Rating: 
Summary: Congratulations John!
Review: I was teaching at Stanford when McEnroe spent his freshman year there and became an instant fan. Over the years I, like millions of other tennis fans, sufferred through John's losses and basked in the glow of his great triumphs. I ALWAYS loved the supreme elegance of his tennis and I ALWAYS knew intuitively that what he was enduring both on and off the court was the inevitable consequence of his very personal style of consumate professionalism, and the rigors of young celebrity. I hurted for him but I never condemned him. His revelations in his book suggest that he is growing up and finding a measure of peace in his life. But you're still very young John, and there is hopefully another half century of growth and maturation for you out there to be had---so go do it!This book is very well written and full of a touching (if somewhat naive) honesty. But I buy into McEnroe's sincerity and am moved by the extent to which he wants "forgiveness" from his fans. Regardless of that French open disaster and missing the much wanted Australian triumph, you WILL be remembered as one of the greatest tennis players of all time John. No one player can ever be called be THE greatest!
Rating: 
Summary: A Fun Read
Review: I loved this book. It was interesting and entertaining from cover to cover. I literally laughed out loud in the bookstore when I was flipping through it and read the part where he talks about Brad Gilbert! Perhaps Mr. McEnroe should take up writing as a sideline.
Rating: 
Summary: Sanitized version
Review: John McEnroe claims to have written his autobiography, You Cannot Be Serious, in order to determine if he really needs attention- and if so, how much? And why? The answers to these questions are yes, he really needs attention, and lots of it. The reasons why make McEnroe a compelling and beguiling persona. I am a tennis fanatic and long-time McEnroe observer, sometimes even a fan. John McEnroe is still very much a controversial and outspoken individual in the tennis world, but the book rounds off most of his rough edges. McEnroe always accused others of being phony and himself of being honest and right. However, certain parts of his book lack self-analysis and credibility. For example, McEnroe says that he never felt good about his on-court tirades (and I believe him) but why was he never able to get his anger under control? He describes his matches and his opponents but glosses over the reasons behind his poor behavior. Credibility? He devotes only two-thirds of one page to the pinnacle of rude and shocking behavior- his default from the Australian Open. As tennis fans and journalists know, the details of this incident are extremely ugly, and they are omitted entirely. The best sections of the book deal with McEnroe's rise and fall from number one. We learn that McEnroe's true love was not Tatum O'Neil or Patty Smythe- it was Bjorn Borg. According to McEnroe, hunting Borg was more fun, and much easier, than being hunted. His skirmishes with Connors and Lendl and friendships with Borg, Vitas and Fleming are recounted in amusing fashion. He articulates the loneliness, doubt and paranoia that characterize the top ranking very well. Mac vividly describes what it is like to fall from the top-- as injuries, family life and age take a toll. He made me understand why so many athletes don't seem to realize when they are past their prime. As expected, Mac spends a considerable amount of time feeding his own ego. Whether you are a fan, foe or neutral observer, you will shake your head at many of his comments. This is an entertaining read and I think casual tennis or sports fans would enjoy it. Non-sport fans should probably pass on this one.
Rating:
Summary: Nice book John
Review: This a very interesting look at a extremely complicated and somewhat contradictory individual. If your a MacEnroe fan it is a must read!
Rating:
Summary: Johnny Mac
Review: As a teen in the 80's and an avid tennis fan and player; "Mac" was my idol because he was an extraordinary athlete and he just said what was on his mind - "there's got to be the-someone-so-called 'Bad Boy' of tennis and it might as well be me." I could not put this book down and read the entire book within one day. The best parts of the book was when Mac discussed his ascent onto the professional circuit circa 1977 to his domination in 1984. I enjoyed how he broke down the key matches with Borg, Lendl, Becker, and Connors. Mac's attitude is reflected as to who he genuinely respects..Borg, Vilas, Sampras, Agassi, and Peter Fleming; Who he despises...Lendl, Becker, Connors, Bill Scanlon, Brad Gilbert, and the Williams Sisters; and who he feels sympathy for...Vitas, Frank Hammond, and his brother, Patrick (!).
I was hoping for more direct Mac-level commentary and more insight on his interpersonal conflicts on and after the tour. I've seen Mac much more candid when he was interviewed on Letterman several times and I just felt he didn't 100% say what was on his mind about the players, the current state of tennis, and what he viewed as essential for tennis to survive. I also thought the sections about his romance(s) could have been handled better - forget the romances; we want to hear the conflict and the thought processes of a still impressive athlete and entertaining and interesting individual!
Rating:
Summary: A Career Overview
Review: I ordered this book prior to my week stay at the hospital for some surgery knowing a good book would be uplifting during my recovery. It is easy reading and the material was interesting. It gives insight on the world of tennis and the hardships of being number one. The reader was kind while revealing little of his family life. Having four children of my own, I would have enjoyed to read some of his own experiences with children and the affect of the tennis life on them. We do get a reasonable glimpse of the authors relationship to other tennis stars. All in all, I recommend this book for readers wishing to understand the complicated personality of one of tennis' most captivating stars.
Rating:
Summary: What Can You Say About John Patrick McEnroe?
