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'***** Written with warmth and understanding, the book for which African football has been crying out.' --FourFourTwo
'The stand-out football book of 2009. Ian Hawkey chose a big continent, and a big subject but rose triumphantly to the task.' --The Independent
'Vivid anecdotes and emotive stories trace the journey of African football from something distant and ramshackle to a producer of some of the game's most valuable players. Excellent.' --The Observer
'The stand-out football book of 2009. Ian Hawkey chose a big continent, and a big subject but rose triumphantly to the task.' --The Independent
'Vivid anecdotes and emotive stories trace the journey of African football from something distant and ramshackle to a producer of some of the game's most valuable players. Excellent.' --The Observer
'The stand-out football book of 2009. Ian Hawkey chose a big continent, and a big subject but rose triumphantly to the task.' --The Independent
'Vivid anecdotes and emotive stories trace the journey of African football from something distant and ramshackle to a producer of some of the game's most valuable players. Excellent.' --The Observer
'The stand-out football book of 2009. Ian Hawkey chose a big continent, and a big subject but rose triumphantly to the task.' --The Independent
'Vivid anecdotes and emotive stories trace the journey of African football from something distant and ramshackle to a producer of some of the game's most valuable players. Excellent.' --The Observer
Product Description
Winner of the Best Football Book at the British Sports Book Awards 2010 and shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year in 2009, this is the definitive book on African football. The author traces the development of the world's favourite sport through the tangled history and complex social and political life of this fascinating continent. Drawing on his own extensive experience, years of research and interviews with those involved in all levels of the African game, Ian Hawkey has crafted a remarkable book to satisfy the surge of interest in African football. He discusses the emergence of top African players in the European leagues, stars like Michael Essien and Samuel Eto'o. He also analyses African football's unique qualities and the successes that both national and domestic teams have enjoyed - from Al-Ahly's performance in the World Club Cup to Cameroon's previous World Cup campaigns and Nigeria's Olympic gold medal in 1996. Yet African football is not without problems, and has had to overcome tragedy - Hawkey shows how football has fought against racism, corruption and political interference. Feet of the Chameleon is a compelling mixture of analysis and insight, a timely and entertaining study of African football's colourful history, players, supporters and legends. MORE REVIEWS: 'The best sports book of the year', The Express. 'In tune with the sporting zeitgeist, it rattles along with an entertaining cargo of anecdotes and stratlingly diverse cast of characters', The Daily Telegraph. 'Feet of the Chameleon is joyful, and will appeal as much to those interested in the history and geography of Africa as it will to aficionados of the sport', The Financial Times.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
(What's this?)
This book opens with a gem of an anecdote concerning a vice-president of FIFA entering a lift in the Zurich hotel where the 2010 World cup location was to be decided. Legend has it that on entering the lift, he was undecided. On leaving the lift in which he had come across a certain Mr Mandela, his vote was for South Africa. Egypt had sent Omar Sharif, Libya Colonel Gaddafi....
Hawkey certainly knows his African football and this is a big and interesting, if slightly dry read. African football is a colourful, chaotic and often wonderful thing and all is well captured by the author in here. So often caught up in the politics of each country, used by dictators for egotistical purposes there are heart warming and heart breaking stories in here. Hawkey delves deep into the subject, telling us amongst other things, why the clubs employ white European "witch-doctor" coaches. "For us, it's important the boss drives a big car" (Celestine Babayaro, once of Chelsea). A lot of names such as Drogba, Milla and Weah will be familiar, the latter still a possible president of his country, Liberia.
Hawkey uses team nick-names and animal analogies to name his chapters in keeping with the African way, but to be honest this can make navigating the book a little tricky and there is no index which reduces it's effectiveness as a definitive reference. There is a list of the African Cup of Nation winners, World Cup appearances by African teams and Footballer of the Year etc but not enough to make wannabee "Statto's" too excited. The book also switches from topic to topic and team to team quite quickly so you have to concentrate fully to keep a handle on it and this can reduce it's enjoyment
Overall, a good in-depth read for the student of African football, not the casual fan as it is very detailed, but slightly flawed IMO for the reasons above.
Hawkey certainly knows his African football and this is a big and interesting, if slightly dry read. African football is a colourful, chaotic and often wonderful thing and all is well captured by the author in here. So often caught up in the politics of each country, used by dictators for egotistical purposes there are heart warming and heart breaking stories in here. Hawkey delves deep into the subject, telling us amongst other things, why the clubs employ white European "witch-doctor" coaches. "For us, it's important the boss drives a big car" (Celestine Babayaro, once of Chelsea). A lot of names such as Drogba, Milla and Weah will be familiar, the latter still a possible president of his country, Liberia.
