Join Amazon Prime and get unlimited Free One-Day Delivery. Already a member? Sign in.

 

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
More Buying Choices
34 used & new from £2.72

Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
Graham Thorpe: Rising from the Ashes
 
See larger image
 

Graham Thorpe: Rising from the Ashes (Hardcover)

by Graham Thorpe (Author)
4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
RRP: £18.99
Price: £16.14 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
You Save: £2.85 (15%)
In stock.
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk. Gift-wrap available.

Only 1 left in stock--order soon (more on the way).

Want guaranteed delivery by Tuesday, July 7? Choose Express delivery at checkout. See Details
5 new from £4.54 21 used from £2.72 8 collectible from £4.95
Other Editions: RRP: Our Price: Other Offers:
Hardcover Order it used
Paperback (Illustrated) 9 used & new from £0.95

Frequently Bought Together

Customers buy this book with Coming Back to Me: The Autobiography of Marcus Trescothick by Marcus Trescothick

Graham Thorpe: Rising from the Ashes + Coming Back to Me: The Autobiography of Marcus Trescothick
Price For Both: £26.23

Show availability and shipping details


Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Coming Back to Me: The Autobiography of Marcus Trescothick

Coming Back to Me: The Autobiography of Marcus Trescothick

by Marcus Trescothick
4.8 out of 5 stars (18)  £10.09
Behind the Shades: The Autobiography

Behind the Shades: The Autobiography

by Duncan Fletcher
3.8 out of 5 stars (6)  £5.19
Playing with Fire: The Autobiography

Playing with Fire: The Autobiography

by Nasser Hussain
Head On - Ian Botham: The Autobiography

Head On - Ian Botham: The Autobiography

by Ian Botham
3.3 out of 5 stars (3)  £5.99
Out of My Comfort Zone: The Autobiography

Out of My Comfort Zone: The Autobiography

by Steve Waugh
4.3 out of 5 stars (3)  £12.74
Explore similar items

Product details

  • Hardcover: 416 pages
  • Publisher: HarperCollinsWillow (5 Sep 2005)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0007205961
  • ISBN-13: 978-0007205967
  • Product Dimensions: 23.4 x 16.2 x 4 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 118,214 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #55 in  Books > Biography > Sport > Cricket

Customers Viewing This Page May Be Interested in These Sponsored Links

  (What is this?)
Graham
   www.frw.co.uk    Graham Sourced Direct From European Cellars at Trade Prices 
Graham
   www.AbeBooks.co.uk    Find over 110 million secondhand and rare books at AbeBooks.co.uk 
Watch The Ashes Live
   www.watchtheashes.com    Watch Live Cricket On The Internet Full Access For Only 4.99 A Year 
  
 

Product Description

Review
'Thorpe's experiences have changed him...he has certainly learned about life away from the cricketing bubble' Wisden Cricketer 'He has invariably been English cricket's most complex and troubled man' Guardian

Product Description
England's finest batsman of the last decade, Graham Thorpe's achievements on the pitch have often contrasted wildly with his personal problems away from cricket, where drink and depression have often combined to send him spiralling off the rails. This is his powerful, painfully honest life story. Graham Thorpe has been the lynchpin of the England team and at the vanguard of world cricket for more than a decade. Yet the national press hounded him as 'English cricket's most disturbed player', in 1999 he returned home from the Caribbean weeks before his team-mates; a year later he declined to tour South Africa in order to spend more time with his young family; and in 2001 he returned early from India in a vain attempt to salvage an already ruined marriage, four years after his own infidelities while on tour in New Zealand made tabloid headlines. The following summer his ex-wife was on the verge of emigrating to South Africa with his two children, and Thorpe was accused of 'betraying' England when he announced he was quitting Test cricket, only to change his mind a fortnight later. With painful candour and often unexpected humour, Thorpe dissects his career in cricket and the inner recesses of his private life: the impact of his bitter divorce; the suicidal depression that afflicted him in his darkest hours; the reasons why he needed to 'save himself' by withdrawing from past England tours; the elation of his magnificent century on his comeback Test at the Oval in 2003; and his fresh outlook in life with a new partner after confronting his own failings and past troubles. Twelve years on from his Test debut against Australia, Thorpe took the decision to retire from international cricket after the disappointment of his controversial non-selection for the Ashes 2005 tour. Hero or villain? Thorpe's life story will go some way toward resolving one of the biggest conundrums in English cricket in recent times.

