3 comments about K2: The Price of Conquest.

1. The 1954 Italian expedition to K2, the world's second highest peak and considered a tougher climb than Everest, was supposed to be a national redemption for Italy after the humiliations of the Second World War. Two members of the expedition, Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni, reached the summit, but the legacy of the expedition has been one of controversy. In 2006's "K2: The Price of Cnquest," Lacedelli breaks a silence of half a century to give his version of what happened.
   
   On 30 July 1954, Lacedelli and Compagnoni established Camp IX, a prelude to a try for the summit. Compagnoni, to the distress of Lacedelli, insisted on moving the camp off the line of ascent to the far end of a difficult traverse. When the support team of Walter Bonatti and Hunza porter Madhi reached the intended area of Camp IX with an oxygen bottle resupply in near darkness, they were unable to find the tent and spent the night in the open above 8000 meters. The two survived, but Madhi suffered severe frostbite injuries for which Bonatti was blamed. Compagnoni and Lacedelli made their difficult final ascent using Bonatti's cached oxygen, which ran out short of the summit. Bonatti was later accused of having used some of the oxygen during his night in the open, thereby putting the summit team at additional risk.
   
   Following an introduction to the history of K2 and a short account of the expedition, co-author Giovanni Cenacchi conducts an extended interview with Lino Lacedelli. Lacedelli provides his unflinching perspective on the expedition's leadership and on the events of 30-31 July 1954. His blunt views shine an unflatteringly light on some of the expedition members, in stark contradiction to the official account. This volume includes a terrific selection of photographs and some thoughts on the then-novel experience of functioning at extreme altitudes.
   
   "K2: The Price of Conquest" will appeal primarily to those interested in the history of high altitude climbing, for an honest account of expedition politics, the rub of climbers' egos, and the difficulties of functioning at high altitude with primitive equipment. The general reader may be shocked at some aspects of Lacedelli's account but ultimately cheered by his healthy perspective on the whole thing. "K2: The Price of Conquest" is highly recommended to fans of the history of "the savage mountain."



2. This is a great read for anyone interested in the history of mountaineering. It's mostly an interview with one of the first two men to reach the summit of K2, fifty years after the event. I saw Bonati give a talk in Telluride years ago and his rant about how he had been left for dead was memorable -- after all these decades he was still worked up about the events on that expedition. In this book, Lacedelli confirms nearly all of Walter's claims. His memory may be a bit tainted, perhaps by not having spoken up much earlier, so it may not be the final word. But better late than never. And a good reminder for those who think recent events on Everest are without precedent.



3. One of the major mysteries in mountaineering is what happened to the 1954 expedition, when a agreed-upon base camp was moved, forcing author Lino Lacedelli to reach the summit without rendezvousing with their teammates. Accusations of conspiracy and plots ran amok - here, more than fifty years later, Lacdedelli breaks silence to provide his own version of events, with documentary mountaineer Giovanni Cenacchi providing an excellent focus.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch

5 comments about Marco Pantani: The Legend of a Tragic Champion.

1. Informative book of a great climber who was destroyed both professionally and personally with never proven claims of doping. Like probably almost all of his generation Pantani almost certainly doped yet he was the one who was singled out. Such a sad story of a great climber who eventaully died from non-performance enhancing drug abuse.



2. This is an excelent chronicle of one of history's greatest climbers. Because it presents both sides of the story, this book is worth a read. Contains scientific data as well as multitudes of tabloid-ish material. However, because it does, it tells the whole story. Marco Pantani, while an outstanding athlete, was the Britney Spears of Italian Cycling. This book captures that scene well!



3. One does not expect great literature in a sports biography and this book meets those expectations. However, it does succeed in making you feel like you do get to know Pantani - and it does give a lot of facts that help you to piece together the story and, probably, what was behind it.
   
   Anyone who still thinks that "certain riders" didn't take performance-enhancing substances should read this book (especially the interview with his ex-girlfriend).
   
