Rating: 
Summary: A Change of Pace...But Still Wonderful
Review: Being a great fan of Pat Conroy, I always look forward to any new book by him. Knowing in advance that this was a non-fiction book about his years playing basketball at The Citadel, rather than a new fiction did not change my anticipation.
As much as I am not a basketball fan, I ended up enjoying this book much more than I first thought I would. Yes, there is a lot of attention focused on the learning and playing the game of basketball, but in the end, it is a book about the learning of the inner person who was playing that game. With a open mind, sensitivity and awareness, one can take some of the lessons and thoughts from the book and think about oneself and how we may and need to change as we mature and get older.
My only disappointment about the book was not hearing more about what Mr. Conroy's life was like on the Citadel campus outside of the basketball team. When he does do that, it gave me a much more rounded picture of the makeup and person that Pat Conroy was and how he grew, especially in terms of honor and getting into great literature. I would have enjoyed much more of that.
It is clear by the time the book is over, that Pat Conroy ended up developing a love for his classmates, teammates and even his coach that will carry to his dying day.
This is a great read for any Pat Conroy fan...and a good start as any for those who are not.
Rating: 
Summary: Always a pleasure.
Review: When you buy a new Pat Conroy book, regular readers know exactly what to expect. There are no surprises..except...Conroy can make the same stuff interesting and moving just like it was the first time you encountered him. His style is literate, fast moving and fun. Even if I start to think I could write the book for him because I am so familiar with the characters that he will parade before me, I still find a fascination with his work that makes it irrestable to read. When I start a Conroy book, I become obsesed with finishing it as few sittings as possible, and, then bemoan the fact that it has ended.This book is sad, funny, moving, informative and a plain good read. Conroy can make me laugh out loud or cry tears of great sadness and empathy.When it is all over, I feel like I went somewhere with freinds and returned, and am already missing their company.It is helpful to have read some of his other excellent books, but not necessary.You don't even have to be a basketball fan, player, or explayer to enjoy this book.
Rating: 
Summary: I love Pat Conroy, but . . .
Review: I've read everything Conroy has done except Beach Music and he has been one of my favorite authors. Those who are not familiar with his style may find it bracing and fun, but I think longtime fans will find the book disappointing.The book would have made a great personal love letter of sorts to his old teammates; that's really what the book amounts to. But to an outsider, the book seems grossly overwritten. You get the feeling that he might actually have written the book for that small audience but figured he'd see if he could make a few bucks in the process by selling it to the public. One other criticism: if you have read anything of Conroy's before, you've been through the drill with his beautiful and kind but enabling mother and his mean and abusive father. In my opinion, it's getting old and losing its poignancy with repetition. I'll be interested to see whether Conroy can write about something else. If all of this sounds harsh, it is only because I think the book falls so far short of Conroy's demonstrated excellence. This book is no exception to the general rule that Pat Conroy's style is unique and fun to read.
Rating: 
Summary: Better for basketball fans, but not bad for anybody
Review: Conroy has what I can only describe as an amazing memory. I played a lot of ball in the 60's and have no where near the recall of detail that he has (maybe he had filsm to review? - he does reference newspaper clippings throughout the book). While being a former ballplayer is not a prerequisite for enjoying this book I imagine it would help if you've had some time on the hardwood. He does bring a beautiful poetry to what was then a beautiful sport.
Rating:
Summary: Great read for anyone involved in athletics
Review: This is the first book by Conroy that I have read, but I would like to go back and read his fiction works now that I have read this one. I thought it was excellent! I was not abused by anyone in my family growing up, but as an athlete who plays soccer and now coaches middle-school soccer (and has played many-a-games of pick-up basketball), I identify with Conroy's frustrations of not being blessed with the best talent. I guess I would be considered good by many, but that feeling of mediocrity always creeps in because there are so many good atheletes out there. Just like Conroy, I find that I have many days that I could not possibly have played harder, but I still was not good enough to win. As a player and coach, I found this book very inspirational and a book that stesses the importance of athletics regardless of whether you have a winning season or not. I agree with Conroy that you learn more from losing than wining, and that being able to overcome loss helps to shape you as a person. I would recommend this book to anyone who has ever been involved in athletics as a player or coach.