See all Product Description

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
Check the boxes next to the tags you consider relevant or enter your own tags in the field below

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Graham Thorpe: Rising from the Ashes
73% buy the item featured on this page:
Graham Thorpe: Rising from the Ashes 4.4 out of 5 stars (8)
£16.14
Coming Back to Me: The Autobiography of Marcus Trescothick
14% buy
Coming Back to Me: The Autobiography of Marcus Trescothick 4.8 out of 5 stars (18)
£10.09
Seeing The Sunrise
6% buy
Seeing The Sunrise 5.0 out of 5 stars (2)
£5.99
Behind the Shades: The Autobiography
4% buy
Behind the Shades: The Autobiography 3.8 out of 5 stars (6)
£5.19

 

Customer Reviews

8 Reviews
5 star:
 (5)
4 star:
 (2)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.4 out of 5 stars (8 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Scathingly personal and honest autobiography, 19 Jan 2006
By russell clarke "stipesdoppleganger" (halifax, west yorks) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)      
For my money, not that my money adds up to much, the finest English batsman of the last fifteen years the sight of Graham Thorpe striding to the crease was my personal barometer that everything was going to be alright. We( We meaning England) might be 36 for 3 but once flinty doughty Thorpey was in the middle I always felt reassured that all was not lost and a gritty innings renaissance would soon be underway. Of course that wasn’t always the case but it says a lot about Thorpe’s admirable fighting qualities, unflappable demeanour and sheer talent that I always thought it would be. And I’m no optimist by nature I can tell you. I was a little trepidatious that his autobiography would somehow make me think less of him, a bit like when you meet an idol in the flesh. Thankfully that isn’t the case , indeed it makes me feel I know him better as a person which I suppose is the point of an autobiography . It’s the most deeply personal account of a player’s life I’ve ever read and in many ways reflects his character as a player being compact, honest and entertaining in a non-extravagant way with the occasional flash of eye catching prose.
It’s not told in the usual strict chronological sense and deals very briefly with his childhood which is fair enough as most people aren’t that interested in players formative years. It does conclude with his exclusion from the last Ashes squad which even though we won , I still think was an error by the selectors and no surprise Thorpe thinks so too, though he does with typical candour admit his fitness would have been a problem , his back restricting his mobility to some degree.
Where it really excels is as an examination of a top sportsman mental struggle both with himself and his turbulent domestic circumstances as a result of protracted divorce proceedings. Scathingly direct, he tells how he came to the point where cricket meant less to him than his next alcohol and nicotine fix and how his circumstances lead to him approaching the game in a less intense more carefree manner leading to the golden period when he returned to test cricket against South Africa. Thorpe’s ex-wife comes in for some stick which is not surprising if events transpired as he described but I’m always a bit uncomfortable with this knowing only too well there are two sides to every story. Still she did choose the tabloids to tell her side of things ,most of which Thorpe refutes and in the end he comes across as dignified and willing to forgive which when you consider his paternity problems is something to really admire.
Rising From The Ashes is by no means the most entertaining autobiography I’ve read, but like I said it’s the most personal and though it lacks the salacious stories and spiky gossip of many sports memoirs which lets be honest is what most of us read them for ( I loved the fact he and Nasser Hussain used to sit in the TV area of the dressing room giggling at the things the commentators said though) this is still a riveting read .I loved Graham Thorpe as a cricketer, now I really like him as a person. Hope he and his family are all healthy and happy, that he finds something he enjoys doing and that his central heating doesn’t break down this winter.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars as good a sports biography as I've read, 17 Sep 2005
Thorpe's Test performances over the years have been a source of joy-upon-joy to me, and it's fair to say I approached this with caution, wary of a potentially harrowing account that might throw a less satisfactory light on some glorious moments in recent cricket history. Instead, I found myself absolutely riveted by a powerful story I quite simply couldn't put down. This desperately human face behind a sporting hero is one I found genuinely inspiring. Thorpe's account of his life and career is told with courageous honesty, a very real sense of responsibility, and fascinating insight into the world of a professional sportsman. Thorpe's great legacy to cricket was that quiet, unspectacular ability to grab hold of hope in the midst of hopelessness; there's something of that reflected here. I expected something less than a sports autobiography; instead, I got something very much more.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A very personal autobiography, 20 Oct 2006
By Greg Farefield-Rose (Hertfordshire United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   
Unlike the recent autobiographies by Mike Atherton and Nasser Hussain, Graham Thorpe's tome does not offer a detailed match-by-match analysis of English cricket over his playing career. Indeed cricket is not the primary motivation behind Thorpe writing his memoirs.