Hawkey uses team nick-names and animal analogies to name his chapters in keeping with the African way, but to be honest this can make navigating the book a little tricky and there is no index which reduces it's effectiveness as a definitive reference. There is a list of the African Cup of Nation winners, World Cup appearances by African teams and Footballer of the Year etc but not enough to make wannabee "Statto's" too excited. The book also switches from topic to topic and team to team quite quickly so you have to concentrate fully to keep a handle on it and this can reduce it's enjoyment
Overall, a good in-depth read for the student of African football, not the casual fan as it is very detailed, but slightly flawed IMO for the reasons above.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
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What a great book. "Feet of the Chameleon" is a study of the growth of football on the African continent, from it's earliest post-colonial boom to the present day when the best players rapidly migrate to the Premiership, La Liga and the French First Division. Packed with interviews with people at all levels of the sport and written by a journalist who obviously has a real passion for the continent as well as the sport, the book explores several themes - such as why there are so many ex-pat coaches working in Africa, why the best players (Essien, Drogba, Adebayor, etc) are quickly snatched by Europena leagues (you will be surprised at how extensive the scouting system is on the continent), and how the sport has attempted to overcome corruption and fight for a fairer share of the FIFA pie - culminating in the forthcoming South African world cup next year. Fascinating, funny, and beautifully written, and packed with dozens of little sketches and vignettes of famous players, clubs and games - a highly recommanded read for anyone with an interest in football that extends beyond the Premiership.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review
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Okay, I like football. I wouldn't ever say I was the most knowledgeable fan though, I've never been able to reel off stats and can seldom even remember who scored the goals that sunk my team last saturday(I'm a Portsmouth fan, it's a good thing the submarine base is nearby as we're drifting further down with each week). What I do love though is the watching the game evolve and I'm fascinated by the way different cultures approach the game.
So, enough about me, what about the book? Well, it's bursting with information, from chapters about people and events you may not have heard of (being born in 1980 I was never aware of the breakaway Algerian 11 that fled France by night and were funded by a liberation group) to revisiting genuine modern legends like George Weah. The book flows well enough and Hawkey is an engaging guide, clearly passionate about his subject. Unfortunately though, there is so much information to cram into these pages that it often feels like you'll never reach the end of the chapter, let alone the book. The lack of an index (at least in this review copy, though I gather that will change for the on sale edition) is annoying too, requiring you to pore over whole chapters to look back when the book casually mentions a player you might have read about earlier.
All that said though, it's nice to have a football book that is reverential about history and covers a continent whose past is all too often brushed under the carpet, especially in an age where almost every major club has one or two players of African descent.
So, enough about me, what about the book? Well, it's bursting with information, from chapters about people and events you may not have heard of (being born in 1980 I was never aware of the breakaway Algerian 11 that fled France by night and were funded by a liberation group) to revisiting genuine modern legends like George Weah. The book flows well enough and Hawkey is an engaging guide, clearly passionate about his subject. Unfortunately though, there is so much information to cram into these pages that it often feels like you'll never reach the end of the chapter, let alone the book. The lack of an index (at least in this review copy, though I gather that will change for the on sale edition) is annoying too, requiring you to pore over whole chapters to look back when the book casually mentions a player you might have read about earlier.
All that said though, it's nice to have a football book that is reverential about history and covers a continent whose past is all too often brushed under the carpet, especially in an age where almost every major club has one or two players of African descent.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Excellent book, wish I'd read it prior to South Africa World Cup 2010
I have to admit to being rather ignorant to any African league teams, most of my footballing knowledge is in England with some Europeans Leagues. Read more
Published 12 months ago by P. Sharpe
Cracking read
Warm, compelling and well researched. The book provides a lot of details on a previously undercovered subject
Published 22 months ago by papaboubadiop
Enjoyble and informative
This is the kind of book to buy the football obsessed man in your life - it's a little different, showing the power of football to reunite groups of people divided by terrible... Read more
Published on 23 Dec 2009 by F. R. Lewis
A warm and detailed portrayal of the sport
I'm not usually a football fanatic, but having spent some time in East Africa, was intrigued to see how this analysis of the development of the African game would pan out. Read more
Published on 27 Nov 2009 by Christopher Meadows
Africa United - Reality or Dream?
With the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa looming on the horizon Ian Hawkey's timing of this book is impeccable. Read more
Published on 24 Nov 2009 by Graeme Wright
Timely book on the history of African football
With the upcoming World Cup in Africa in 2010, this book by Ian Hawkey is a change for football fans to read about the history of football in Africa. Read more
Published on 17 Nov 2009 by D. Evans
One for the loo
I could not read this book in oen go, but as somehting that sits on the shelf in our cloakroom, I can see many a studious male taking it down and spending a few minutes reading... Read more
Published on 28 Oct 2009 by Mr. S. J. Morawiec
A good introduction to the African game
I have an interest in African football as I love the naivety of their play. Bit kick and rush but it can be so effective against the big guns of World Football. Read more
Published on 14 Oct 2009 by Graham
I'm not a football fan but.........
Had I not spent some time in Cape Town and seen the new stadium building in preparation I would never have read this book. Read more
Published on 14 Oct 2009 by Jane Baker
Special Interest Only
I would recommend this book if you are extremely interested in African football. For the general football enthusiast I found it somewhat hard going with more of a scholarly style... Read more
Published on 14 Oct 2009 by Alison
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