1 comments about Blood in My Coffee: The Life of the Fight Doctor.

1. Forget the fact that Dr. Ferdie Pacheco is one of the most knowledgeable people in the sport of boxing; we already knew that. What many haven't known is that he's also one of the finest writers in America. Ferdie manages to catch human nature spot on with this revealing autobiography. Reading Blood in My Coffee is like taking a seminar on life.

5 comments about Alex Zanardi: My Sweetest Victory : A Memoir of Racing Success, Adversity, and Courage.

1. Alex is quite honest concerning his emotion, lack of discipline and mistakes. In addition the arrogant reputation of race car drivers are dashed (in this case anyway) as his early lack of confidence comes through at times.
   
   Of course the main reason that I bought this book was to read about his recovery from his horrendous accident. It did not disappoint.
   
   In addition to admiration for his bravery the reader comes away with a deep appreciation for what a great attitude can accomplish.
   
   Steel yourself for horrendous, abysmal editing. The publisher should be flogged.



2. Absolutely fabulous.
   
   Alex Zanardi, who lost both legs in a horrific crash that nearly claimed his life, tells his story with humor and an eye for detail.
   
   You do not have to be a racing fan to enjoy this book. Alex is a great raconteur who spins a tale that keeps the reader captivated page after page. He never lets you feel sorry for him after he finds out he has lost his legs; you cheer for him as he works his way back to racing.
   
   This is a terrific "feel good" book for any reader.



3. If the purpose of a memoir is to provide readers with an unedited and disorganized stream of consciousness (that completely lacks psychological insight), then Alex Zanardi accomplishes his mission with great brio. What you will find in this (much too) thick volume are meaningless anecdotes that are followed by more meaningless anecdotes. To be exact, the book reads like a transcription of slapped together interviews. I guarantee that you will be bored to tears after just 10 pages. For a better, more interesting look at Zanardi's life and accomplishment you would be much better off checking HBO's Real Sports documentary.



4. Alex Zanardi was a truly inspirational competitor on the track and one of the best characters off it. His fightback against crushing odds and his chase to have his life back at normal are inspirational and uplifting. For those who marvelled at his CART days and wondered about the disappoint at his F1 with Williams, there is some explanation here. There is no doubt that he is an exceptional driver and even more so an exceptional human being. He is now racing in the world touring car championship for BMW.



5. If you are a race fan, you will really enjoy this one. Alex is truly a hero.

5 comments about Education of a Coach, The.

1. 
   I'm not sure what the book's intention was, but be prepared to read more about life events instead of football related events. I read this after the Tony Dungy book, and I would recommend that over this book.



2. I read this book several years ago, and reread it recently after reflecting on the "Spygate" drama of the past year. I found the book very insightful the second time around. David Halberstam was an incrediably gifted writer who was able to truly get into the mind of his subjects, and this book is a great example of that. He starts by offering insights into Belichick the boy, and how his formative years, watching his father working for Navy, helped mold the man who heads the New England Patriots today. It offers interesting insights into Belichick's mindset when he participates in his always vague press conferences, his secretive manner, and why he is both respect and hated by his players and his peers. Fascinating read.



3. Halberstam set a very high standard for himself -- in his sports books as well as in his political books. The "Summer of 1949", for instance, was particularly well researched and written.
   
   This book lacks the depth of "1949." There is little digging into player reactions. Instead of demonstrating character through anecdotes and understatement, Halberstam keeps hitting us over the head with his point about how great Belichick is about "breaking down film" & etc. What in the heck does that really mean? There is very little detail here.
   
   Of course, Halberstam's worst effort would count as someone else's best work. Halberstam is at his best in describing the Parcells/Belichick relationship; the character of the great Giants' teams; any why Brady was the superior quarterback to Bledsoe. Belichick's coaching genius does come through in the description of his approach to all the super bowls. And Belechick's notion of team, building interchangeable parts, and working with the salary cap are explained quite well.
   
   On the whole, though, we are continually told how great Belichick is without really giving much insight into his soul as a man or even as a coach.



