BusanBhoy Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 I just recently stumbled onto "How Soccer Explains the World" and "Barmy Army" (which Amazon thru in as a bonus), both were great WC type reading. Does anybody have any more suggestions on good footie reads? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 quote:Originally posted by BusanBhoy I just recently stumbled onto "How Soccer Explains the World" and "Barmy Army" (which Amazon thru in as a bonus), both were great WC type reading. Does anybody have any more suggestions on good footie reads? Hi, These are my two favorites: The Story of the World Cup - Brian Glanville Soccer in Sun and Shadow - Eduardo Galeano You may also like: Fever Pitch - Nick Hornby DVD: History of Soccer -The Beautiful Game (must have) Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Can. in UK Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 "A Season with Verona" "The Miracle of Castel di Sangro" Fantastic books! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgary Boomer Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 I'm reading "How Soccer Explains the World" right now. Fascinating. A tad dry in places, but amazing how much corruption, racicsm, religious prejudice and how far back the hatred goes in some places. Most interesting to me was the Celtic-Rangers story, and the shocking decline of Brazilian Club soccer. I think this is a good read and makes me want to visit some of these stadiums. Especially Camp Nou, Barcelona. At Red Star Belgrade, the author describes the Red Star Stadium as being "dark & gloomy" and a haven for crows. People in town know exactly when Red Star scores because all the crows fly away from the noise, and the sky turns black above the stadium. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettermirror Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 i have The History of the F.A. Cup - it's fascinating to read about how great clubs such as Preston North End used to be! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayWay Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 I think 'Football Against the Enemy' by Simon Kuper was basically the precursor to a lot of the football books we see today delving into the topic from the perspective of cultural analysis. Books like 'Brilliant Orange' by Winner, as well as 'How Soccer Explains the World' are both very much in the Kuper mold, so you might want to check that out... There's a number of books penned by long-time Liverpool FC supporters; they're much like the first person perspective (and dime-a-dozen) hooligan books you see everywhere - minus the repetitive and pointless blow-by-blow recaps and self-indulgent posturing. They give you a pretty good 'grassroots' view of things, which is nice if you're looking for a more insider perspective and less analysis by outsider academics (like Winner or Foer). A good one is 'Faith of Our Fathers: Football as a religion' by Alan Edge. It's been a few years since I read this one, but I remember being impressed. My one complaint would be that Edge tries to be a bit too wordy at certain points. At times it reads more like a thesis than a light-hearted supporter's story. The other one is 'One Boy and His Kop' by Peter Ethrington. It too was a good book, very funny! Indeed, if you're looking for humour than you can't go wrong with this one. If you're looking for fiction, you can't go wrong with 'Away Days'. Although I'm sure Blair will disagree with me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulV Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 "Football Against the Enemy" Simon Kuper "Futebol: The Brazillian Way of Life" Alex Bellos "All Played Out" Pete Davies Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Massive Attack Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 "Keeping Score: The Encyclopedia of Canadian Soccer" by Colin Jose. This is more of a history book with lots of stats and facts, but there are a lot of interesting stories as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HamiltonSteelers Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 "How soccer explains..." is a great book. I got it for Christmas and tore through it. I've heard that Morbo is good (about the Spanish game). I'm interested in the Tor!, about the German game. Also anything done by the lads at When Saturday Comes look good. I personally am looking for more books like "How soccer explains...". More of the social implications that football has on it's neighbourhood/city/region and its historical ties. I also have the "World Football Yearbook" from last season, a thick, full-colour book that has alot of solid summaries about the various derbies around the world's major footballing centers. It also lists the legendary 86 Steelers as being national champs... of sorts. No crests but but it has colours of the clubs... if that's your kind of thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaku_bert Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 quote:Originally posted by HamiltonSteelers " I personally am looking for more books like "How soccer explains...". 