Re: BOB RYAN

[Josh Ozersky <josh_ozersky@yahoo.com>]

I've read practically everything Ryan ever wrote,
including out of print books like The Pro Game and 48
Minutes.  I actually bought Peter May's awful,
underreported quick money job "The Last Banner" and
Shaughnessy's "Evergreen" as well.  Ryan is a great
talent, which as Alex is said makes it even more
regrettable when he rants.  The others aren't anything
to brag about, and in any case, having written a good
book hardly makes you immune from criticism.  You're
only as good as the last word you write.  The best
bball book in the last ten years, IMHO, was The Last
Shot by Darcy Frey, followed up by Unfinished Business
by Jack McCallum, who gets my vote, along with Tom
Kertes, for best basketball writer in the business.

--- Andy Shaw <shaw@transmeta.com> wrote:
> |   From: Gregory Odegaard <grodeg@kalama.com>
> |   Date: Thu, 28 Oct 1999 21:21:08 -0700
> |
> | Bob Ryan, Peter and Dan are fine writers, always
> have been.  You
> | critics out there clearly haven't read a single
> tome from the huge
> | library of Celtics material that these 3 alone
> have contributed.  Why
> | not come back here with some respectful opinions
> once you have.  Until
> | then get over yourselves.
> 
> Unbelievable.
> 
> I've read "Evergreen" by Shaughnessy and "Drive" by
> Bob Ryan.
> 
> Basically, both of them are sports books written by
> sports
> journalists.  With few exceptions, sports
> journalists are not very
> good book writers.  The main exception that comes to
> mind is John
> Feinstein.  Ryan and Shaughnessy are not exceptions.
> 
> Sports is great to watch or listen to on the radio,
> it can be pretty
> good to read in the paper or magazine, but it's not
> really prime
> material for books.
> 
> As Alex said, Ryan and Shaughnessy (and MacMullen)
> used to be decent
> sports writers, but MacMullen's gone, and Ryan and
> Shaughnessy have
> gone downhill in a big way.  Peter May just plain
> sucks.
> 
> I truly do not understand the visceral hatred that
> Ryan and May seem
> to have for Walker.  Ryan seems to be living in the
> past.  I enjoyed
> the Bird years, up to the very end, but please, it's
> been almost 8
> years.  That's probably about the last time I read a
> good sports
> column by Bob Ryan.  I was living in Japan at the
> time, and I had a
> friend send me a copy of the Globe the day that Bird
> retired, with the
> special section in it.
> 
> Why can't sports reporters retire like athletes do,
> after they're all
> worn out and have no more good writing in them?
> 
> -Andy
> 
> 


=====

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