L’idea è straordinaria: raccontare storie di tifosi, spesso scrittori, che a loro volta raccontano il migliore anno della propria squadra di calcio. Invenzione eccezionale, soprattutto se le squadre non sono solo e per forza il Chelsea o il Manchester, ma anche e soprattutto squadre minori: vedi il Sunderland, il Bristol City, il Roith Rovers. Terza e seconda categoria, con un anno, quello preferito, di gloria. Forse, l’unico limite è non aver dato uno sguardo anche oltremanica per parlare dell’amore per il football anche in Spagna, in Francia, in Germania, in Italia ed in Svezia. E perché no storie lontane, Cina, India, Sud America. L’unico limite di questo bel libro è la ripetitività dei pub, dei tabloid, della cultura inglese. Fatta eccezione per la storia d’apertura che racconta il campionato del mondo dell’Irlanda nel 1990 in Italia. Un libro per calciofili, senza tattiche, ammonizioni e fuorigioco. Ma nel nome dei corner, degli off-side e del football. D’altronde siamo inglesi, no? ( )

I loved this book, just as I loved Cortazar's and Pastorin's prose about football: they all were great in transmitting the magic football was about when it wasmore of a game and less of a commercial op. ( )

A reasonable collection of 'New' (ie, highly personal) football journalism, each story the review, more or less, of one year in the life of that supporter and his team. Some of the contributions were interesting, though none really stood out as prime examples of the craft. ( )

This is a fun collection of essays from many U.K. writers about their favorite season in English football (soccer to us Yanks).

Edited by Nick Hornby, each writer recounts their personal favorite year in the life of their favorite football club, and while it's engrossing stuff, I'd suggest you need some knowledge of British football to truly understand what they're talking about.

It's not that anyone's bombarding us with technical football jargon; it's that many are writing about the heartbreak of supporting small, underfunded football clubs, who regularly threaten to succeed, but usually fail, especially in the face of the bigger, better-funded clubs.

The English club system is woven into the fabric of its society, which is why so many of these writers point to seasons which occurred when the writer was in still in single-digit territory.

I enjoyed these (I'm a fan of U.K. football), and found most of the essays amusingly (and sweetly) rendered. I'd give it 3.5 stars if possible, but don't want to further tarnish my reputation as a Honrby fanboy by giving it four. ( )

This is a fun collection of essays by English football (i.e., soccer) fans writing about that one season of rooting for their favorite team that they remember most fondly. Most often these are seasons recalled from childhood. The writers are all prominent in England, with some recognizable in the U.S. as well. Hornby has an essay in edition to his editing duties, and Roddy Doyle has an entry as well, for example.

What's fun is that the writers are often describing their fascination with and passion for very bad teams. Also, many of them are writing about teams in the lower levels of English football, so we're not just reading about the giants like Manchester United. This collection gives a good, enjoyable and often humorous insight into the passion that the English have for their soccer teams. What's also interesting is the amount of information, including places, names and famous events in English football lore, that is taken for granted here, but that is mostly unknown entirely for an American reader (or at least for this one).

Of course, at least a passing interest in the subject matter is required for enjoyment, and not all the essays here are of equal quality, but all in all I found this a very entertaining collection. ( )