4. I've read several of his books (although this was my first sports book of his) and I highly enjoyed them. Maybe it's because the subject is just not a very interesting person, but this book is just terrible. He tells us material that contributes nothing; who cares about about his grandparents and his wife family? He also gushes about the subject and his family. Is everything really so great? It's as if he chose an average person at random and wrote a biography about him. The average person doesn't lead a particularly fascinating life and the resulting biography would be dull. Just because he is a success as a coach doesn't necessarily make him a good candidate for a biography.



5. I hate to pile on a fine author when the time has passed when he can redeem himself but I concur with all the negative reviews with one exception--I don't think the book's lack of appeal can be written off as due to the fact that Belichik is a boring oaf. He is that on the outside, but there's a lot more than that inside and the author just did not dig that out. The problem with the book is that there is minimal "inside" information - a little more detail about Tom Brady's development than maybe you know, and a good explanation of just how feared a player Marshall Faulk was, but that's about it. The title suggests that the subject matter is limited to the sort of background biographical stuff so maybe we should have seen this coming, but this is really little more than an expansion of the bio you might find on the Patriots website.

3 comments about 1 2nd to Glory.

1. Wow. After 29 years it is still vivid to recall those 2 guys neck 'n neck pulling their teams down Front Street in Nome. I woke to the radio alarm clock to get ready for my shift at the airport and heard they were inside of Safety (22 miles East of Nome). I got up and out of the apartment and walked down to Front street, and low and behold, there they were, stumbling, tugging. It was a bright, clear, cold day and the dogs looked so tired! What a hullabaloo that morning!
   Mackey relives this and other moments in this book and he brings it all back. Thanks, Dick!



2. Mackey sums it all up: " People who are content to stand still irritate me. I feel the same way about people in every profession... always try to improve your work... try to be the best you can be."
   
   This is a record of accomplishments of one man who came from New Hamphshire. He was a young, successful entrepreur until an accident changed his life...bankruptcy. He was young, married and a father. He lost it all... but not for long. " I knew nothing about Alaska, but it was as far as I could drive."
   
   Alaska is a better place for men like Mackey. He has left his mark as a Iditarod Hall of Fame. The founder of Coldfoot, AK.
   and the list goes on and on.
   
   Mackey, you brag a lot... but it's not really bragging... you did it.



3. A well written and extremely entertaining autobiography of Dick Mackey who won the Iditarod Race in 1978 by a second. In some ways, the book almost read like the history of Iditarod and as the founder of Coldfoot, Mackey probably won his place in Alaska history. I regards this more like public autobiography because Mackey mostly relates to his public life. What seem to be missing are stuff about his personal life outside of few mentions of his kids and his three wives. It would be bit more interesting to know the man behind his accomplishments and the cost.

   But overall, I highly recommended this book about an extraordinary Alaskan who did extraordinary things. As a fellow Alaskan, I hope there will be more chapters to come.

2 comments about Dice-K: The First Season of the Red Sox $100 Million Man.

1. There are some players who produce seasons that transcend mere success or failure, and Daisuke Matsuzaka was one of them in 2007. Fortunately, Ian Browne was able to expertly chronicle what became a rivoting story within a story. The book is thorough, insightful and entertaining, more than doing justice to a year-long drama no baseball fan will soon forget.



2. Ian Browne, who so ably chronicles the Red Sox for mlb.com, has provided us with a wonderful inside look at one of the most compelling stories from the team's 2007 season. In describing the acquisition and first season of Japanese pitching star Daisuke Matsuzaka, he gives us a clear picture of the business decision making process that brought Dice-K to the team and then thoughtfully interweaves vignettes focusing on cultural diversity, team-building, and the road to a World Series championship. The book is far more than an expanded internet column. Even for those of us who follow the Red Sox all season, this book is a nail-biter. It should provide reading pleasure to both baseball lovers and others interested in the interfaces among business, sports, and intercultural challenges.

5 comments about The Lion in Autumn: A Season with Joe Paterno and Penn State Football.

1. The book "The Lion in Autumn:A Season with Joe Paterno and Penn State Football" is a good book to be read by a Penn State football fan. The book takes you through the Nittany Lions 2004 season where they finished the disapointing season at 4-7. The book travels through the rough season with an inside look at Penn State football. Week by week the book takes you in depth into what happened during the 2004 season. The book goes in chronological order game after game with recollections of Nittany Lion football pasts along the way. At the end of the book there is an afterword about the Lions next season whre they went 11-1 and finished 3rd in the country. I recommend "The Lion In Autumn" to any Penn State football fan who is looking for something to read.



