Book picks similar to
Finding My Feet by Jason Robinson


sport
autobiography
biography
autobiographies

A Fair Cop. Michael Bunting


Michael Bunting - 2008
    It was Michael Bunting's life ambition to follow in his father's footsteps & become a police officer. But six years after his family watch him pass out & begin his life's dream, he is serving a sentence for a crime he didn't commit. This is his story.

It's Always Summer Somewhere: A Matter of Life and Cricket


Felix White - 2021
    His passion for the game is at the fore on the BBC 's number one cricket podcast and 5Live show, Tailenders, which he co-presents with Greg James and Jimmy Anderson. It's Always Summer Somewhere is his funny, heartbreaking and endlessly engaging love letter to the game.Felix takes us through his life growing up in South West London and describes how his story is forever punctuated and given meaning by cricket. Through his own exploits as a slow left arm spinner of 'lovely loopy stuff', to the tragic illness of his mother, life with The Maccabees and his cricket redemption, Felix touches on both the comedic and the tragic in equal measure. Throughout, there's the ever-present roller coaster of following the England cricket team. The exploits of Tufnell (another bowler of 'lovely loopy stuff'), Atherton, Hussain et al, are given extra import through the eyes of a cricket-obsessed youth. Felix meets them at each signposted moment to find out what was really behind those moments that gave cricket fans everywhere sporting memories that would last forever, sending the book into an exploration of grief, transgenerational displacement and how the people we've known and things we've loved culminate and take expression in our lives. It's Always Summer Somewhere is an incredibly honest detail of a life lived with cricket. It offers a sense of genuine empathy and understanding not just with cricket fans, but sports and music fans across the world, in articulating our reasons for pouring so much meaning into something that we simply cannot control.Culminating in the heart-stopping World Cup Final in 2019, the book finally answers that question fans have so often asked...what is it about this game?

Hunger: Sean Kelly: The Autobiography


Sean Kelly - 2013
    

Arsene Wenger: The Biography


Xavier Rivoire - 2007
    Including exclusive interviews with Wenger, former and current players, family, colleagues, and observers from across Japan, France, and England, this completely authorized and definitive biography is a testament to his success and dedication in the field—and to the loyalty of players and fans. This incisive account of the man famous for bringing free-flowing soccer to "boring, boring Arsenal" reveals Wenger as a standout in an industry of disposable contracts and ruthless politics, and is essential reading for fans of the game.

Pure Dynamite: The Price You Pay for Wrestling Stardom


Tom Billington - 1999
    Twice world champion, Billington was featured in the pages of Playboy magazine and was an international celebrity. Although he should have been a millionaire when he retired in 1993, after 16 years of professional wrestling, he had little but memories are scar tissue to show for it. As one of the first bona fide superstars in the World Wrestling Federation, Billington's career parallels the development of the WWF, from the early days to the decade following the first Wrestlemaina event at Madison Square Gardens in 1985. He worked with every major promoter, and wrestled with some of the biggest names in the sport. His story is a candid expose of the highs and lows of a cultural phenomenon that is still growing today. Now confined to a wheelchair as a result of serious damage to his back and legs, his years of steroid use have also damages Billington's heart and personal life. Pure Dynamite is as much a cautionary tale as it is a glimpse into the world of a wrestling legend.

Redemption: A Rebellious Spirit, a Praying Mother, and the Unlikely Path to Olympic Gold


Bryan Clay - 2012
    By the grace of God, Bryan went from being a fist-fighting, drug-using, presuicidal kid in Hawaii to world champion in the toughest Olympic sport. His secret? A dramatically rediscovered faith and his mother's relentless prayers.Redemption goes beyond standard sports memoirs giving a clear storyline of an athlete's misspent youth, his desperate Christian conversion at a time of utter personal defeat, and his mother's fervent prayers that helped transform him into a top athlete, family man, and loving father. Bryan's story will inspire mothers, fathers, and young readers alike as they experience the rise of a champion from obscurity and failure to the pinnacle of athletic achievement.The world will be watching Bryan, at the age of 32, defend his gold medal at the London Olympics in 2012.

Shamrock: The World's Most Dangerous Man


Jonathan Snowden - 2020
    In Shamrock: The World's Most Dangerous Man, acclaimed Bleacher Report sportswriter Jonathan Snowden offers a compelling and hard-hitting look at the factors that led to the rise and incredible fall of one of mixed martial arts most enduring icons Ken Shamrock.Through extensive research and more than 100 interviews, Snowden reveals a complicated man who, even when on top of the sports world, was planting the seeds of his eventual fall. These are the stories behind the headlines, a rare glimpse at what life is really like for a WWE Superstar and UFC Hall of Famer including the drugs, crime and debauchery that almost cost Shamrock everything.

