A book that deserves to be at the top of the batting averages

Although this is a book about cricket I would use a football term to sum it up - a book of two halves. <br />The first part of the book, about the authors childhood as the son of a Brighton shopkeeper is wonderful and is one of the best pieces of writing about childhood that I have ever read. The descriptions of life in the sixties is very evocative of the times but above all it is very funny. <br />The second part of the book, about his weekend cricket team, Harry Baldwins is, whilst still entertaining, not quite of as good. Maybe this is because it goes over an area that as already been written about by Marcus Berkmann in Rain Men & Zimmer Men and Harry Thompson in Penguins stopped play. That is only a personal moan though as anybody that hasn't read these particular books will probably enjoy this section equally as much as the childhood chapters.<br />I don't know how good an actor Michael Simkins is as I don't recognise his face but I do know that he is an excellent writer and I will be reading his previous book very soon.<br /><br />

Definetely worth its money!!!

Yesterday I received"Moments", and I must say that it is a great book!!!<br /><br />I guess the first thing you notice is that it's a big book with all the pages printed on high quality glossy paper, and it's full of fantastic photos.<br /><br />Ronaldo himself has said that he is too young yet to write a real autobiography, and therefore"Moments" is not just the usual write-up of dates, facts and numbers that many footballers sell as books these days. Instead, he decided to share some of the events that happened in his life so far by writing short stories and adding numerous pictures.<br /><br />From his early years playing for Sporting Lissabon to winning the Premier Leage with Manchester United, from childhood dreams to his father's death, from being named captain of the Portuguese National Team to everyday routine ... this book provides a very nice glimpse into the life and mind of one of the best footballers in the world today. He certainly seems to have his head (and heart) in the right place!<br /><br />All of Cristianos fans will also love this book for the countless great (and previously unpublished) photos!!!

Keeping up appearances

I wasn't sure initially how far I would use this, since I have only dabbled in the armies of Hellas and their contemporaries. I was pleasantly surprised at the coverage and , particularly, the inclusion of Early Carthage (although you might argue that it would have been better to arrange to have the two Carthage armies in one volume, but that's not happening).<br /><br />Good layout, god background, excellent starter armies. Classical Greek only requires 40 bases of hoplite :)<br /><br />Worth the wait.

Just extremely funny

There is a general rule that I subscribe to with regard to sports books. The better the subject at their given sport the less interesting the read. There are of course exceptions that prove this theory, but gladly this book isn't one of them, due to the fact that Simkins is obviously very average at cricket. The book can broadly be broken into two sections, his time at school growing up and discovering cricket and his time as the secretary/manager of a casual sunday team. I enjoyed the first half, due mainly to brilliantly drawn observation which brought back memories of my own childhood and my own struggles in attempting to break into cricket teams filled with better looking, more talented and better equiped individuals who i both admired and hated in equal measure. The second half is just funny because sunday cricketers are just funny. <br /><br />At the time i was reading this book my partner was revising for an upcoming job interview and on more than one occasion i was ejected from the room for constant giggling and occasion peels of laughter. I defy anyone with a passing interest in cricket not to laugh out loud when Simkins describes his repeated attempts to bowl at a professional at a Sussex coaching session during his youth. <br /><br />If you enjoyed Marcus Berkmann's books Rain Men and Zimmer Men i would direct you to this because the tone and style is very similar and equally as enjoyable.

Learn to Chi before you can run

I had bought this book after reading that a top runner had used it successfully. If you at first study it and practise the techniques it will bring at the very least a more relaxing way to run. Dont get me wrong this is not a cure for all injuries but rather a system , which can be applied to other areas of your life , running aside. All in all , a good book with plenty of information , but please read thoroughly

Good for the Bike Novice

Liked this book. I know very little about bikes not having had one since age about 16, many moons ago. Just got into biking again and the book has been extremely useful after only having it for a few days

Cook the World

Wow this is a very exciting book BBQ recipes from around the world that work! You can try Afgahan Style game hens or Thai Chicken Sates served in lettice leaves it is as close as you can get to sex

The perfect companion for watching cricket everywhere.