   Anyone who wants more insight into the TDF should read this book.
   
   Anyone who knows even a little about Pantani and wants to understand his tragic story should read this book.



4. Beginning with Marco's own words written on nine pages torn from his own passport mere months before his tragic death, "Marco Pantani: The Legend of a Tragic Champion" both starts and culminates with his final goodbye to the world with his last defiant act fired back at those he felt were ultimately responsible for his demise. The book retraces Marco's remarkable assent to the top of both his sport and life starting from his meager upbringing as a plumbers son in Cesena, Italy to his drug induced death on valentines day 2004.
   
   Aboard his first racing bike, a bright red Vicini, Marco won his first race at the age of 14 and never looked back. Although a quick read at only 181 pages, the authors not only rekindle Marco's spirit in the reader, but allow one to step back in time and relive some of the most memorable exploits in modern cycling history when many of us sat riveted in front of our televisions, saying to ourselves, "There he goes", as the mountains pitched upward. For how welcoming these memories are however, the tragic side of the plot is intertwined throughout, reaching a climax with the only published interview to date of Marco's estranged girlfriend of seven years Christina Jonsson.
   
   Although Marco's ultimate public demise might have begun on June 5, 1999 at Madonna di Campiglio.... "that black day when his Giro d'Italia pink jersey was tarnished with blood", Marco's fall into his own personal abyss ran far deeper than most would ever know. Christina openly acknowledges in her interview of Marco's competitive doping practices. With nothing held back beyond the tears, she goes as far as telling how she would assist in holding his arm while he injected himself and of the "products he had forever in a sealed container in the fridge". The beautiful sport of cycling has become, she states, "an incredible hypocrisy..... Marco had to accept to race in a system that didn't allow him not to dope". She goes on to say what most of us choose not to or simply hope isn't the case when adding up the current state of the professional peleton..... "To dope means searching to improve your performance to give a better show and to feed dreams. They pay these athletes because they allow people to dream, that's all. If there is no longer a show there's no more emotion and nothing to relate to."
   
   Governing bodies need to make a statement from time to time to legitimize their ability to turn a blind eye to he true reality of the situation. One might have hoped that the circumstances behind Marco's passing could serve as a wakeup call for both cycling and the greater sporting world, but it seems that history does in fact tend to repeat itself and the cancer in cycling only continues to grow. One only needs to look at the recent expulsion of Jan Ullrich and Ivan Basso (among others) from starting the 2006 Tour de France. Marco wasn't the first tragic story and he will by no means be the last. Let's just hope the stories of others don't end with the same misfortune as that of Marco. Tragic yes... champion even more so.
   
   The thumb screws were tightened in Marco's case such that his tragic spiral downward appeared to be of his own hand from outward appearances. Is it natural for speeds to increase steadily from year to year far beyond the pace of enhancements in technologies and/or training methods? Or was Marco simply a scapegoat of the system in which he found himself entangled in the web of cycling's programmatic unfairness. This book gives a compelling argument toward the latter through the life and times of Marco Pantani: The Legend of a Tragic Champion.



5. It's always sad when something has a wonderful opportunity to be great but settles for being merely average. That was never the way of Italian cycling icon Marco Pantani, but it is, sadly, the only way to look at Marco Pantani: the Legend of a Tragic Champion.
   
   Pantani deserved better. He was obviously -- and fatally -- flawed, but through his flamboyant personality, dramatic cycling moves, and unmistakable appearance he also brought much-needed color to a sport increasingly dominated by single-minded robot-like riders. He died a dramatic, tragic, and pitiful death, and the world of sport was left poorer for it.
   
   Pantani's persona is just one of the reasons this volume should have been much, much better than it is.
   
