Those Guys Have All The Fun

Inside the World of ESPN
James Andrew Miller & Tom Shales - 2011 Little, Brown & Company

 I resisted reading this book for a while, but I'm glad that I finally did (at the "gentle" encouragement of others).  It's fun, it's enjoyable, and it's informative about a major player in the world of professional sports.

The structure is a little different, as the chapters are set up by specific time frames and the content consists mainly of excerpts from the innumerable interviews Miller and Shales conducted, with only smalls transitions by the authors here and there.  Some of these transitions are rather abrupt and there are times when it feels like some topics do not flow into the next as seamlessly as they should.

Overall, "Those guys have all the fun" is well worth the read, especially when there are differing accounts from individuals on the same subject.

Friday Night Lights

A Town, A Team, and a Dream
H. G. Bissinger - 2000 Da Capo Press

Friday Night Lights is not just an intriguing read of a town, a team and a dream but also an enchanting, journalistic work that ranks alongside Maraniss' When Pride Still Mattered and other exemplary works of sports journalism. 

While many may be familiar with the film and TV series this book inspired, that should not allow them to overlook the fascinating portrait that Bissinger paints of small towns and football, wound as tightly together as the bindings of a book. 

The reading is easy and enjoyable and the story is at once engaging, sympathetic, painful and honest.  In all, a highly recommended read.