Review: I just finished reading this book, and now I'm ready to buy all the videos of McEnroe's old matches against Borg, Conners, Lendl, etc... Now that I know the stories behind the on-court rants, and what went on behind the scenes at some of these tournaments, I want to watch it all over again! If you are a fan of John McEnroe, which I am, you will love this book! Growing up in the tennis boom of the 80s, I was drawn to McEnroe's passion for the game, and as a young player I tried to emulate him, but I never knew much about McEnroe the man. I found it very interesting to learn how he became such a great player, and hear how he looked at the top players as he was starting out on the pro tour. Imagine being barely 20 years old, running around Europe with guys that *you* idolized, like Borg! It's great to hear Mac talk about things like that. You can really tell who he liked, and who just got under his skin. The man does not mix words! Even if you are not a McEnroe fan, but a fan of his era in tennis, you will find this book to be of interest. He talks in great detail about some of the players of that era (Borg, Conners, Lendl, Vitas G., Vilas, etc...) and some of their actions on and off the court. To me, anyway, it was quite interesting to hear about that stuff. When you are 10 or 12 years old, like I was in 1980, you never wondered about what happened off the court, but now you can find out! I was lucky enough to find a SIGNED copy at my local bookstore, as well! What a bonus!
Rating:
Summary: What a Cat??
Review: John McENroe a Complex Great Athlete with Many thoughts&Relfections.that Balance of Talent&Flaw that Creates something Special.He brngs so much to Life on&off the Court.He is one of those Rare Sports Figures that you Either Loathed or Loved but there was no Middle Ground with McENROE!!this Book adds another Chapter to His Legacy.
Rating: 
Summary: John is a Brat as we know him
Review: I always adored McEnroe since my childhood. I am a tennis player and dreamed of being to the top someday. But since I chose to put studies first before my tennis, my dream didn't materialized. I just wondered what is the life of a tennis player would be. Through this book. I learned a lot of things. I learned to hate John, I didn't expect how a terrible person he is. But, I was amazed of a traveling tennis guys life. John put on this book what he really is, without the fear of other people might say. There is no magical about John as a person. I only like his talent, what he achieved and playing for the country. I wished that his talent went to another guy with a good personality, tennis would be a better sports.
Rating: 
Summary: Superficial and Disappointing
Review: I was very disappointed in this autobiography that read more like an unauthorized biography without ANY juicy details written by someone who was NOT given access to his subject. If you didn't know who John McEnroe was or whom he married or how acrimoniously it ended, you would come away from this book with an unsympathetic portrait of a petulant, unpleasant, lonely man, a man who could have been ANY tennis player, not the number one player in the world. You would come away with many (MANY) descriptions of tennis plays (!!!) of twenty years past, meaningless descriptions of tennis action you could have read in the New York Post, and probably have. In the photo of his first win at Wimbledon, he is down on his knees. In the book he says, "and I had my first Wimbledon." Whoopie. John McEnroe emerges as a person who was miserable when he was number one in the world, miserable when he was down, miserable when he was alone, and miserable when he was married. His tennis career, his first wedding, the anticipation and the birth of his children, his early fathering, his split with Tatum, all show him to be wretched and unhappy. He is a man who didn't seem to enjoy anything, not his God given talent, not his thousands of tennis matches, not his friends, not his materially comfortable life. If he did enjoy it, he doesn't show us, though he does TELL us many times how much he loves his kids--while being away from them more than half the year. The book is dishonest because McEnroe keeps all the good scenes of his life to himself. His day to day life, what his relationship with Tatum was like before it soured, the workings of his failed marriage, his own drug use, his wife's drug use, what it was like to be a father yet travel thirty weeks of the year, and who took care of his kids (was it Tatum? Was it the nanny?) Why Tatum was not a good mother, how her motherhood and his fatherhood manifested itself, how her drug use manifested itself (did she use drugs? If you yawn, you'll miss the sentence where he says so) all these are hidden from the reader. Perhaps he doesn't feel it's his place to divulge such private details about himself and other people in his life. Then what in the world did he write an autobiography for? Those are best written when one is not afraid of showing the reader what one's life was really like, perhaps when one is much much older . As it is, McEnroe is so afraid he only alludes to his own drug use ("don't ask," he says) alludes to his promiscuity while single and his faithlessness while married. What he tells us about the details of his life is more superficial than an Enquirer article. Even in descriptions of his own verbal abuse antics on the court, he TELLS us he was abusive, but he shows little and remains so afraid of being indiscreet or offensive, he even uses asterisks in the few places where he attempts to show us what expletives he used in humiliating the umpires! In this book he concentrates on telling us tennis play by plays, teling us how abominably he acted on the court, calling himself an idiot, proceeding to act abominably, ad nauseam. There is very little here that is more than People magazine trite. But there are some things here: His utter inability to rejoice in the athletic or personal successes of his friends and his brothers, his black jealousy when it comes to his best friend finding love or beating a hated tennis adversary, his stunted and stunning tantrums, and his lifelong inability, even while acknowledging these demons, to exorcise them. Those things are here. Frightening and unlikable, boring and shallow, and sad, that's McEnroe and his book.
|