   Another equally important reason is that editor John Wilcockson assembled a virtual Dream Team of cycling writers for the project, from venerable Italian journalist Pier Bergonzi, the chief writer with the pink-paged La Gazetta dello Sport, to his insightful friendly rival Sergio Neri at BiciSport. Add France's Guillaume Prabois, and the staff of the U.S.-based VeloNews. Even Graham Watson, the best-known photographer in the business, contributed some of his signature images.
   
   These guys pulled out all the stops, tracking down the Ukrainian maid who cleaned Pantani's room in the hotel where he died of a drug overdose (he kept he very warm, she said) and the tourist who was the last person to see Pantani alive (he said Pantani told him, in a local dialect, "I don't know if there will be another day"). Swiss journalist Michel Beuret even manages a thoughtful interview with Christina Jonsson, Pantani's former girlfriend, who avoided the press in the wake of the cyclist's death.
   
   But I think Mr. Wilcockson fails the effort just as a team captain fails his support riders when the pace is too much for him, despite their hard work and preparation.
   
   There are many problems. Sloppy editing means that there are contradictory bits scattered all through the text: at one point the book says only four men ever won the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France in the same year; in other parts it says there were seven (seven is correct). At several points it says the 2003 Giro was Pantani's last race, but in the appendix is points out (correctly) that he competed without distinction in the challenging Tour of the Basque Country five weeks later.
   
   What's more, the writing is uneven, plodding, and predictable. Of course, one reason for that is because the bulk of the book was written in Italian and much of what's left was written in French. But giving it a more unified feel and level of quality has to have been on Mr. Wilcockson's list of duties as editor. Don't blame the translator: he got it to this point. Someone needed to finish the job.
   
   And don't get me started on the title. The world "legend" first and foremost means something "presented as history but unlikely to be true." While, technically, the word can also refer to someone so admired they seem to be the stuff of a legend, this is referring to the story. Besides, why the confusion? Why not simply call it "Marco Pantani: The STORY of a Tragic Champion"? Or "The LESSON of a Tragic Champion"? "Or we could get alliterative with "The Tragedy of a Troubled Champion." Should I go on?
   
   I must say I am very tempted to award this review only two stars, but I think its subject earns it a gentleman's C. Still, I had hoped for much more. Chances are, you do, too.

5 comments about Miracle in the Making: The Adam Taliaferro Story.

1. The book "Miracle in the Making" is an inspirational story about Adam Taliaferro, a former Penn State football player who was paralyzed in a game. He was told he would never walk again and this books lets you travel with Adam in his personal story of his road back after being completely paralyzed. This boo is a truly motivational book in which i recommend anyone, not just Penn State fans, to read.



2. This truley is an excellent book. I grew up in the same neighborhood with Adam, attended the same HS (graduate a year after) and every bit of information (names, dates, etc) are all correct. All the information about his character is completely true, he really is an inspirational person. Growing up in a huge suburban high school with him, it really was a very competitive atmosphere. Everyone seemed to love him because he was one of the brightest (one of the highest GPAs of his class, scholar athlete and best athlete in the school) along with being one of the most modest, down to early people ever. If someone had the will to succeed it is him. I recommend this book to anyone overcoming obstacles, down on their luck,athletes and basically anyone because it is the type of book that you can not put down.



3. After finding out that Adam Taliaferro couldnt walk again ever. His father and mother urged him to push on. His spirits were high always no matter what. This is a triumphant story about courage and self-determination and a little help from some up above



4. This book is good for anyone whether you are a football fan or not. I personally am a football fan, and I would especially recommend this book for those football fans out there. This book is inspirational and well documented. It is also at a good price now, and it is a quick read.



5. All too often in today's world of youth sports; parents, coaches and players miss the meaning of sportsmanship. Having been involved in youth sports for 14 years, I have witnessed over bearing parents and tenacious coaches. I suggest they keep a copy of "Miracle in the Making" in their equipment bags. This book highlights the true meaning of a parent/child relationship and a coach/player relationship. Adam is the definition of courage, kindness and strength. His family's support during his recovery is awe-inspiring. The writers did a terrific job of bringing me along on Adam's journey to recovery. I will be on the sidelines cheering; watching as Adam wins the biggest game of his life!