The main raison d'etre of Rising From The Ashes is for Graham to tell his side of the story of his disintegrating marriage, the stress of which twice led him to withdraw from the England team for lengthy periods. In doing this, it candidly illustrates the mountains of despair that even a highly successful sportsman can reach when faced with insurmountable personal problems. Although it can be argued that these lengthy ruminations are tabloidesque, Thorpe should also be praised for his honesty - unlike his ex-wife who comes out of the book with very little credit as she continues to deny Graham basic access to their two children.

Despite Thorpe's failing marriage and battle to see his children being the main motivation behind him writing his memoirs, Rising From The Ashes also offers an interesting though slightly disjointed analysis of his cricketing career. Not as detailed or definitive as Atherton or Hussain's books but it never would have been as Graham was England captain on only a couple of occasions.

Rising From The Ashes is a passionate page-turner though not the book to read first if you are looking for an insider's account of the England cricket team during the 90s and early noughties. An honest and almost uncomfortably personal sporting autobiography.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Chalky comes good
I have been a fan of Graham Thorpe for many years, it was his way with the bat that convinced me how amazing the game of cricket is, and 15 years later I still have the same... Read more
Published on 17 Oct 2006 by Sharon James

4.0 out of 5 stars ITS' GOOD
This is a very open account of the trials and tribulations of a great batsman for both Surrey and England. Read more
Published on 3 Sep 2006 by T. P. Bermingham

2.0 out of 5 stars Oh Dear!
Goodness me. I could not read this book without cringing. Graham (a cricketer I have long admired) seems utterly unable to go more than a few pages without force feeding the... Read more
Published on 16 Aug 2006 by Mr. Tim Doyle

5.0 out of 5 stars Tough going at times
Thorpe , "The Little Genius" as Nasser Hussain used to call him - superb batsmen & complicated person - charts his career well enough but it's the theme of his marriage break up &... Read more
Published on 21 Jul 2006 by DavyA

5.0 out of 5 stars Review
I first read parts of this book in a national paper and decided I had to read it. It is a very good book, which details Graham Thrope life as a cricketer. Read more
Published on 14 Sep 2005 by S. Hansford

Only search this product's reviews



Customer Discussions

 Beta (What's this?)
This product's forum (0 discussions)
  Discussion Replies Latest Post
  No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
  [Cancel]


   
Related forums


Listmania!


Look for similar items by category


Look for similar items by subject


Feedback


The Body Shop

The Body Shop - Vitamin C Skin Boost
Protect and boost your glow with The Body Shop Vitamin C Skin Boost.

Shop The Body Shop

 

Let Olay Amaze You

Olay Total Effects Day Moisturiser SPF15 50ml
Amazon.co.uk sells all your favourite ranges from Olay, including Regenerist and Total Effects.

Discover Olay at Amazon.co.uk

 

Up to 53% off Braun Series Shavers

Braun Series 3 390cc Clean & Renew System Rechargeable Foil Electric Shaver
Get in touch with your smooth side with Braun Series shavers, now with Gillette blade technology.

Discover Braun Series at Amazon.co.uk

 

Treat Someone

Amazon.co.uk Gift Certificates--available in any amount from £5 to £500 With an Amazon.co.uk Gift Certificate, you can get them what they want (even if you don't know what that is).

Learn more about Gift Certificates

 
Ad

Where's My Stuff?

Delivery and Returns

Need Help?

Your Recent History

  (What's this?)
You have no recently viewed items or searches.

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.

Look to the right column to find helpful suggestions for your shopping session.

Continue Shopping: Top Sellers

amazon.co.uk Amazon Home
International Sites:  United States  |  Germany  |  France  |  Japan  |  Canada  |  China
Business Programs: Sell on Amazon  |  Fulfilment by Amazon  |  Join Associates  |  Join Advantage
Customer Service  |  Help  |  View Basket  |  Your Account
About Amazon.co.uk  |  Careers at Amazon
Conditions of Use & Sale |  Privacy Notice  © 1996-2009, Amazon.com, Inc. and its affiliates