2. I thought the book was very good. Would recommend it to Penn State fans as well as any other football fans.



3. One of the great joys of Penn State football fandom is reading books about Coach Paterno and his program. As both a fan and a reader, any disappointment I had with this one was chiefly due to the limited access given to the author. After a nine-loss season in 2003 that marked the nadir of precipitous competitive slide, and an increasing number of off-field incidents, Coach Paterno was understandably guarded -- even abandoning a longstanding tradition of meeting with reporters over cocktails the night before game day. (Stiffing reporters in this fashion was probably an unwise political move that helped to contribute to the "JoePa Must Go" sentiment.)
   
   What then is a writer to do? One approach could have been to chronicle the growing division within the Penn State community -- former players, alumni, students, and the media -- over the tough times in Happy Valley, using a few colorful and outspoken characters as a catalyst for that division.
   
   Instead, Mr. Fitzpatrick delivers a fairly straightforward chronicle of the 2005 season's aspirations and disappointments. He does an adept job for those readers who may not be familiar with the programs history, but for those readers who are the chapters on glories past provide no new insight and interrupts the narrative of the current season.
   
   Penn State's decline was primarily attributable to lackluster recruiting that produced players unable to compete effectively in the Big Ten, and Mr. Fitzpatrick is spot on when he writes that Paterno was mindful of this: "Other teams had more talent than Penn State. But to admit that too often in public was to demean his players.... [He] understood that the quickest solution to the Nittany Lions' troubles would be to search harder and more selectively for talent." (p. 287)
   
   Once again, Coach Paterno's refusal to publicly contemplate life after football is highlighted, where is prospective retirement activity has changed over the years from collecting stamps to cutting grass. With the almost immediate death of Alabama's Bear Bryant after his retirement, Mr. Paterno is quite candid about his deep seated fears: "I'm alive. I don't want to die. Football keeps me alive." (p. 276) This outlook is quite tragic and perplexing, given his successes off the field as an educator, philanthropist, community leader and family patriarch.
   
   In short, this volume does not quite rise to the level of incisiveness of Ken Denlinger's "For the Glory" or Coach Paterno's decades-old autobiography, which is in desperate need of an update. But it reads quickly and provides and admirable journalistic account of Happy Valley's darkest days in the Paterno era.



4. I just finished the book a couple of days ago and as it settled it my mind, two impressions came over me.
   
   One is that there is a big part of Joe Paterno who still feels deep inside that he is not as good as his rich college classmates at Brown and how he has to prove to them that he belongs.
   
   The second is that while Saint Joepa Paterno can talk all he wants about the excesses in college athletics, he is not willing to forgo any of the excesses that reward him. You don't see him turning away any of the huge salaries or the other luxuries, do you.
   
   Paterno comes across as a control freak, if he is trying to prepare his players and assistant coaches for the outside world, why does he restrict acccess to them so tightly.
   
   I am a big sports fan of college and pro sports but I have major issues with people glorifying coaches the way they do. They are just athletic coaches. They are not helping solve the problems of the world, just entertainers.
   
   Joepa also comes across as humorless, a man who takes himself way too seriously.
   
   It is a shame that Fitzpatrick was denied access to so many sources. It would have been interesting to find out why Joepa's son is unwilling or able to get a job on his own instead of depending on Daddy.
   
   As noted above, Joepa was influenced greatly by his days at Brown. I would have loved to learn how in the world an Italian kid from Brooklynin the 40s made it to the Ivy League.
   
   This is not a puff piece on the man, that is a great accomplishment by the author.



5. I hesitated picking up this book because even though it was published only one year ago, it is arguably outdated since Penn State football finally bounced back and had a very good year. That said, I am glad I read it because the book goes beyond the marketed "A Season with Penn State" storyline and provides a very good historical synopsis of Joe Paterno and his role in the history of college football.
   
   Since Paterno has been around so long, people tend to forget his importance in the development of college football. Once he retires, he will undoubtedly be remembered in the same breath as Bear Bryant, Knute Rockne, Daryl Royal, Bud Wilkinson and the other Legends (with a capital "L") of college football.
   
