And of the modern age in Paul Nicholls' Lucky Break (Orion,£20) a warts-and-all autobiography from Britain's outstanding National Hunt trainer who, typically and refreshingly, tells it like it is. Eclipse became a national icon but Clee also paints a fascinating portrait of the times through the bit-players – the high-life and low-life of 18th century England starring princes, paupers and prostitutes.
Short-listed for the William Hill prize it's a terrific account of the greatest horse of his, or according to some, any generation. A labour of love for Henderson, his superb research reveals Perry, the first working-class player to make an impact in Britain, as a sparkling personality and committed sportsman.Īnother fine story from a different age is told in Eclipse: The Story of the Rogue, the Madam and the Horse that changed Racing (Bantam Press, £25) by Nicholas Clee. Which, of course, is also the case with The Last Champion: The Life of Fred Perry (Yellow Jersey, £18.99) by Jon Henderson, although surprisingly in this case it is actually the first biography of Perry to have been written. Where Bahrami's biography succeeds and so, so many fail is that his story is genuinely interesting. The book covers a childhood in Tehran, his struggle to continue playing admidst the Iranian revolution and the consequent highs and lows, told with considerable humour, of a long career. In tennis the pumped-up drama of Andre Agassi's autobiography attracted the headlines, but a far better read can be found in The Court Jester: My Story (AuthorHouse, £14.99) by Mansour Bahrami. Amazingly, for example, the average handicap of a golfer has not changed from 17 in 40 years, despite all the technological advances. It's fascinating if you can get on with the writer (which is where opinion divides) who can be a bit overbearing, but his emphasis on the short game is important for those who wish to lower their handicap, and there are some intriguing statistics. He became obsessed, in his late thirties, with going round his local course in level par, and gave himself one year in which to do it. John Richardson, meanwhile seems to have created a love-it or loathe-it reaction to his golfing book: 'Dream On': One Hacker's Challenge to Break Par in a Year (Blackstaff, £9.99).The author, a Northern Irishman who played a bit of golf as a teenager, gave up the game and couldn't break 100 when he started again 20 years later.
#THE COURT JESTER MANSOUR BAHRAMI PROFESSIONAL#
Joe turned professional and is still trying to achieve his dream of qualifying for the Open, which he's narrowly missed on the last three occasions.It's a courageous story, shot through with intelligence and humanity that deserves a wider audience. He goes on to recount with honesty how his life fell apart after being asked to leave his golf club, falling into crime and fighting – spiralling towards prison or death, before reflecting on his promise and returning to golf. Encouraged by his grandfather into golf, over the family's traditional bare-knuckle boxing,he was a natural at the game and on his grandfather's death made a promise to become a pro. Gypsy Joe: Bare-Knuckle Fighter and Professional Golfer (London, £16.99) is Joe Smith's own account of his life. A world away, in fact, from one of the best golf books written this year: although the chequebooks come out for the scandal, this true story of thwarted ambition, criminality, violence and redemption has the substance. Richard and Judy sales.They'll be woeful of course, tawdry kiss-n-tells focusing on sex over sport. Replace quantam mechanics and relativity with a Las Vegas club promoter, cocktail waitress and nightclub hostess (and there isn't a publisher who wouldn't). Get A Grip On Physics by John Gribbin, the book that was merely in the car at the time has just experienced a sales spike. T hat rustling noise is the sound of publishers fingering cheque books – as one of sports famously private and controlled personalities lets his mask slip in the most extraordinary of fashions, SUV fire hydrant assault, affairs and apologies – they are working on the utilitarian words-to-dollars equation the world's best-known sportsman has become.
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