Info: Copyright 2002: New York: Random House
Rating (on a scale of 1-4 stars): ✮✭✭ 1/2
Where Acquired: Audio library check out.
Category: Impulse reads. I'd heard of this book years ago when it first came out, but I wasn't much of a Charles Barkley fan (he did attend Auburn, you know), so I ignored it. I happened to see it was available for check out, so I thought Eh, why not?
What it's about: Barkley, sports commentator and former NBA star, gives an account of his basketball career intermingled with his opinion on various social topics. He also gives and inside view into the financial world of NBA players and owners, explains why sports stars and celebrities aren't role models, and how the sports world has changed since his playing days.
Favorite Quotes: There are no chapter numbers, so I'll just have to give you the quotes.
"My 'real' is no longer the existence of a little kid in Alabama growing up in the projects on Welfare. My 'real' is what I am today. That 'keeping it real' shit is irrelevant--or ought to be. It's only relevant to the people who want you not to grow and experience new things in your life."
"People try to talk white kids in America out of playing basketball, but that's just America. People talking about 'white men can't jump' and all that crap. It's interesting how all these foreign-born players are coming into the league now and doing very well. I'll bet you they don't have a bunch of people in their countries telling them they can't play because they're a certain color or race."
"Funny thing is, it's pretty obvious when two friends are of different races that they aren't natural enemies, even though we grew up in the midst of all that tension. We had to be taught that BS at some point. Put a little black kid and a little white kid in a room, and all they're going to do, before their minds are polluted with a bunch of BS, is play with each other."
"I don't want people to think that my concerns about race only deal with white people. In fact, I tend to be harder on black people who are prejudiced than white people. If you have suffered as much and as long as black people have suffered, if you have fought racism and seen your parents and grandparents fight racism, if you know the history of the suffering your own people have been through for hundreds of years, and you intentionally mistreat people because of the color of their skin, that's just really, really sad to me."
"Getting to the top isn't the end of the process; it's the beginning. Make sure the elevator brings up somebody else." Ramsey Lewis
Speaking about states flags that feature the confederate flag: "The best thing to do isn't picketing, and it isn't spending so much time confronting the people who want to keep the flag. The best thing would be to piss them off by being successful and doing well in education and business. That's something we have a better chance of controlling."
"E-mail, telephone, and alcohol are the three primary ways people get brave."
"...nobody in all this time has been able to convince me that it's wrong to tell kids to listen to their parents and not a basketball player they've never met."
"Thank God for Jerry Springer's show. I thought only black folks were that screwed up until I watched Jerry Springer."
What I liked:
- The voice of this book screamed CHARLES BARKLEY! It was not someone else's interpretation of Barkley's words.
- Barkley's commentary was very informative. He mentioned many intriguing sports figures I'd never heard of. I looked up information on many of them.
- Unlike many celebrities and sports figures, Barkley doesn't set himself up as a role model for children. He delivers a strong argument that accessible influential adults (parents, business people, teachers, etc.) should be a child's primary role model.
- The humor was quite enjoyable.
- There was lots of strong language, however, because it was Barkley, it was pretty mild for him.
- He does a bit of excessive name dropping throughout the book.
- Some information was a little confusing because he didn't always present things in chronological order.
- There were no chapter numbers.
Barkley's book surprised me. I was unsure of whether I would enjoy it. Barkley is presented in the media as a rather controversial figure, however his commentary on social issues was very thought provoking. Shockingly, I agreed with a large portion of it. His perspective on historical sports figures was enlightening. Much of his observations about race, criminals, and double standards, are things I've said or thought myself.
This book wasn't an easy read, but it was a good one. Barkley wrote things that made me think, made me laugh, right along with things that also made me mad. I plan to add this one to my personal library at some point.
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