Rating: 
Summary: Mixed feelings
Review: This may be an unpopular opinion but I felt a bit lukewarm on the book. Lance sounds very real and as a marathon athlete myself I truly admire his determination and drive as a champion and cancer survivor but the references he made to his father (ie: DNA donor, opportunist)and stepfather left a bad taste in my mouth. I am by no means implying that he needs to love or be involved with them however I don't believe someone who is at peace would belabor those references in the book. For what purpose? To hurt them? I felt stabs when I read them I can only imagine how they felt. Even IF they were the worst people on earth, I would much rather Lance focused on all the positive he has to offer and 2 wrongs do not make a right so why advertise bitterness? Tell your story and let the reader draw their own conclusion on some things. One would think looking death in the eye and beating it would bring about an epiphany and more perspective---perhaps forgiveness, or at the very least, peace? Lance seems to me as if he still needs work in letting go of his bitterness there, for his own sake. Here's to continued cancer free for him though...!
Rating: 
Summary: Breathtaking
Review: Things may change fast in your life as this book shows. But you are what you think you are and you become what you think you become. Lance shows that it is true. If you think your life leads nowhere or you are bored by it, then read this book. It will remind you of what is important and what not.
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Summary: If Only All Books Were Like This!
Review: So I'm reviewer 187. You'll probably never meet Lance in your life, so this is the next best thing. You'll get to know Lance and the courageous mother behind (ahead of?) him. Lance will inspire you. I'd like to meet his mother as well as him. Take a weekend to read this book. Work was annoying, while reading it, even eating was inconvenient. Lance is the American story and shed light on the America I like to hear about: that there are some people out there that do their darndest to be the best at what they do and are willing to pay that price. Made me look at myself and wonder how I was doing with my life. Not a page wasted!
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Summary: Read This And You'll Know You CAN Survive Anything-Anything!
Review: Lance Armstrong is a survivor. It's that simple. His book recounts his tribulations and is extremely inspirational without being sappy. In the military it's important for warriors to read Prisoner Of War accounts so all will know that, if captured, ANY situation can be survived. Everyone should know and understand the trials of Holocaust survivors, not only to prevent a recurrence, but to learn from them. When your chips are down, you will always understand that people have survived much worse. Certainly there are cancer patients out there who will not survive, but where there is a glimmer of hope, Lance's book is a beacon in the abyss. Against the odds, he not only beat stage gazillion cancer, but went on to win the worlds most grueling athletic event. Twice! It's Not About the Bike is a fast read. You'll love it. It's too bad it took this horrific disease to turn America on to International Bicycle Racing.
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Summary: That's MY book, too.
Review: After recently recovering from Cancer, my wife suggested that my "story" would make for a great book. I told her that there aren't too many people who would want to read about a nobody from New Jersey who went through a miserable experience with Cancer. I'd have to be a "somebody." Well, Lance Armstrong and Sally Jenkins wrote my book. When I most recently saw media coverage of Lance's story and book, I was angry. I didn't want the public to believe that Cancer had a hollywood ending if you work hard and don't give up. There's nothing hollywood about Cancer and I resented the attention Lance was receiving. Then, I read the book. IT'S REAL. Through the wonderfully constructed words of Sally Jenkins, and the raw, honest sentiments of Lance Armstrong, this book tells it like it is. Lance Armstrong is just like anyone else who happens to be diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. He is not a hero. He is not superhuman. He is human. And, in this book, he doesn't pretend to be anything but that. This book takes you through all of the emotions of being a cancer patient; fear, sadness, anger, resentment, pity, hope, and so on. Though every patient is different, Lance's feelings echo those of myself and countless others who are in the survivor's club. As a marathoner, I thoroughly enjoyed reading about Lance's cycling career. However, you don't have to be an athlete to appreciate his incredible drive, determination and accomplishments on a bike. His story both on and off the bike is truly inspirational. This book is for cancer patients and survivors. It is for their families and friends, who just can't fully understand what it is like to endure the physical and emotional challenges of the disease. It is for athletes of all skill levels, shapes and sizes. And, it is for ANYONE who needs a little perspective on just how precious life really is and what's important. Thanks for reading.
Rating: 
Summary: Atypical Autobiography Avoids Sentimentality
Review: Not unlike many readers, I read this book with fairly limited knowledge of Lance Armstrong. At this point, most know of Armstrong's triumph over tesiticular cancer and winning of biking's greatest challenge, the Tour de France -- we don't know much of Armstrong the man (or husband or father as the book cover proclaims). All the ingredients were in place for a typical celebrity autobiography -- trouble kind turns life around by becoming world class-athlete faces life-threatening disease and comes out on top. However, with some mild guilt, I never found myself liking Armstrong that much and in fact he was a bit of a jerk. I expected to be swayed when Armstrong's life was rocked by cancer. To some effect it did -- but Armstrong's cocky attitude towards his own life did not sway as he stard death in the face. But then I realized that there was something very refreshing to this about this. Though this could have easily fallen into the drippy sentimentality of a "disease of the week" TV movie (and probably will some day if Hollywood has its way), it did not. While the above Amazon review says the story will "melt the most hard-bitten soul" I hold true to that mine was merely "thawed." I hope my soul is not alone out there, but my gut tells me that Armstrong's intention was not to have anyone feeling sorry for him. Overall, the book is an informative look at the world of bike racing and cancer treatment. I do respect Armstrong's life journey and truly miraculous comeback. I just find his machismo something that would prevent me from sharing a friendly beer with him in the real world.
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Summary: Good read........., and more cycling stories needed
Review: Lance Armstrong's book has many words written about his fight on cancer. It has also detailed descriptions about how the disease affected his life and his perspective of life. It is well-written in a very direct way which can be very inspirational and emotional to readers. This book scores well from the inspirational side, especially on how he recovered from the disease. For cycling enthusiast who would like to know about his Tour de France races and conquest, there are about 50 pages of stories, with scant reference to other cycling greats like Indurain, Zuelle, Escartin etc. How I wish it were more detailed and more references because this are the parts which are most exciting to read. At the end of the day, many of us know Lance as a cyclist and this is what we like to look forward in his next book........
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Summary: This Book will change your life!!
Review: I have never read a book cover to cover until this one. As an avid athlete since the age of 7 I gained a huge appreciation thru this book of what it means to be alive. This book is about bike racing but it is about so much more. I have given this book to people as a gift and they have had the same response. Read this book, then go out and bike, run, hike, walk or whatever. This book will make you happy you are even here to do those things.
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Summary: Inspirational story of surviving cancer
Review: Lance's story is a great inspiration. The story is more about surviving cancer than biking. Some of the detail on cancer treatment may be a little much for some people. But this is one of those books that makes you stop and think how fortunate you are and inspires you to think about those less fortunate. I just wish he had included contact information for his foundation.
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Summary: Gutsy Champion Perfectly Peddles His Inspirational Memoir
Review: Lance Armstrong came back from testicular cancer to win the rugged Tour de France bicycle race, twice. And his emotion-drenched memoir, written with sportswriter Sally Jenkins, should be especially useful as an example to cancer patients. He rode herd on his own treatment, insisted on multiple opinions and relentlessly questioned his doctors. The book concludes with an almost inch-by-inch account of the three-week, 2,290-mile Tour de France, which Armstrong inevitably calls "a metaphor for life." There's suspense and spiraling inspiration; anyone reading the book knows who won. Still, there's lots of drama, and as cancer success stories go, Armstrong --- is the champion.
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