5 comments about The Rookie: The Incredible True Story of a Man Who Never Gave Up on His Dream.

1. If you are looking for the book to be the Disney version of the Move, "The Rookie", do not get this book. The book was OK, but did not portray the same feeling of "faded dreams get second chance" Disney feel that the movie did.



2. Of course everyone wants a feel-good story. But the messy details that really illuminate a life get left out. It's always best for your image creation to tell your own story (with trained storytellers and) and sound like a great guy with endearing weaknesses and heady but safe admissions to decorate a long-odds story of dreams. I found the previous review of Robert Wilson, someone who actually knew Morris, to be most helpful (assuming the claim is true, which sounds credible).
   
   The objective of publishers is to make money, same as moviemakers. And in the movie, they turn Morris' dad from a guy totally uninterested in baseball and squashing his son's dreams; when in reality the dad was himself a major league prospect and pounded the dream and practice of baseball into his son from an early age. Oh well, just the exact opposite of the truth, that's all. What objection will Morris have to falsehood while he's cashing his book checks, movie-rights checks, and the speaking fees of $10,000-$15,000 a pop he still gets?
   You can rationalize all you want about inspiring people, but the truth has to be there. The truth of the objective facts, and the subjective aspect of what kind of a guy Morris really is (or was). Maybe Morris is a great guy now. I hope so. But money makes you do things you really shouldn't do. Further, it sounds like Morris thinks he was always a great guy, when in his first 25 years he probably had a lot of growing up to do. (I would know, because that's exactly how I am.)
   Last point: Teaching physics and coaching high school baseball over a career contributes way, way more to kids than making it to the majors. You can inspire dozens of kids, every day, the hard way. Fame and money are terribly fleeting dreams, after all. He gave up the majors due to injury, but now says it was to be with his family. Really? To become a national speaker? When in baseball you have nearly half the year off? Fascinating logic. For the love of Pete, where are truth and credibility going? $$$$$$$$$$$ Keep grubbing for it.



3. This story is about a man named Jim Morris and his autobiography on how he always wanted to become a baseball player. There are tons of parts in the story that I liked like when when Lorri (Jim's wife) get a dog named Brandy who was abandoned with her pups by her owner. They took her in and made her well. But soon she becomes ill and dies. I'm now up to the point where Jim is struggling to keep a job and feed two (and on the way three) children. Lorri and him have a fight for a little bit and he leaves the house but soon after he is done thinking they get back together. After his arm starts to hurt him he gets a surgery done but can never pitch again. He quits baseball and concentrates on his family. My friend told me what happens in the end but who ever is reading this I want you to find out for yourself. Also it also really inspires you that you can be a professional baseball player and live out your childhood dreams. Thank you Jim Morris for writing your story.



4. "Everything gets hard before it gets easy." A well known cliché Jim Morris knows all too well. The Rookie, a true story written by Jim Morris, travels the journey of Jim's dream and how he accomplished it. Morris learned to walk at seven months old, passing up five months or normal development, he had natural talent, and was arguably the best baseball player on any team he played on, whether little league or softball. Morris was even a star football kicker, launching the ball over eighty yards with one swift boot. He knew his baseball skills would take him far, maybe even the major leagues, but there was one little problem that hovered over his stardom; his arm. He had Tommy John Surgery on his throwing arm, setting him back a year, then he had more trouble which was a three inch bone spur in his shoulder, the surgery was said to put the cap on his career. Yet Jim Morris wasn't ready to end his career just then.

   Every novel has its good points and its poor points, that is what makes it popular. It is hard to find a negative point when the novel is based on a subject that one may feel so passionate about, yet some of the facts presented here in the book make one wonder how they were retrieved. When Jim Morris walked for the first time, he claimed that his parents didn't even see him because they were driving across the country and neither of his parents were paying attention. More than likely this information was conjured up, which in turn makes the story more interesting, but should be omitted. Even though it may have been false information, the majority of non-fiction books tend to have some created information in them. A technique many writers include in their "bag of tricks."