Rating:
Summary: A Winner
Review: My Losing Season is the non-fiction tale of the author's 1966-67 basketball season at the Citadel. By all accounts, the season was a disaster; they went 8-17 and lost in the first round of championship play. It was also Conroy's senior year and his best year as a basketball player. He averaged 12 points per game, served as team captain, and received the MVP trophy. This book tells the story of this season of mixed blessings and how Conroy became the 5"10 second-string point guard that triumphed in this defeating year. This story is about much more than the 1966-67 season. Conroy lays out his love affair with the game of basketball, which began with pickup games he played while spending time with his aunt and uncle in Orlando, Florida. Conroy's love of the game was the only thing he had to cling to as he endured a childhood full of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of his father, and while the family kept moving as his father was reassigned positions throughout the country. Conroy played in Virgina, North Carolina, and graduated from high school as the star of the Beaufort, South Carolina High School team. Having no other options, Pat enrolled in the Citadel. He details the triumphs and perils of the pleb system, academic life, and the basketball team with beautiful language and an obvious enchantment with his playing days. This book was wonderfully reconstructed through interviews with teammates, reviews of newspaper articles, and the author's own memory of the year. The characters of both his father, Don Conroy, and his coach, Mel Thompson, evoked horror and anger in me as I read. It is clear that Coach Thompson could have had a winning team, but was unable to give praise or constructive criticism that would have helped his team to gel and play off each others' strengths. The book contains dreadful yet beautiful descriptions of the internal workings of the Citadel. I also loved the author's descriptions of his evolving love of the English language and the great works of William Faulkner and Sinclair Lewis. Conroy has created a beautiful memoir of his basketball season, interweaving stories from his childhood, academic life, and current middle-aged status. He states at the outset of this book that he has always learned more from losing seasons than from winning ones, and I can see why. By reexamining the disasterous 1966-67 Citadel basketball season, Conroy was forced to reexamine painful childhood memories and horrible moments as a pleb. At the end of the story a reader can see that he is stronger for having done so, and I am stronger for have taken the journey with him. This is a truly magical memoir and you do not need to be a basketball fan to share in the wonder of Conroy's life.
Rating:
Summary: Worth the time
Review: I enjoyed reading My Losing Season authored by Pat Conroy. This book will not teach you much about things you want to learn. It will not motivate you to write the novel, travel the world nor accomplish great personal goals. It will however give you hours of pleasure as you read. You cannot help but feel drawn in because the reader will be able to empathize with many of the difficult experiences the young Conroy endured. Let me be clear, I'm not saying that your experiences are or will be anything like his. However, his self-doubt and desire to become a self-actualized individual is something to recognize and appreciate. This book surely does not make my personal Top 10 list but I would highly recommend it as a fascinating and entertaining book full of realism, imagery and sincerity.
-Russell Chamberlin
Rating:
Summary: Interesting and occasionally beautiful
Review: Mr. Conroy's new book is a nonfiction look back at his senior season as a point guard for the Citadel's basketball team. He still feels the pain of every bad pass he made and every crushing word from his coach as though it happened yesterday, as opposed to over 30 years ago. He also, at the same time, looks back with joy on the moments when a sportswriter praised his play or a professor encouraged his growing ambition to be a writer. His book is filled with these moods, and he delights in the exuberance of his own language (at times very bad), but somehow through it all, it all works together.
Rating:
Summary: For basketball fans only
Review: I own every book written by Conroy. However I am NOT a basketball fan. In My loosing season, Conroy writes play by play, names basketball players, basketball teams etc. Since I know nothing about basketball, it rings no bell and leaves me cold and unconcerned. There's a bit of the old Conroy and his life's struggles in this book but not much. And we never even get a glimpse of his teammates' characters, personalities or inner lives. We only read about what kind of game they played on which night and against whom. Conroy is so good at making us care about people by bringing us into their hearts and souls yet we finish the book without knowing (nor caring) about anybody on his team or in his life at the time. All in all, it makes for a very cold, overly technical and sadly boring read.
Rating:
Summary: AN INTENSE LEARNING EXPERIENCE THAT SHAPED THE AUTHOR
Review: This is the first book I have read by Pat Conroy and am most impressed. I will read his other books now with the background given in this book that sets one up to know more about his stories and how they relate to reality. There is a lot about basketball here, but it adds to the intensity of the story and points out his yearnings that are thwarted by his father and basketball coach. He rises above all his heartaches and succeeds multifold in my opinion. This is a wonderful book and should inspire you to work hard in accomplishing goals and surmounting all types of problems. I am not a sports fan (excepting the baseball world series and football in the Rose Bowl New Years day)yet enjoyed this tremendously!
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