I miss him behind the microphone, but the book goes a bit long.



3. Ben Wright does a superb job in taking mere golfing mortals behind the scenes of some famous, and some not so famous, tournaments to give an insight into LIFE in the golfing world. It is a page turner that had me howling with laughter as he strips bare the mystique behind both golf broadcasting and some of the peripheral characters that add to the colour of the sport. Of course in the true style that has endeared him to so many he also takes a few swipes at some brighter lights in the business of golf. Wright has an obvious deep love for the game but he does not let sentimentality get in the way of a good story. I am sure that he must have a stock of untold tales waiting to be let out of the closet and I look forward to the next installment from this very funny, very English and very lovable raconteur.



4. CBS, BRING THIS GUY BACK! If you want a good read that will absolutely make you CRY with laughter. This is the book for you...And you don't have to be a Golf fan to enjoy it. I always figured that stranged things happened behind the camera, but his stories will absolutely crack you up. It is definitely a MUST buy.



5. Wright is as witty and colorful as his broadcasts were. Gives an image of broadcasting which most of us aren't aware of. We sense the morals and ethics of these public individuals are different. Appreciated even more his love for the game and extreme pain the LPGA comments have brought upon him. Image is everything!

5 comments about Between a Rock and a Hard Place.

1. I found this book inspiring. His will to live drove him to make decisions that most of us cannot even imagine. It will drive readers to value their lives even more.
   
   I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because, as it is well written, it is a bit drawn out. I kept wanting to skip ahead.
   
   Overall - Very good read.



2. I've a feeling we have not heard the last of Aron Ralston, but it won't be long before we do.
   
   His narration of the nearly fatal idiocy that cost him his right hand is interspersed with flashback stories of even greater follies accomplished during previous wilderness "adventures." We are regaled with accounts of running barefoot through the snow with a bear in pursuit, leaping fully clothed into a raging Colorado River for no apparent reason, rock climbing (in sandals, no less) over, and then falling into, a patch of prickly pear cactus, having his footwear fall apart midway up the face of a 2,000-foot sheer granite wall - these apparently recounted in hopes of showing what an accomplished (or at least, passionate) outdoorsman he is - are not the stuff of legend, or inspiration, or courage; they are the tales of a bonehead in search of a Darwin Award. An Hero.
   
   I continually found myself wondering why anybody who suffered such an unbroken string of disasters brought about by poor decision-making, unpreparedness, naivete, or downright pigheadedness would be set up as an inspirational character (or why anyone would seek to publicize their own stupidity thus); but then I remember Timothy Treadwell and his ardent supporters and followers.
   
   In any event, the straw that broke this camel's back was Aron's reviling us with an event he saw as amusing and clever: he and his friends composed a "joke" distress note and put it in an empty vodka bottle which they then threw into Havasupai Creek, to flow over Mooney falls, to perhaps "be found by a jet skier in Lake Mead." Right. More likely broken glass discovered by the waders barefoot downstream.
   
   Oh, I could go on and on.. and Aron does. A litany of grief and stupidity haunts this guy and anyone who does business with him. He manages to lose not only his ice axe on one winter ascent, but the team's only map as well, resulting in abandonment of their summit bid in lieu of an emergency hunt for a way off the mountain.
   
   I think of the disaster that befell the Everest climbers in Krakauer's "Into Thin Air", or the mystery of what happened to Irvine and Mallory detailed in "Ghosts of Everest" and innumerable other actually heroic stories, of excruciating ordeals, unbelievable fortitude and character displayed by many climbers and outdoorsfolk, and then I think of this clown losing his team's map while traipsing around on a 14,000 foot mountain, for cripe sake.
   
   I think about this jamoke going out in the wintertime to scale Colorado's mountains without proper clothing or food, or common sense or respect for the nature in general and mountains in particular. He hikes up mountains in the wintertime but has not the sense to put his chocolate bars or water in an inside pocket where they won't freeze, then bemoans the fact as if it were some giant life lesson Gaia bestows only on hardy souls (who venture forth thus unencumbered with brains).
   
   Feh. Do yourself a favor and skim the tripe. There are perhaps 100 readable pages in the book, and don't swallow any of Aron's stultifying psuedo-religious gobbledygook or cerulean blue prose-poems; it's mostly blather perpetrated by a not-too-bright adrenaline junkie who very well could be the next famous bear scat.



3. I think readers would be better served by skipping every other chapter in this book or just searching online for Aron Ralston, you'll find it. A reader above mentioned he doesn't come off as bragging about his exploits, I found exactly the opposite.
   
   On one hand, Aron and I have been in many of the same places, (probably around the same time) and in a way, reading about his adventures in various places brought back great memories for me. On the other hand, If I wanted to read about his memoir, I'd have bought that book. Halfway through the book I found myself saying, just cut it off already!
   
   While I do respect his accomplishments in his winter solo ascents, I simply don't respecting his risky backcountry decisions. He is redeemed though by calling himself out, recognizing that he's lost friends over his past irresponsible backcountry recklessness. In a sense, the book is a primer for what not to do in the winter backcountry.
   
   I thought it was interesting how with Ralston's considerable experience, intelligence, engineering rigging skills and strength none of it mattered in the end. Just a guy with no more options that did what needed to be done.



4. Aron is an inspiration to all of us and an incredible writer. He fully acknowledges his flaws as a human being which makes this book all the more powerful. He loves life to the limit and paid a high price to do so.
   
   My son was seriously injured in the Iraq war and I purchased a copy for him. It takes courage to make a good life...and Aron has no shortage of that.



5. Like many I heard about this in the national media and read some about it in Outside. Like many I thought what a jerk! This guy is an idiot. Well he is not. In this book he comes off as a very capable thoughtful adventurer. He managed his "problem" very well this book is highly entertaining. Even though you know what is going to happen it is still riveting. There is none of the jerk seen at the post press rescue press conference. Turns out he was high on painkillers for most of the presser. Luckily for readers he was not when he recorded this book. Excellent work of a most interesting life. Strong recommend for adventurers of both the outside and arm chair variety.

No comments about Mummery.

No comments about Karate Master: The Life and Times of Mitsusuke Harada.

1 comments about Danica Patrick: America's Hottest Racer.

1. If you know anything about motor racing, you know Danica Patrick is America's hottest female driver at the moment, commanding attention over her male counterparts nearly every time she races. This photo journal of her life packs in over a hundred images from racing photographer Paul Webb and details her racing background and rise to fame: it's essential for any Danica fan.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch