Review of "Escape From Holland"

In between watching baseball, hockey playoff games and basketball playoff games, I've had the chance to do a lot of reading.  This book was one where I received the request before its publication in March, but due to various setbacks, I did not get to it until a couple days ago.  The timing was good as today, May 10, marks the 86th anniversary of this escape.  Here is my review.

Title/Author:

“Escape From Holland: The Dash for the Last British Boat Out of Holland in May 1940.  A Thrilling True Story of Football, Ballet, Journalism and War” by Chris Hunt

Rating: 

4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review:  The old saying that sometimes real life is more exciting or dangerous than fiction was certainly the case for this story.  Many people from various walks of life living in Holland were drawn together by the threat of war.  Their escape from the German invasion of the Netherlands in 1940 and eventual safe return to their native Britain is told in this very good book by Chris Hunt.

Because I will review sports books for this site, Mr. Hunt thought I might be interested in reviewing this book because one of the main celebrities who made this daring escape, Billy Marsden, was a well-known football player and manager in England.  There isn’t a lot of football mentioned in the book, except for two significant passages.  One is how Marsden’s playing career came to an end due to injury.  He was very thankful for the German medical personnel who helped him recover – something he felt was ironic given that it was now Germany who was pulling Europe into war.

The other section of the book where football was the main topic was a recreational game between native Dutch men working at the hotel where English refugees were staying and a group of the English refugees.  These players were mainly from the Sadler’s Wells Ballet Company.  The dancers were putting on shows in Holland when the invasion started and the hotel was where they and other refugees were awaiting the boats that would take them out of the country.  I thought that was great that for at least a short period of time, there was some recreation that would take minds off of the desperate situation, whether as a player or as a spectator.

Most of the book is a very good portrayal of footballers (Marsden is the most prominent, but not the only one profiled here), dancers and journalists who were in Holland for one reason or another.  Their escape from the bombing and invasion is just as dramatic as any wartime movie produced in Hollywood.  The details Mr. Hunt writes about each person, each narrow escape and each brief pause of relief make for great reading. While it took me a little longer to read this book than usual for a review request, it is a book that should be consumed carefully as no detail mentioned is unimportant to the story.

This might be better classified as a war or military book than a sports book, but that doesn’t really matter.  What does matter is that this is a gripping look at a daring escape by people of various walks of life for who were brought together for a dangerous expedition that ended with a well-deserved trip home.

I wish to thank the author and Mile Away Publishing for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own.

Link: Amazon.com: Escape From Holland: The dash for the last British boat out of Holland in May 1940, a thrilling true story of football, ballet, journalism and war: 9781919271828: Hunt, Chris: Books

Review of “Fever Pitch”

This was not a book I was searching for, nor was it one I was asked to review. Instead, I read it as a buddy read on Goodreads and I’m glad I did so. Here is my review of the memoir that inspired two movies with the same title. 

Title/Author: “Fever Pitch” by Nick Hornby

Rating:  3 ½  of 5 stars good)

Review:  It’s not often that I will review a book from more than 30 years ago, but when I was asked if I would do a buddy read on Goodreads for this book, I gladly accepted. This memoir by Nick Hornby about his ultimate fandom of the English football team Arsenal is really a story that many fans of a particular team can at least partially see themselves. 

How this book reads is really a matter of what the reader is looking for. If one wants to learn more about English football at that time, this really won’t help, mainly because unless the reader followed the sport at that time, the names will not be familiar. Nor will there be a lot of description of the action on the pitch as Hornby concentrates on what’s going on in the stands. Hoping to learn more about the game before the creation of the Premier League in 1992, this was a disappointment.

However, the other expectation that I had when picking up this book was not only met, but exceeded. I wanted to read about what it would be like to be so obsessed with one team and its ups and downs. Hornby explains how he started following Arsenal as a young lad as a time for bonding with his father. From there his obsession with the team grew, affecting his studies, occupational aspirations and relationships. He also addresses issues that plagued English football at the time, mainly hooliganism and racism. He approaches these topics from the viewpoint of a fan, which was fair. All the while, Hornby throws in plenty of self-deprecating humor and some thoughtful introspection making the book feel like the reader is having a conversation with him. 

This book is not to be confused with the 2005 movie starring Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore about an obsessed Red Sox fan - but there was a movie made in the United Kingdom in 1997 adapted directly by Hornby and follows the book closely about a fan obsessed with Arsenal. While I could not understand much of the football talk and I don’t believe I rise to the level of fandom that Hornby does with Arsenal, I could see myself with my fandom of the Minnesota Twins many time while reading this. That is the strength of this book and why it’s a fun book for sports fans who have followed one team in a particular sport for a long time. 

Link:https://www.amazon.com/Fever-Pitch-Nick-Hornby/dp/0575053151/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0 

Review of “Watford Forever”

 While I had heard about Elton John owning a soccer team in the 1970’s, I never knew the details until I received this book as a Christmas gift. Thank you to my son for giving me this -mit was very good. 

Title/Author:

“Watford Forever” by John Preston

Rating: 

4 of 5 stars (very good)

Review:

In 1976, the Watford soccer club and Elton John (Reggie Dwight) were at polar opposites in their respective worlds. As John was soaring to great popularity and fame with his music, Watford was languishing at the bottom of the standings in England’s Fourth Division - about as low as an English soccer club could go. However, those fortunes were about to change as Elton John purchased the club and soon thereafter hired Graham Taylor to run the team. How they changed Watford’s fortunes is told in this book by John Preston.

Both men are portrayed in great detail, which helps illustrate both the similarities and the differences between the two men. When they first met, Taylor was questioning both the level of commitment that John would put into the team aside from money and also just how much of a challenge did he want by taking over such a poorly funded and run club - at least they were before these two took over. It helps if the reader understands the inner workings of English soccer, both on and off the field to understand what Taylor was doing. But that isn’t required to thoroughly enjoy the book, especially with the character development of not only the two main figures in Watford’s rise to the First Division, but also many of the players on the pitch.

Speaking of the action there, Preston doesn’t spend a lot of time giving play by play details of games, but he does include accounts of all the important matches Watford played at all levels. This included both friendlies and league play. This was good writing as well - advanced enough that fans who know the sport well won’t be bored with reading these passages, but simple enough that casual or new fans will be able to easily understand the game.

Not only is there writing about the soccer, but there is also some very good material on John’s rise in the music industry and the demons that haunted him. Like many other musicians, dugs and alcohol were problems for him. But he never let that interfere with his love of the Watford club he had since his childhood. He often went to their games with his father, the only true bonding time they had. John also knew when to set aside his authority and let Taylor dictate what should be done when needed - right down to making sure the owner was properly dressed when making appearances with the team.

If a reader is either a soccer fan or an Elton John fan they should pick up this book. Entertaining and fast paced, it will make a great addition to the library of this type of reader.

Link:https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CGN9YR9P/ref=x_gr_bb_amazon?ie=UTF8&tag=x_gr_bb_amazon-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0CGN9YR9P&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2