   
   Jim Morris dedicated his life to baseball. He played the game basically his whole life, and loved every minute of it. The emotions Morris encounters are of the harshest; from learning he will never play baseball again, to marital problems at home. He shares these sensitive feelings with the reader, letting the reader inside his mind and head, thus making the story feel more personal. When an author expresses personal experiences wit the reader, sometimes the reader can relate with the emotions and problems, and when a reader has gone through them as well, the book gets that much better. Jim Morris is a passionate man who has a love for America's past time, and never will let that love go. Jim Morris loves baseball.




5. The Oldest Rookie

   Joel Engel and Jim Morris really did a wonderful job when they wrote the book The Oldest Rookie. The story was so good in fact that it inspired a movie called The Rookie. Although I thoroughly enjoyed both of them I would have to say that the book was better. There are a number of superior qualities about the book. You know it must be really good to because I almost always like the movie more then the book. The Oldest Rookie is easily one of the 5 best books I've read.
   In the book, you really get inside Jim Morris's head. You can see how he goes from a kid who did nothing except play baseball, to a minor leaguer who had to retire because of arm troubles, to a patient high school teacher, to a major leaguer. In the movie you see him as a kid playing baseball, however in the book he talks about how when he was younger the only toys he would play with were balls and how he was only in kindergarten when the fifth graders let them play in his baseball games because he was so good. Morris explains how the only think he cared about was baseball and he knew he wanted to be a pro ball player all his life. In the movie you are left to either assume that or to not know it at all. One of the most effective parts of the book was when Morris is describing when he went to play in his first major league game. He talks about how the hard journey had been worth it and you can almost feel his happiness as a smile spreads across your face and you turn the page. In the movie there was no way they could capture this moment perfectly. They just had him stand outside of the stadium for a few moments. In the book, you really get to see how Morris's brain works. He explains how he was a perfectionist and that it really hurt his life. They don't even touch this subject in the movie, even though it had drastic effects on his life. Feeling what Jimmy Morris feels really enhances the story.
   The characters in the book are also superior to the characters in the movie. They include pretty much every person who ever had an effect on Jimmy's life, while in the movie they pretty much just focus on him. The other characters really add a lot to the story. For example they didn't even mention that Jimmy had a grandfather, while in the book Jimmy says that his Grandpa was perhaps the biggest influence in his life. It was his grandpa who taught him to work hard and to not feel bad for himself when things didn't go his way. Also, they completely changed his parents. In the movie they make them seem like a normal couple, while in the book Morris explains how they didn't even like each other. They only married each other because Jimmy's mom got pregnant and they eventually got divorced. The movie really messed up on the characters.
   The biggest part where the book has the advantage over the movie is in the story. There were gapping holes in the movie. In the movie they started at page 1 and went to about page 12 and then they went to about page 200, and the book was less then 300 pages long. They skipped the meat of the story, which is when he is in the minors for the first time. If you watched the movie you'd have no idea he had ever really played in the minors before. They left out how he had started playing pro after his first year of junior college and then went on to the grueling minor league system where he would ride in small buses for countless hours and then stay in cheap motels. Then when he finally did pitch he did horrible and right when he started doing good his arm started to hurt. In the movie they mentioned he had received arm surgery but they did not explain how important to him it had been. In the movie they made it seem as if he had gotten arm surgery and then retired when he had really came only to need arm surgery again the next season. He even got one more after that one before he retired. Then his family went through harsh financial times before the movie finally picked up the story again. The movie plot is very flawed.
   The movie tried to do what they do to most inspiring stories, and that is make it feel more like a fairy tail then something that could really happen. They failed to show a lot of the hard work he put in to get where he did. You should really pick up the book The Oldest Rookie , it's a great story and it a speed read!