Positively Page: The Diamond Dallas Page Journey


Diamond Dallas Page - 2000
    From his earliest recollections, Page Falkinburg wanted to be like the Saturday afternoon heroes that he watched on TV from the floor of his grandmother's living room. He defied the odds and swayed his critics along the way, climbing the ladder of the largest spectator entertainment sports production in the world today. It was in 1985 that I met a guy who told me his name was Page ... like a book. Like most people who meet him, I knew that there was something very different about Page Falkinburg. He is cocky, and at the same time, he's humble. He is "over the top," but somehow remains "down to earth." One of the toughest "sons of bitches" you'll ever meet, Page can shock you with his sensitivity and compassion. He is an example of good old-fashioned hard work and personal commitment, but at the same time, is able to help create and better the futures of others. Almost fifteen years later, Positively Page serves as a look at that unforgettable guy who possessed the power to rise above adversity and reach his dream.

Harry the K: The Remarkable Life of Harry Kalas


Randy Miller - 2010
    To millions of football fans across America, he was the “Voice of the NFL.” And as open and giving as Harry Kalas was throughout his professional and personal life, there are countless layers of the man that have remained unknown . . . until now. Author Randy Miller interviewed more than 160 people—including all of Harry’s surviving family, many of his close friends from childhood to present, numerous colleagues from baseball and the NFL, and even Harry’s longtime personal psychologist—to craft a loving and shockingly honest portrayal of one of the most celebrated broadcasters in the history of sports. With incredible details from all phases of his life—from his upbringing in the Chicago suburbs, to his Hall of Fame broadcasting career in baseball, to his ubiquitous voiceover work with the NFL, to his personal vices for drinking and women, to his legendary friendship with Richie “Whitey” Ashburn, to his ongoing feud with on-air partner Chris Wheeler— Harry the K: The Remarkable Life of Harry Kalas will surprise, delight, and enlighten all fans of the man they called “Harry the K.”

Je T'aime A La Folie


Michael Wright - 2009
    Yet he is still alone and - in a moment of rare self-knowledge - decides that the only way to find the girl of his dreams is to stop looking for her. Yet barely a week after coming to this momentous decision, an email from an old school friend re-introduces him to Alice - a paid-up city girl who speaks only three words of French and comes with an expensive shoe habit and a deep-rooted mistrust of the countryside. Even worse, she lives and works on the far side of the Atlantic, in Baltimore, USA.And so begins an unlikely romance, conducted across two continents, as Michael the rustic hermit struggles to unlearn his lessons in living alone and contemplates the alarming prospect of sharing his French life (not to mention his aeroplane) with someone else...

Throwing Heat


Nolan Ryan - 1988
    Here, in Nolan Ryan's own words, is the remarkable story of a skinny kid from Texas with a dynamite arm who grew up to be baseball's premier power pitcher.

Northern Soul


Jimmy Nail - 2004
    Jimmy Nail has been a household name since Auf Wiedersehen, Pet hit our screens in the 1980s. since then, his career as an actor and a musician has put on him on the silver screen alongside Madonna and given him a No. 1 hit single. Success on this astonishing scale was beyond the wildest dreams of the working class lad whose harsh childhood and brutal schooling put him on a collision course with Strangeways. But a short spell in prison helped propel Nail onwards and upwards. With the support of his friends and family, it wasn't long before Jimmy's unique talents and single-minded determination brought him attention of a different kind - and changed his life for ever. In A Northern Soul, Jimmy Nail tells his own vivid story in this intriguing, inspiring and sometimes confounding account of how one man rose to fame and fortune by refusing to be anything but himself.

Totally Frank: The Autobiography of Frank Lampard


Frank Lampard - 2006
    In his book, Lampard opens up on his early years, how he dealt with the fame and fortune that has come his way since becoming a key member of the England side, his frank opinions on former England boss Sven-Goran Eriksson and his manager at Chelsea Jose Mourinho, fascinating insights into Roman Abramovich and revealing tales on his current team-mates. He reveals both the privileges and the pressures of being one of the 'golden generation' of England players. He gives a fascinating inside account of World Cup 2006 in Germany, and describes the disappointment of not fulfilling the dream of bringing the biggest prize in football back to England.

Mixed Fancies


Brenda Blethyn - 2004
    Told with wit and engaging honesty, 'Mixed Fancies' is the story of the life and career of established British actress Brenda Blethyn.

The Best Seat in the House: Stories from the NHL--Inside the Room, on the Iceand on the Bench


Jamie McLennan - 2012
    Sort of. As the back-up for several legendary goalies, he saw everything - except much playing time. In this book, McLennan looks back on his career, from breaking into the NHL, to working with the legends, to life on the road and in the league.