   This book provides interesting insights into his personal history and the development of Penn State University, which Paterno literally transformed from a backwater agricultural school into a well-known and successful state school. I doubt any coach in college sports history has been more important to his school's development than Paterno has been to Penn State.
   
   The parts about the actual season are fairly boring, since PSU was horrible the year Fitzpatrick followed them but it is worth picking up if you are a fan of college football history.

4 comments about All Things Are Possible: The Verlen Kruger Story: 100,000 Miles by Paddle.

1. I found out about this book through an online review by Maine sea canoe adventurer Reinhard Zollitsch.
   (R. Zollitsch has a website). Very good human interest story whether paddling is your thing or not.



2. This book is readable and the pictures are terrific.
   Peterson did a great job telling the Verlen Kruger story.
   I recommend the book as both readable and beautiful!



3. If you are a fan of paddle sports, and have an interest in Verlen, you will want to read this book. It is a well written, very complete and mostly non-judgemental biography.



4. I've read books by Kruger and by Valerie Fons about Kruger. This book, by far, gives the greatest insight and objective look at a fascinating individual. Wonderful photography and good analysis of endeavors that few of us could comprehend the difficulty of. This is a well done, comprehensive biography.

5 comments about Caddy for Life: The Bruce Edwards Story.

1. This was the first book by John Feinstein I ever read. Caddy for life is an amazing view into the life of Bruce Edwards and Tom Waston. From the joys of the greens on the golf course, to the lows of Edwards' battle with Lou Gerig's diease. This is the most touching sports story I have ever heard, and I challenge anyone to read this and not feel pain or sorrow. This book transends words and gives the reader the insight into how Lou Gerig's diease affects both family and friends.



2. I've read several of John Feinstein's books, and have never been disappointed. This was one of his better efforts. It's the story of Bruce Edwards and Tom Watson. Edwards was a caddy, and was lucky enough to hook up with Watson back in 1973. He spent most of the next 30 years caddying for one of the best golfers and best people in the game.
   
   The book tells the story of these two remarkable individuals, and shows how well-liked they both were on the PGA tour. The last part of the book describes the 2003 season, and how tough it was for both of them. Edwards was diagnosed with ALS at the beginnig of the year, and struggled to make it through one final season as Watson's caddy.
   
   Watson is portrayed in the book as a great friend and boss. He realized how lucky he was to have Edwards as his caddy and friend for all those years, and Edwards was just as aware of how lucky he had been. It's just a shame they didn't have a few more years together.



3. On several occassions, I found myself getting choked up while reading this book. It is intensly personal and we're lucky to be provided with an up close view of what Bruce Edwards and those who loved and worked with him went threw. Experience is a hard thing to acquire, unless you actually have it. This book offers a rare exception to its reader.



4. Perhaps my only mistake was choosing to start reading this book the same night I had finished John Feinstein's most recent effort, "Let Me Tell You a Story," his book about the legendary Celtics figure, Red Auerbach. For that reason and that reason only, it took me a little longer to get into this one. After all, following that one is almost impossible.
   
   But this one does. It is at times funny and sad and as a result, there are times this book brings out a smile, but many times it brings out a tear. But through it all, Feinstien's gift for telling a story makes this book one of the best books I have read. It is a story about a caddy with ALS, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease. Bruce Edwards, the long-time caddy to golf great Tom Watson, was diagnosed with the fatal illness in January of 2003, a little more than two years ago. The book chronicles his life on the PGA Tour with, not only his brother-like relationship with Watson, but with everyone who ever came into his life. It is apparent that he touched a lot of lives during his 30+ year career on tour.
   
   Through it all, until the end, Edwards was a picture of perservearance, bravery and courage. He refused to let the illness get the better of him. If memory serves, Edwards passed away shortly after this book was published. May he rest in peace.



5. Being an Avid Golfer, I was drawn by this story of courage under the face of the biggest adversity a person could ever face, knowing you are going to die. This story is a touching tribute to Bruce Edwards, the long time caddy to PGA tour vetran Tom Watson and a tribute to Bruce as not only a great caddy but a great person as well. It is a story of two men who forged a freindship over the years that brought them "Closer than Brothers" and a tribute to the class and dignity in which Bruce displayed in facing ALS or "Lou Gehrigs" disease.
   We never know if and when something devestating will hit us or someone we love, but Bruce Edwards shows that you can have dignity in dying and that the Human Spirit prevails in the worse of conditions. A must read right there with Tuesdays with Morrie!