4 comments about Breaking Through: John B. McLendon, Basketball Legend and Civil Rights Pioneer.

1. Breaking Through: John B. McLendon, Basketball Legend and Civil Rights Pioneer-The ESPN presentation, "Black Magic" prompted me to purchase this book to learn more about John B. McLendon. Being an African American college student at an HBCU when TN State won the three NAIA chanpionships, I knew a little about Coach McLendon and TN State. The book made me aware of many of the things that McLendon accomplished during his life, both on and off the court, and how little credit he has been given for doing so. I strongly recommend it to all basketball fans and coaches at all levels.



2. This book is great reading not only for anyone interested in the game of basketball, or in learning how to be a better coach (of any sport), but also for anyone interested in the Civil Rights movement and all those looking for a story that inspires. Coach McLendon has a lot to teach all of us about courage and integrity. Author Milton Katz shares story after story that illustrate these points in his highly readable narrative. This book would make a great holiday gift for just about anybody.



3. It is a story about an underdog. A man fulfilling his dreams and facilitating the same for the many people he came in contact with. The story of John McLendon's life is a shining example of how sports and entertainment can be a microcosm for the rest of society and perhaps an easier barrier to elicit change. Many times, society remembers the culmination of a chain of events. In the case of John McLendon, he was the pioneer that paved the way for the likes of Glory Road and Jackie Robinson.



4. Milton Katz has humor, integrity, and wisdom to spare. He is one of the finest individuals I know. Those who cannot enjoy him in person can at least enjoy him in print. Mr. Katz knows how to tell a great story -- and like everything he does, he does it with a lot of heart. You can learn from this man -- and you'll probably have fun along the way...

No comments about It's Not About the Bike.

No comments about Tiger Woods (Biography (a & E)).

5 comments about Operation Yao Ming: The Chinese Sports Empire, American Big Business, and the Making of an NBA Superstar.

1. The story of Yao Ming--the NBA's tallest-ever player who stands 7'6''--is necessarily the tale of the "sports machine," of politics, and of international business deals. Caught up in the forces of history, Shanghai's own homeboy has emerged as a symbol of the love-hate, push-pull relationship between China and the West. In Operation Yao Ming, award-winning journalist Brook Larmer has penned an enlightening and somewhat controversial account of the factors that shaped Yao's life, paved his way to the NBA, and rendered him a bridge to and eventually a symbol of East-West relations.
   
   Tension is the key operative word in this story. There is tension between Yao's life as a basketball player and what it might be otherwise, between Yao's life as the star on a Chinese basketball team and as 2002's number one draft for the American NBA, between American basketball training methods and the Chinese sports training system, between communism and capitalism, between the concept of sports as a way to glorify a nation and sports for their own sake. As a pawn in the center of all of this, Yao served as the key to unlock the treasure chest in many high stakes games--sports and otherwise.
   
   While the book is intriguing for its presentation of research on the Chinese basketball system and how its star player winds up in the NBA, a few faults must be mentioned. Operation Yao Ming was derived from a series of articles written for Newsweek between 2000 and 2003. While that means that the book displays the merit of much research, it also unfortunately succumbs to the hazards of allowing all that information to be hastily thrown together. The result is that the reader faces some abrupt topic changes and must suffer egregious repetitions--at times Larmer even uses the exact same adjectives, metaphors, and phrases. It is surprising that a seasoned journalist would not have done a more thorough job editing his material or hired someone to do it for him.
   
   The book also gives nearly equal billing to Yao's idol and rival, Wang ZhiZhi. Though some people may find this annoying, others--especially basketball fans--will enjoy the way Wang and Yao's paths to and experiences with the CBA and the NBA are compared and contrasted, with the tension of one man's successes measured against the other's hard luck and occasional role reversals. I, however, found myself distracted by the extra plotline.
   
