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The Book of Fame
  

The Book of Fame (Paperback)

by Lloyd Jones (Author)
3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Paperback: 178 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin Books (NZ) (2 Aug 2000)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0140296948
  • ISBN-13: 978-0140296945
  • Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 2,062,346 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Product Description

Synopsis

This novel is based on the 1905 New Zealand rugby tour of Britain, when the All Blacks achieved unheard of success in thirty-three of their matches, losing only one against Wales. In the country they call 'Home', these unassuming Kiwi men achieve massive public acclaim and become heroes.

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The Book of Fame
61% buy the item featured on this page:
The Book of Fame 3.7 out of 5 stars (3)
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Customer Reviews

3 Reviews
5 star:
 (1)
4 star:    (0)
3 star:
 (2)
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Average Customer Review
3.7 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars True superstardom, 9 Aug 2008
This review is from: The Book of Fame (Paperback)
This little book ficticiously chronicles the early tour of the famous All Blacks (known as such due to a newspaper typo) to Britain in the early 20th century. It is an easy read and no doubt would interest all rugby union fans. The tour details fascinate and the fame the team rises to could not be paralleled in Britain today for any modern sporting icon(s). The narrator, one of the squad members, succeeds in revealing his, and the teams response to unrivalled attention and fame, showing how ordinary farming lads from New Zealand initially revel in but subsequently grow weary of, and eventually resent the god they have made of themselves.

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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars a shame ....., 18 Nov 2008
This review is from: The Book of Fame (Paperback)
Having read Mister Pip, this book came as a disappointment. Half historical, half imagined, it tells of the first All Black's rugby tour of the world (mainly UK) in 1905/6. With only one defeat (to the Welsh), the tour was a huge success, with many quotes from glowing newspaper reports of the dazzling New Zealanders' play. The author relies on his imagination to fill in the personalities, thoughts and feelings of the players.

If you are a rugby expert you might gain more than I did - apart from the full-back overlapping on the wing there often seemed no better explanation of play than one player passing the ball to another and so on.... This is a shame because the book does convey a strong sense that the New Zealanders' style of play was a revolution and a revelation to the home sides.

But, going with the title, perhaps we are intended to look more on this as a study in fame. In that regard, it is interesting to note that the people of this country were as devoted to sport one hundred years ago as they are now, if not more so. En mass, they went to great lengths and great expense to see the games and, reassuringly, were happy to acknowledge the victors afterwards. This recognition left the players embarrassed and bemused - these farmers, a farrier, a shoemaker, etc. were not very media savvy! Indeed, with the whole squad consisting of 27 players, one coach and one manager; the contrast with the amount of support today's top sportsmen have is startling. At the end of the tour only about half of the team returned as a unit; injured players were left to recover more or less where they lay, relying mainly on other players remaining with them for comfort and support!

However glorious, the game statistics alone do not justify this book, nor sadly does the weak fleshing out of the characters involved. There isn't any story beyond the team moving from town to town and match to match. All of which is a shame given Jones's ability as a writer and a wonderful piece of sporting history.
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0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars the beginning, 3 Jun 2009
By Peter Webster "Webbo" (UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: The Book of Fame (Paperback)
A story set around the tour to Europe. The beginning of fear for the All Black shirt.
Webbo
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