This is a marvellous book which you can dip in to in between overs either watching at the ground or on tv.It answers all the questions stats freaks could ever want and resolves the disputes you have with your dad over who scored what when and where.Especially different is the section at the back on the stats of the tv and radio commentators which highlights that some of them such as David Lloyd had surprisingly poor careers and yet they happily criticise geniuses such as Graeme Hick.All in all a must have book for all cricket nuts like me.

A book for ALL coaches not just tennis

I was recommended this book not to improve tennis (I don't play at all) but to improve my understanding of coaching and improve my own coaching skills.<br /><br />The book is written by a tennis coach and is of course about tennis, however it is more than that. The skills and principles of the inner self and the competing elements of `I' and `myself' can be applied to all types of coaching whether that be sports, lifestyle or executive.<br /><br />If you are a coach or want to become a coach this is a great book to read.

quite interesting

The format of this book is unique, giving examples of major hands in major tournaments and running through the probable thought processes of top professinoals.<br /><br />The full house which Harman lost with in the WSOP being one of the most memorable.<br /><br />A nice read, which will imrove intermediate level players games.<br /><br />The only thing I didn't like about it was that Harrington seems to think there is a right way to play each hand, it's a bit too prescriptive, whereas in my opinion poker is art as well as science, and players need to develop their own game.<br /><br />You wouldn't tell Wayne Rooney to play football like Thiery Henry, or vice versa...<br />

The Collection of must read Books.

The collection of Books start with Bringing down the house then Breaking Vegas and to save the Best for last Ugly Americans. These three books are a must read. Taking you through the lives of Six students on there epic adventure to Vegas. Ben Mezrich really explains the story well and it will keep you awake all night.<br /><br />Breaking Begas is the next step along, it talks about Sex, Love and Violence. Easily the best book to that date and will get every Gambler out there into those Casinos.<br /><br />Then there had to be Ugly Americans. The Best book I have ever read and I cant stop thinking about it. Since finishing the book I have researched all about the true stories inside the book. Great Author and Wicked books. They are all a must read. Best in the above order. Cheers

Best book on Tournament end game bar none

This book follows on from the first book and teaches all the skills necessary to adapt your game when your stack gets small compared to the big blind. The later section on heads up is worth the price of both books on its own and is the only work on heads up play I have found worthy of reading. The key to both of these books which no other poker book covers is the art of betting - how much to bet and when. Its what separates the average poker player from the pros and up to now kept as a closely guarded secret.

Basically these two Harrington books make every other poker book redundant. If you want to learn the basics of texas holdem get the Matthew Hilger book. Learn and digest that and then get these two Harrington books and you will have everything you need to know to become a winning poker player.

There is a third book on the way which has 400 hand examples which I am sure will further add to this already superb work.

Buy them now and then get onto a poker site like getmintedpoker.com or ladbrokespoker.com and start building your bank roll!

The Ultimate Formula for Longevity!

This book has changed my view on life, well, its opened my eyes to where I could be going wrong anyway. Linked by a lovingly crafted narrative of Mike's own exploits in the outdoors; crossing Antarctica, numerous adventure races, the famous Marathon de Sables and of course the London Marathon - Mike tells us how the body works, why, and how to optimise its capabilities. I would say this books target audience was the general public and sports enthusiasts as oppose to a physiologist's PhD research, its purpose is to teach us how to keep our hearts ticking for longer, faster and more efficient and I thoroughly recommend it to anyone.

Detailed, well illustrated and clear.

This book stands out in terms of clarity, illustration and structure. It has superseded the countless tomes about climbing gathering dust on my bookshelf as my first reference.
Detailed, well researched and clearly the result of years of experience. The illustrations go way beyond the usual poor line drawings of tangled ropes found in most climbing publications and the text is succinct, intelligble and encouraging.

Wainwrights TV walks

Great pictorial guide using Wainwrights original drawings for 18 walks. Taken from the BBC and Granada tv series. Accompanied by detailed but simple descriptions of what to expect during the walks. Good selection of fell walks from each direction of the Lake District.