4-4-2 magazine has a few pages of book reviews every month. I have a couple years years worth of the magazines and I'll try to look at them to see if there are any books such as what you're looking for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 And World Football Pages runs an article every now and then - Quillson on Footy - or something like that (probably should wait until so I can actually look it up) that i find to be a first rate review of books on the subject. My favourite is Galeano's. Love the short vignette's mixed with the political intros to each section (its better than that sounds). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sstackho Posted March 1, 2005 Share Posted March 1, 2005 Thanks for the reviews of "How Soccer Explains the World". I saw it on the bestsellers lists, and thought I had read that the book actually had little to do with soccer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Champ Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 quote:Originally posted by Can. in UK "The Miracle of Castel di Sangro" Great book, but the last chapter really bummed me out. Coincidence has it that the day after I finished it, I saw Sweden vs Italy in an Italian bar in downtown TO. When Ibrahimovic score his behind the back goal I went nuts. Screw you Italians! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivan Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 "A Rough Guide to English Football". Provides a history on every English Football League Club from Manchester United to Halifax Town (circa 2000. I have read it three times. Great stuff for sport history buffs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HamiltonSteelers Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 I'm a frequent (albeit not too frequent) reader of 4-4-2. A quality mag if there ever was one. I'll have to check out "A Rough Guide to English Football"... sounds like bits of trivia in that one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJT Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 Two other threads on this topic: http://www.thevoyageurs.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=55 http://www.thevoyageurs.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2794 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue and White Army Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 BusanBhoy... I was in Busan in 2003 and 2004. Send me an email sometime if you want to discuss Korean footie. I'm writing a book on it at the moment, and would welcome your input. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
River City Posted March 2, 2005 Share Posted March 2, 2005 Found this on the National Public Radio website. It's the interview with the author of 'How Soccer Explains the World' http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=3166039 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusanBhoy Posted March 2, 2005 Author Share Posted March 2, 2005 I'm continually amazed at how some of you lot come up with these links and facts - well done But wow some people should stick to writing - I've enjoyed the book but my Lord his voice grates interesting though thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Concacaf Posted March 3, 2005 Share Posted March 3, 2005 I like The Complete Book of the World Cup by Cris Freddi. I have the edition that goes up to 1994, but there is a newer edition that goes up to 1998. It has match reports from every game that tells you everything you need to know from a particular match. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
algorithim Posted March 3, 2005 Share Posted March 3, 2005 The Miracle of Castel Di Sangro is fantastic! Try "The Beautful Game" by Brian Glanville Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alberto7 Posted March 3, 2005 Share Posted March 3, 2005 I already said this in a previous post but I really enjoyed UNLUCKY: A SEASON OF STRUGGLE IN MINOR LEAGUE PROFESSIONAL SOCCER by Dave Ungrady. If you want to see what playing thrid division soccer in the USA is all about, read this book. Ungrady trains with and follows the Northern Virginia Royals in their first season in D3(now USL second divsion) in 1998 in an attempt to play at least one pro soccer game with the team. No players got paid but were expected to practice 4-5 times a week. The team travelled by minivan because it is cheaper to rent two minivans than one bus. They played in dreadful high school stadiums in front of crowds of under 100 at times. This is how NOT to run a pro team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
algorithim Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 sounds more like a third world team lol!! Talk baout lack of resources! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BusanBhoy Posted March 4, 2005 Author Share Posted March 4, 2005 quote:Originally posted by Calgary Boomer At Red Star Belgrade, the author describes the Red Star Stadium as being "dark & gloomy" and a haven for crows. People in town know exactly when Red Star scores because all the crows fly away from the noise, and the sky turns black above the stadium. I too thought that was a great image - the author turns a few good phrases, but i thought the most stiking image of the book came from the chapter on Brazil. - the Maracana - one of the true temples of our game - is being corroded from within - not metephorically mind you (although that may be) - but literally - structurally - by pee. that passage spoke volumes (to the good and the bad) about this game we all love, at least im my opininion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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