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rosseroo's review
4.0
First of all, potential readers/purchasers of this "companion" to the World Cup should know that it doesn't have much of anything on the 2010 World Cup -- not even the qualifying paths of the 32 finalists. Similarly, those with little to no exposure to the game should be warned that the writing assumes a familiarity with the game and its terms, so don't expect your hand to be held. There's no discussion of the game's tactics, styles, or formations. So, what does it have?
Well, it's a coffee-table book covering the history of the World Cup, and I use the term "coffee-table" in all its best and worst senses. From what I can tell, the production is going to be great, eye-popping color, great use of historical photos (these are actually the highlight of the book for me, many amazing photos I've never seen before), and it's perfect to dip into for a few minutes and put back on the table when your host comes down the stairs. However, it's basically a book of sidebars -- that is to say, tons of one or two-page articles, with no flow to it whatsoever. It's arranged more or less chronologically, recounting the highlights and lowlights of each World Cup in a few picture-heavy pages. But these are broken up with all kinds of running features (greatest goals, greatest teams, greatest rivalries, underheralded players, etc.) To a certain extent, it's almost more like clicking around a website, jumping all around between different topics. Personally, I like a little less choppiness to my books, but to each their own.
The writing is pretty decent, although a touch too jokey for my taste. Probably just the right tone for the casual soccer fan or the American sports fan who only watches soccer every four years. I could have done without some of the sections, like the worst hair tournament, and the best and worst uniforms (if you're going to bust on Croatia's checkerboard kit, at least explain that it's the national coat of arms), the WAGs (wives and girlfriends) section, etc. The descriptions of previous World Cups are engaging enough, albeit a bit thin. For example, in the section on the '82 cup, mention is made of the infamous German-Austrian collusion in a game to ensure Algeria wouldn't advance. What isn't mentioned is that this game led to a change in the group play format, whereby the final games in each group are played simultaneously to avoid teams putting the fix in. I did appreciate that, as in the above example (which includes a great big photo of Algerian fans waving money to protest the Germany-Austria game), the book doesn't shy away from some the less shining moments and aspects of the tournament, such as diving, nationalism, dirty play, etc.
The book tries really hard to touch on a lot of different topics, and to me, it never really came together and offered me a new perspective or insight. I can't say I learned anything new about the sport or the World Cup, but then again, I sat through all 13 hours of the excellent History of Soccer DVD set. I'm not saying it's not worth a look, but just don't expect it to be something amazing or to tell you anything about the 2010 World Cup.
Well, it's a coffee-table book covering the history of the World Cup, and I use the term "coffee-table" in all its best and worst senses. From what I can tell, the production is going to be great, eye-popping color, great use of historical photos (these are actually the highlight of the book for me, many amazing photos I've never seen before), and it's perfect to dip into for a few minutes and put back on the table when your host comes down the stairs. However, it's basically a book of sidebars -- that is to say, tons of one or two-page articles, with no flow to it whatsoever. It's arranged more or less chronologically, recounting the highlights and lowlights of each World Cup in a few picture-heavy pages. But these are broken up with all kinds of running features (greatest goals, greatest teams, greatest rivalries, underheralded players, etc.) To a certain extent, it's almost more like clicking around a website, jumping all around between different topics. Personally, I like a little less choppiness to my books, but to each their own.
The writing is pretty decent, although a touch too jokey for my taste. Probably just the right tone for the casual soccer fan or the American sports fan who only watches soccer every four years. I could have done without some of the sections, like the worst hair tournament, and the best and worst uniforms (if you're going to bust on Croatia's checkerboard kit, at least explain that it's the national coat of arms), the WAGs (wives and girlfriends) section, etc. The descriptions of previous World Cups are engaging enough, albeit a bit thin. For example, in the section on the '82 cup, mention is made of the infamous German-Austrian collusion in a game to ensure Algeria wouldn't advance. What isn't mentioned is that this game led to a change in the group play format, whereby the final games in each group are played simultaneously to avoid teams putting the fix in. I did appreciate that, as in the above example (which includes a great big photo of Algerian fans waving money to protest the Germany-Austria game), the book doesn't shy away from some the less shining moments and aspects of the tournament, such as diving, nationalism, dirty play, etc.
The book tries really hard to touch on a lot of different topics, and to me, it never really came together and offered me a new perspective or insight. I can't say I learned anything new about the sport or the World Cup, but then again, I sat through all 13 hours of the excellent History of Soccer DVD set. I'm not saying it's not worth a look, but just don't expect it to be something amazing or to tell you anything about the 2010 World Cup.
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