Book Reviews
Making an Athlete – Review of Soul by Jonathan Harding
Simone Biles considers the Tokyo 2020 Olympics balance beam bronze medal her most meaningful win, above all the golds she has accumulated as the most-decorated Olympian gymnast in history. Biles, who took…
FP Book Review: Caviar and Sausages by Tony Kokkinos
Age can limit us in our understanding of what we love the most. Without delving into the territory of gatekeeping, there is a demarcation of attachment to an event between those who…
Book Review – Arsenal for Everyone by Dave Seager
“If you ask me what my life will look like a few years from now, where I will be, what I will be doing–the honest answer is, I don’t know. But, I…
FP Book Review: My Life and Lessons in Red and White – Arsène Wenger
What is the measure of a life? Is it tangible successes or achievements, personal or professional? Is it quality or quantity of output? Is it the legacy we leave behind? Is it…
Book Review: What You Think You Know About Football is Wrong – Kevin Moore
The word ‘myth’ comes from the Greek ‘mythos’ which has a range of meanings—word, saying, story, fiction—and is defined as a “symbolic narrative, usually of unknown origin and at least partly traditional,…
My Life in Red and White: Wenger and the Artist’s Curse
The word “passion” has become a bit of a joke. It’s the kind of superficial thing you throw into a job application to be a shelf stacker at ASDA. Its watered-down nature…
FP Book Review – Pep’s City: The Making Of a Superteam
“There’s still so much I could give to these players, but I can’t give them everything I’ve got,” Pep Guardiola told a trusted member of his backroom staff in the bowels of…
Book Review: Shoot! Magazine’s 50th Anniversary Edition
Earlier this month, when Romelu Lukaku tweeted out a message condemning racism – after he had been subject to discriminatory and offensive chants during Inter Milan’s game with Cagliari – the tweet…
Almost Invincible by Dan Betts (An Arsenal book review)
Dan Betts tells us why it is important to remember and celebrate the achievements of George Graham and his Arsenal team who almost pulled off the impossible unbeaten season years before the…
Arsene’s Double Double by Dave Seager (A book review)
Reviewing a poetic tribute to Arsene Wenger in the style of Dr. Seuss Arsene Wenger is the most successful manager in the history of Arsenal Football Club. This is an undisputed fact no matter…
Mafia Madness and ‘The Miracle of Castel di Sangro’ – A Book Review
Joe McGinniss’s The Miracle of Castel di Sangro is everything a story should be. Tom Bogert tells you exactly why this maddening tale of mafia mischief and football is a book everyone…
The Gospel of Jurgen – ‘Klopp: Bring The Noise’ Book Review – Part 2
We all know what the Cathedral der Klopp looks like today, but what went into its construction? Football Paradise reviews Raphael Honigstein’s Klopp: Bring The Noise. You’ll find the first part here.…
The Gospel of Jurgen – ‘Klopp: Bring The Noise’ Book Review – Part 1
We all know what the Cathedral der Klopp looks like today, but what went into its construction? The first part of a review of Raphael Honigstein’s Klopp: Bring The Noise. These days,…
Wogs, Poofters & St. Johnny Warren: The Patron Saint of Australian Soccer
FP studies the virtuous life of Johnny Warren: the godfather of Australian soccer, sporting equality and the closest thing to a patron saint the country has had. If St. Brendan ‘the Bold’…
Book Review: Only A Game by Eamon Dunphy
We dive into what is a fantastic book, which chronicles the stories of a footballer who didn’t quite make it to the top. On the surface, Jason Kennedy and Romelu Lukaku don’t…
Book Review: A Life Too Short – The Tragedy of Robert Enke
Book Review: ‘A Life Too Short – The Tragedy of Robert Enke’ by Ronald Reng, on the life of the late German goalkeeper Robert Enke. The goalkeeper stands with his hands on…
In the Belly of the Beast: ‘Money and Soccer’ by Stefan Szymanski
Is there something that can beat the voracious beast of the market? Join us as we explore Money and Soccer – a study of the workings of big money football. In the…
With The Football Men
We review The Football Men by Simon Kuper and look at what it tries to tell us about heroes, life, football and the men behind the superstars. “One that is gigantic in…
Book Review: Football Against The Enemy – Simon Kuper
Simon Kuper traveled across the world and explored the impact of politics on football for this book. We tell you Football Against The Enemy is a must buy. “They say in Brazil,…
FP Exclusive: David Winner on Brilliant Orange, Sculpting a Football Culture Book
Srijandeep Das of Football Paradise interviews David Winner on all things Dutch, football, architecture and how he weaves them all together in Brilliant Orange. I love the idea of an idea –…
I Think Therefore I Play – Andrea Pirlo: A Book Review
A book review on Andrea Pirlo’s biography,’I think therefore I play’, with Alessandro Alssiato. Book review by Anushree Nande for Football Paradise. “I’ve an opinion about everything and I’m not ashamed to…
Book Review: Why Soccer Matters – Pelé and Brian Winter
We take a deep dive into the autobiography of Pelé, one the world’s greatest ever footballers, co-authored by Brian Winter. July 16, 2015. Exactly 65 years after his 79th minute goal ensured…
Book Review: Soccernomics by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski
A book review ofone of teh best football books out there, Soccernomics by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski. First published as Why England Lose, Soccernomics proudly flaunts on its cover The Guardian’s opinion…
Supporting Arsenal is a Funny Old Game – Dave Seager: A Book Review
A book review of Dave Seager’s latest football book – Supporting Arsenal is a Funny Old Game. Book review by Anushree Nande for Football Paradise. Dave Seager’s first book was the excellent…
Invincible: Inside Arsenal’s unbeaten 2003-2004 season – Amy Lawrence
“When you start supporting a football club, you don’t support it because of the trophies, or a player, or history, you support it because you found yourself somewhere there; found a place…
Geordie Armstrong on the wing – Dave Seager: A book review
They will also, I hope, get an insight in to the differences and similarities between 1960/70s football and the modern era as well as learning about “the Arsenal Way and the Arsenal…
Book Review: Universality – The Blueprint for Soccer’s New Era
Some of you who may have had the good fortune of reading ‘Inverting The Pyramid’ by Jonathan Wilson, would probably know that it is pretty much the best book to have been written on the…
Geordie Armstrong On The Wing – A book preview
George Armstrong isn’t a new name for the Gooner faithful. A true club legend that made a total of 621 appearances for the club (starting 607 of them), was rarely substituted, and…
Book Review: Stillness and Speed – Dennis Bergkamp
True geniuses are rare; books that do justice to their genius are rarer. Stillness and Speed falls fully into that category. Written by Dutch writer and football expert, David Winner (who also…
Review – Barca: The Making Of The Greatest Team In The World – Graham Hunter
Barca: The Making Of The Greatest Team In The World – Graham Hunter Graham Hunter’s Barca: The Making Of The Greatest Team In The World is about how this world-beater team evolved…
Book Review: Fever Pitch – Nick Hornby
My football books review series is back. In the first edition, I wrote about Franklin Foer’s How Football Explains the World. This time around, it’s a book that needs no introduction. Having…
How Football Explains The World – Franklin Foer: A Book Review
With my steadily increasingly obsession with the sport of football it was inevitable that this new (at that time) passion would cross paths with my constant love affair with words. Since then…