5 comments about The Wizard of Odds: How Jack Molinas Almost Destroyed the Game of Basketball.

1. Charley Rosen provides readers with an entertaining book about one of basketball's most talented players, Jack Molinas. Unfortunately, it seems that some of Rosen's information might not be accurate - especially the statements about one of Jack's long-time friends, Shirley Marcus, which are based on innuendoes; and some of Rosen's statements about one of the greatest sportswriters of all times, Milton Gross.
   
   What is particularly disappointing about this otherwise interesting book is how Rosen protects the basketball establishment by putting all the blame on Jack Molinas. The fact is, a real exploration of gambling in sports could lead to a public outcry - followed by reduced advertiser support and cancelled television contracts.
   
   Molinas was no angel, to be sure - and Rosen does a pretty good job of characterizing this complex and talented athlete. But as the title of the book implies, it is the betting odds - the point spreads that appear in most major newspapers - that is more key to the problem than the actions of a single "Wizard" like Jack Molinas, or a lone referee (as David Stern would like us to believe).
   
   Sadly, the current Commissioner, team owners, as well as sportswriters and commentators, would rather sidestep the problem posed by gambling than risk the millions of dollars that are at stake from advertising, television contracts, and sports fans. (Jerry Marcus is the author of the just-published novel, Broken Trust - The Murder Of Basketball Star Jack Molinas)



2. Born to a great family and blessed with amazing athletic prowess, Jack Molinas just couldn't go straight. Brilliant by all standards of measurement, he seemed to have absolutely no way to determine right from wrong, and would always lie, cheat, or steal if he could get away with it. He developed a love of gambling early in his life, and would do anything to win in his lifetime obession with sports betting. If he couldn't bribe or convince a player to throw a game, he would spike their food to make them too sick to play. He would stop at nothing to get his way. Even an unpleasant prison term didn't stop him, and he died in a hail of bullets at his Hollywood Hills home at the hands of other criminals and sociopaths.
   
   An awesome book full of detail for the sports fan and lover of true crime stories.



3. Besides being well over six feet tall, Jack Molinas stood above the basketball competition he faced in other ways. His I.Q. was a whopping 175 and he used his native itelligence and skills on the court to fix college games for Columbia during the 50's. Later on, he was suspended from the N.B.A in his rookie season for working the same scams there. The culmination came with the basketball scandals of the early 60's and his arrest and subsequent five-year prison sentence. After leaving the 'big house' he turned his talents to upholding the law by becoming a renowned lawyer. He had spent his life manipulating and lying to people so it seemed a natural fit that he eventually moved to California with a girl friend and became a porn producer. Ultimately, his mob ties from his fix days and shady connections caught up with him however. Apparently, he had welshed on sports bets to bookies connected with La Cosa Nostra. Obviously, a very dumb thing to do for someone gifted with his level of intelligence. He was shot by unknown assailents in his home in 1974. Clearly, out of all the people he cheated in his life, the author of this book makes very clear that the person he ultimately short-changed the most was himself.



4. This is probly the most boring book I have ever read. I have read alot of basketball books and by far this is one of the worst. It seemed interesting so I bought it. Then it started out all right but by page 100 I could not keep reading it I just lost interest. I would not reccomend this book.



5. Once I started this book, I could not put it down. Jack was a person with a great deal of athletic and intellectual talent. However, I thought he blurred the line between life and the game of basketball.

   I was never interested in sports when I was growing up, but this book has certainly sparked my interest. It was a mind opening experience.

   How did I come to read this book, considering my lack of interest in sports? I heard it reviewed on Nat'l. Public Radio. When I heard the name Jack Molinas, I remembered an athletically inclined boy that attended PS 33 and PS 79 with me. My memories of him in school were good so I think of his life as he felt compelled to live it as a tragedy.

No comments about Heavenly Twins Of Boston Baseball: A Dual Biography of Hugh Duffy and Tommy Mccarthy.