Cricket Books

Few more for you

Alec Stewart - Playing for Keeps

Pretty much in the image of the Gaffer himself - functional and efficient but rather lacking in a bit of sparkle. It's certainly not a bad read, but aside from a discussion on ball tampering where he is remarkably frank, you can't help but feel Stewie is rather guarded most of the time with the result that at times it tends to become a catalogue of matches rather than in-depth analysis of them.

Mike Atherton - Opening Up

Now this is more like it. Definitely the best written book I have in my cricket collection, a fact all the more impressive given that Atherton has done the work himself without the aid of a ghost writer. His own achievements are often breezily overlooked in favour of wider discussions and he is not afraid of wry self-deprecation. Cracking book, probably my second favourite that I've read so far.

Darren Gough - Dazzler

Unlike many it seems, I never particularly warmed to Gough as an individual as I could never escape the feeling that he is his own biggest fan. As a result it was no great surprise that his book could be summarised quite simply as "I'm Darren Gough, I'm dead good me and I don't take no crap off no-one". His constant bellyaching about getting on to the honours board at Lords makes the crueller side of me rather glad that he never made it!

I enjoyed reading Nasser Hussain's biography - 'Playing With Fire'. He certainly didn't pull any punches regarding the ICC/ECB; a weighty volume but worth the read, in my opinion.

I agree with Clobber about Atherton's book too. I also read one by Alec Stewart which was a diary of 1998-9 which was interesting but not in the same league as an autobiography as there wasn't much room for anything other than what you could reasonably expect to find in a diary.

Freddies is good. I read Nasser hussains and that was fantastic. I liked his veiw on the 'authoreties'

Beating The Field (The Story Of My Life)

That's one of them anyway. Are there any more?

I've read the following:

All Round View - Imran Khan

Cutting Edge - My Autobiography (Javed Miandad)

ESPN Legends of Cricket - The Games 25 Greatest

Cricket - Techniques, Tactics, and Training

Coaching Youth Cricket

The best book ever about Cricket facts and Stats

The complete Illustrated guide to cricket

I've also read Dennis Lillee's and Greame Pollock's autobiographies (I can't remember the names of their autobiographies).

Originally posted by -JP- Beating The Field (The Story Of My Life) That's one of them anyway. Are there any more?

Thanks.....I will have to get my hands on a copy of that book!

I've read loads of books regarding cricket, they all give great tips on being a better batsman, thats how I've become this good.

Playing Left handed gives you an edge over many batsmen! I dont know how, but it does!

Nice topic Clobber and nice reviews mate - you should take it up professionally!!

I certainly agree that Michael Atherton's book , "Opening Up" has to be one of the best tomes on cricket ever written. The man's personality oozes from every page and I particularly liked the chapter on his confrontation with Allan Donald. For the layman , it gave a fascinating insight in how tough test match cricket is , especially opening the batting against a real speedster!

So many books are ghosted and they all have the same format along the lines....where I went to school , when I took up the game , where I played my 1st serious cricket , etc , etc , etc. It's a format that sells , but isn't particularly interesting!

I always want to get inside the guy and see what makes him tick - Athers's book did that beautifully.

I enjoyed Allan Donald's book , "White Lightning" too - his take on the duel with Atherton was quite different to Athers himself -s'funny how bowlers and batsmen see the game from another perspective!

I'm currently halfway through a book on Basil D'Oliveira. A terrific read on one of crickets most amazing stories. The book is really in two halves. The first half about his playing career , the second on the huge controversy about his selection for the 1968 tour of South Africa.I have to say that it's a fantastic read and well worth a look. D'Oliveira is probably the most famous cricketer in the history of the game.The fallout of that decision to ban him by the SA government must be THE most front page news around the globe since bodyline. What strikes one instantly whilst reading the book is the wonderful dignity of the man. At no time did he say anything to inflame an already boiling cauldron ,the man clearly is highly intelligent and a true gentleman. What's also clear is the MCC were duplicitous b*stards and colluded with the South African government in trying to keep the tour alive. It hides nothing and there must be many red faces at Lords today. Colin Cowdrey comes out very badly , he was willing to sacrifice D'Oliveira , but openly supported him to the media. John Arlott comes out well , an avid hater of Apartheid and a great help in securing D'Oliveira a place in the Lancashire League. E.W.Swanton , the Telegraph correspondent , on the other hand gets a hammering - he simply is not a nice guy!!

I've forgotten who the author is , but will edit tomorrow with the information ! Go get it fellas , it contains all you need to know of that historic time

I've currently got about 3 books either being read or waiting to be read and will talk about them in due course. In the meantime, I've saved the best for last (for the time being....)

Nasser Hussain - Playing With Fire

Quite simply the best cricket book I have ever read. It's not the finest piece of prose you'll come across - it strikes me as a book that has been written over a number of periods, which would account for the often irritating repetition of certain phrases, for instance the number of times Hussain refers to someone "playing like God".

That minor quibble aside, strap in and get ready for an unflinchingly honest account of one man's battle with...well pretty much everyone he comes into contact with! Much like his on-field demeanour, Nasser takes a confrontational approach to his book and delves into dressing room politics, sledging and wider subjects without ever holding back his opinions. I am sure the likes of Tim Lamb, Malcolm Speed, Ian Botham, Chris Schofield and Mike Gatting will cringe more than a little at what is said about them herein, whilst others like Derek Pringle and Andrew Caddick emerge in a far more positive light than the general public perception of them.

When I got this book I read it in about two days, then promptly re-read it, it really is that captivating. Always frank, often funny, invariably furious but never anything less than fascinating.

 

We've got a lot of talented writers here...

Originally posted by prayas well done cricketers!!! they proved themselves in the field of writing as well

Not all of them mate!! The great majority of books are written by serious authors , not by the cricketers themselves. Even autobiographies are often ghost written. Michael Atherton most definitely did write his own book , but so many others did not - they'd battle to string a sentence together!!

Originally posted by surenj Also worth mentioning, if you like a bit of a chuckle, the Warwick Todd books

Originally posted by cricket_mstr I will never read any of those books you guys have listed, especially that English stuff

Then you're missing out ! If you were a REAL cricket enthusiast you'd read anything and everything from the cricket section of your local library.

Xenophobia really gets my dander up !

Originally posted by MiNiWaRnEy Yes, well I enjoy the odd book by Christopher Martin-Jenkins myself.

A fine writer mate. He's still scribbling away for The London Times too.

Originally posted by MiNiWaRnEy That's great, it is good to see a non-player cricket writer. I like stuff from Jim Maxwell and Kersi Meher-Homji aswell, good stuff!

Not read them mate - where will I find them?