   Overall, Operation Yao Ming is both entertaining and interesting. Those who find the inner workings of the Chinese sports machine, international politics, basketball training, the business of basketball, international business, or above all Yao Ming, appealing will enjoy this book.



2. I first saw Yao Ming in a Marriott Courtyard lobby during an AAU tour in '98. I was wowed by the secrecy around the guy at the hotel. Since then, I've been waiting for the real story...No fluff. Well, Larmer captures the story of Yao Ming and the rise of basketball in China with his research. Even better, he coorelates the rise of basketball to the development of the Chinese economic boom. Major props...
   
   Now, will critics of Yao please read this book about the environment that surrounded Yao and Shanghai during his development? Will they please realize that Yao would be better suited for a team concept? It's just unfortunate that he started off his NBA career by landing into a thug party in Houston.
   
   Critics have been killing Yao for becoming too soft or for not stepping up to the mantle. Yet, what they don't realize is that Yao is from entirely different culture that professes team not the "I" like the majority of today's NBA superstars. He's a team player and a product of Soviet Training who places the group's interests above personal accolades...Does anyone remember the late '80s version of Arvydas Sabonis?
   
   Larmer touches on all of the subjects surrounding the development of Yao Ming by detailing politics, the reign of Mao, alternative health and herbs, Soviet training methods, Nike, academies, agents, the NBA and sports marketing. Tie this in with 'World is Flat', and you'll see a glimpse of sports in the 21st century.



3. I am NOT a huge sports nut...you know the kind who rattles off stats and knows all the players, but I really enjoyed this book. The story of Yao Ming was very interesting especially as it interlaces with China's history. I think it gives a very interesting look into the evolution of Chinese sports, politics and government. It kept me interested and I really looked forward to picking it up again every evening to read.



4. This book is a very readable biography of Yao Ming.
   But I had been led to hope that it would inform me about China's future. I'm disappointed at how little it tells me about that subject. It provides some moderately interesting tidbits of information about China's recent history, but the book doesn't attempt to provide the kind of understanding of China that would tell us whether those tidbits are a glimpse of a past that is being abandoned or whether they contain useful indications of China's future.



5. This book is full of unsubtantiated racist drivel. The premise is that the Chinese can't play basketball. Lamaar does not source his claims - it's just like that he's making up stuffs from thin air.
   
   Regarding his claim that Yao was somehow bred. An Sports Illustrated (SI) article asked why is there only one Yao Ming.
   Why didn't they "created" more Yao Ming's if what Lamaar claimed is really factual? In case people don't know. Yao is the only child.
   
   If you look at other NBA caliber Chinese basketball players such Sun Yue, Yi Jianlian, Tang Zhengdon, Xue Yuyang (drafted by Denver), and even Wang Zhizhi. Their parents were not basketball players.
   
   There is no logic to Lamaar's unsubstantiated drivel.

5 comments about Mindgames: Phil Jackson's Long Strange Journey.

1. The book definitely discusses in detail, Phil Jackson's zen/indian philiosophies and techniues, and his propensity to use such things to create champions.

   Other interesting areas include his background coaching in a turbulent, out of control south American league, where drunken fights in the stands were the norm and bullets weren't restricted to the stands.

   Discussions of his idiosyncracies as a player, and the mentoring he received as a coach, especially when learning/incorporating the triangle offense, are also definitely worth a read.

   The books discussions of his behind-the-scenes experience with management, in team meetings, and on the tour bus reveal him as an expert in "playing politics." Despite its somewhat negative connotation, his "Mind Games" (also the book's title) appear ro have contributed to his tremendous professional success (NBA Championship rings).

   However, his somewhat antagonisitic actions towards team ownership and media have left him with a somewhat questionable reputation. The book discusses this in detail. For example, without provocation, he once kicked a reporter off the team bus, leaving her stranded, and regularly exiled the team's owner from meetings). The book explains the rationale for these actions. Jackson sees "team solidarity" as a crucial aspect of "building the team spirit" and allowing it to grow.

