In recent weeks I've used the blog to spew nonsense to anyone who would read about the Bulls, the NBA, and watching a bunch of grown men run around in tank tops grabbing each other. To change it up, I figured I'd use tonight's column to share some random musings about life outside of the hardwood. Tonight's column will serve as a public service announcement for reading (including gift recommendations for the reader in your life), so if this doesn't interest you please check back later this week for Heat-Bulls coverage.
Believe it or not, I actually do read things other than columns and twitter feeds written by sportswriters. Its not always the "headiest" kind of literature, but it helps me sleep at night and my mom always told me good readers make good writers. So if I really plan to write a book someday I should probably read a few. Having said all of that, I don't read a TON, but normally will read a few pages of a book (actually Kindle) before bed to knock me out. At most I'll read 20 pages a night, sometimes as few as 2. But a few of the books I've read have been really good, so I figured I'd spread the gospel in case you're looking for something to read or know someone in your life who is.
In Fifty Year's We'll All Be Chicks - by Adam Carolla. When I lived in Seattle, Aceman was my wingman on the way to work. Each day I'd listen to him nasally wax-on about the world's problems and just about any topic under the sun, often saying exactly what I think about issues. He's got an engineer's mind and a crass, sarcastic sense of humor that I love, and his presence in the car on the way to work or school is something I miss. He's not much of a writer, but this book is an excellent summary of Adam's life, along with some spot-on observation of the utterly dumb things you and I observe on a regular basis. My only criticism of the book was that I wished he named this something different, mainly because so much of the book would be great for a female audience as well. This would be a perfect book for the "guy who doesn't read much" in your life or anyone who regularly reads Bill Simmons on ESPN.
The Lincoln Lawyer - by Michael Connely. Yes, this is the same book as the movie with the same title starring that guy from Dazed and Confused (I know his name, just can't spell it). The book is a page-turner and profiles a typical "who dun it" legal story about a suspected murder involving a rich douchebag from LA. The writing isn't anything that'll blow you away, but you'll like the action as we uncover the twists and turns from the perspective of a sleaze-bag defense attorney. This book would make a great gift for the serious reader in your life who needs to read something not-so-serious. Also good for folks heading on vacation. Which is exactly what Romeo Sierra and I read on our vacation to/from Seattle. We thought it'd be kinda fun if we read the same book at the same time, you know, like in high school. We didn't have book club or pop quizes but it was kinda interesting to read the same book, even if it was trashy fiction.
Scorecasting - I like to sprinkle some non-fiction in to the rotation, and this book got off to a solid start but faded towards the stretch. After reading Michael Lewis' Moneyball, I became fascinated with Sports Analytics and how numbers, statistics, and measurement can be used to out smart the opponent. As a former coach and athlete, Moneyball made complete sense to me, and bordered on a work-related book as I thumbed through Billy Beane's adventures with the Oakland A's and performance improvement. Since Moneyball, there have been literally hundreds of authors out on the web, in books, and elsewhere who sift through piles of data to tell us something interesting or unique about sports but most of them fall short of talking about how those teams, coaches, or players actually do something with all of that data. Scorecasting is one of these books, and although the book does an excellent job explaining some of the common fallacies in sports (Defense doesn't always win championships, Icing the kicker doesn't work, the Cubs suck because of their fans), I found some of the writing rambled long after the point had been made. Worth picking up for a sports/numbers junkie, but make sure they've read Moneyball first.
The Imperfectionists - recently, I ran out of books to read and went to Facebook to ask for suggestions. Although a few folks responded, I didn't see anything that caught my eye until I stumbled on this book, which I intend to go read after I finish this post. For a first-time author, the writing is outstanding and the plot moves along at a great clip--its essentially a fictional tale of a journalist working for an english-speaking newsroom in Rome. The writing is unlike anything I have read before, and is so good I've actually forced my girlfriend to read passages I found insightful and well-written. This is probably the kind of book you'd give someone who majored in English or a Fine Art in college who also traveled to Europe at some point.
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