   In addition, the book is fairly current and details his brief, ongoing career with the Lakers, revealing some surprisingly esoteric insights about the team and his role in it.

   His unorthodox, yet wildly successful NBA coaching career make this an interesting and thoughtful read. However, this review ranks the book four stars out of five, simply because the book's meticulously long discussions seasons' worth of quasi-important matches on the hardwood floor becomes a bit redundant and irrelevant(playoff/championship games excluded).

   But if you're a basketball fan, a Lakers' fan, a Bulls' fan, or are simply intrigued by the man and his phenomenally successful, yet wholistically unorthodox approach to life, interpersonal relations, and success, this book comes highly recommended.

   Rob Rumsey




2. This is an excellent read about a different drummer. I'm a Lakers fan, but Bulls fans will like it just as much.



3. I have always been intrigued by the work of the "Zenmaster," which is why I first decided to read this book. I had heard about Jackson's work in mending the rift between Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant and had wondered how he did it when others could not. The first 100 pages of this book delve into the mind of this phenomenal coach, but the rest of the book goes on to name his achievements. Yes, it was interesting to learn a little more about Michael Jordan, Pippen, Grant and Rodman but those guys were not the reason I picked up the book. If I wanted to learn about those players, I would have read "The Jordan Rules." Bottom line, I would rather pick up "Sacred Hoops" or "Maverick", which were actually written by Jackson himself.



4. This is an easy read... But you have to hash through a lot of common knowledge about the Bulls to get any interesting tidbits about Jackson. Sacred Hoops gives you much more perspective into Jackson than this book does. The author teases the reader with an opening story about how Jackson smokes two cigarettes and drinks a beer before he talked to the Bulls after a game... A great bit of informaion, but many true Bulls fans could have picked this up the the local papers or sports talk shows... The author gets most of his inside information from Tex Schram, Johnny Bach, and Skip Schaefer. The majority of the book is a general chronicle of the Bulls 8 year 6 title run offering few insights on Jackson. If you followed the Bulls, read Sacred Hoops, the only 'fresh' information comes from the last two chapters about Jackson's year off and some information about Jackson's first year with the Lakers. It reads quick, but do not expect learn any new in depth information about Jackson.



5. As someone who has read "Sacred Hoops" three times and follows Phil Jackson's coaching career very closely, I was very excited to see this on the shelf at my local bookstore. This was a good book. I breezed through it. I thought it was very well written, and it did have some interesting anecdotes. In my opionion, probably the most interesting part of the book wasn't even about Coach Jackson, but rather about the people who have worked with him. The short biopics of the Chicago Jerrys, Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant, and others were very interesting to me - and very fair (which is tough these days when you read anything about Krause).

   On the other end of the stick, I would agree that the book did seem a tad superficial as far as Jackson is concerned. It promises to give you insight into one of the most complex figures in contemporary sports, but really does not do that. It only touches superifically on his connection to Buddhism, meditation, and his relationships outside of basketball. Indeed, the end of Jackson's second marriage - certainly one of the more important influences in his life - is entirely covered in one short paragraph of a few sentences.

   All in all, this was a decent book. However, I won't be reading it again.

2 comments about Scoring at Half-Time.

1. This book is not an autobiography but a great look back on the experiences of the late great George Best among others. It was a captivating hilarious read which makes me wish I could have seen him in one of his after hours shows. The book is a show in itself and shows a side of what football (Soccer in N. America) was and still should be really all about...the good times. Sadly George did this to excess and eventually paid the price but then what a life. The stories are not all about George Best but collections of various football lore. Well worth the purchase price.



2. Captivating reading from cover to cover brought back memories of the golden age of football in the 60's and 70's. Great look at the life of one of the greatest players the game has ever seen. Fantastic insights into Bestie's life and the life of a professional footballer of the times. Also sheds some interesting and entertaining tidbits on some of the other football stars of the day.