Rating: 
Summary: Great book for sports fans
Review: I am a die hard sports fan. This book was a great read because I was able to identify so much with what I was reading about. The chapter about "front runner fans," fans that cheer for whatever team is doing well at the time, was my favorite. I hate fans who do that, for example, someone that currently is a Angels, Devils, Bucs, and Spurs fan would be a good example. There was also a chapter on how a favorite team losing can put you into a bad mood, again something that I have experienced. As a Sacramento Kings fan I have experienced many years of underperforming and recently the agony of getting oh so close but not being quite able to finish it off. Queenan talks of his same experience of being a Philadelphia fan and not having any titles in the last 20 or so years from any of the professional sports teams in his city. This was a book that was fun to read and not easy to put down.
Rating:
Summary: Must read for all true sports fan.
Review: I love Joe Queenan's books, this the fourth of his that I have read. He is usually hilarious and always on the mark. This book lacks (and that is not a bad thing) has usual trademark razor wit that causes bleeding when touched. However, he goes after fair weather fans and Yankee fans quite well. With the exception the extended chapter on Notre Dame (I still hate Notre Dame and can't enjoy even Queenan's wise commentary), the book is terrific. Parts are moving. Queenan's life, as many of ours have, been shaped by sports. Friendships, family, etc. The book is funny; but it also honest and a bit moving. The end, taking place at Wrigley Field (of course) may move you to tears. Great stuff.
Rating:
Summary: Another Queenan Triumph...
Review: I love Joe Queenan's books, this the fourth of his that I have read. He is usually hilarious and always on the mark. This book lacks (and that is not a bad thing) has usual trademark razor wit that causes bleeding when touched. However, he goes after fair weather fans and Yankee fans quite well. With the exception the extended chapter on Notre Dame (I still hate Notre Dame and can't enjoy even Queenan's wise commentary), the book is terrific. Parts are moving. Queenan's life, as many of ours have, been shaped by sports. Friendships, family, etc. The book is funny; but it also honest and a bit moving. The end, taking place at Wrigley Field (of course) may move you to tears. Great stuff.
Rating: 
Summary: one of the best sports books around!
Review: i picked this book up the other day and i couldn't put it down, i read the entire thing in one sitting. i loved it. i thought it was a great book about sports and how you should remain loyal to your hometown team. i am from minnesota. i have been a avid twins fan my whole life. they won the series in 87 and 91 but have had their issues ever since. maybe this year!!!! GO TWINS!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: A quick, dead-on read
Review: Joe knows the suffering that goes along with loving the sometimes unlovable loser teams that most of us follow. He also has some pointed attacks at the bandwagon jumpers that should satisfy all who, like me, have those friends who check the box scores before declaring their allegiances. A great gift for even those moderately interested in sports and a great addition to any personal library.
Rating:
Summary: A quick, dead-on read
Review: Joe knows the suffering that goes along with loving the sometimes unlovable loser teams that most of us follow. He also has some pointed attacks at the bandwagon jumpers that should satisfy all who, like me, have those friends who check the box scores before declaring their allegiances. A great gift for even those moderately interested in sports and a great addition to any personal library.
Rating:
Summary: Must read for all true sports fan.
Review: Joe Queenan has written the most accurate and insightful book about sports fans that I've encountered. The anecdotes, stories, and life experiences of the author will give even non-sports fans insight into the psyche of the true sports fanatics. Every true sports fan should read this book. It also would make a great gift for all of the front-running, bandwagon jumping fans that every true sports fan knows.
Rating:
Summary: What do you do when you're team's 50 games back?
Review: Joe Queenan has written the ultimate sports fan book. True Believers is dedicated to the real sports fan. Not fans of the Los Angeles Lakers or the New York Yankees, but the fans of downtrodden teams like the Phillies, the Blackhawks, and the Eagles. Fans who know what it's like to suffer through years of torment, wondering if your team was ever going to be good enough to win it all. Queenan grew up in Philadelphia, and he has a life-long commitment to all of his hometown teams. He says that fan support must be based either on where you grew up, or who your father rooted for. No other form of fandom is acceptable to him. Thus, he has had to live through the Phillies blowing a 6.5 game lead with 12 games to go in 1964, the Flyers blowing a 3-1 lead in the playoffs to the New Jersey Devils (with two of the last three games at home), and other heartbreaks. Loving Philadelphia teams is the epitome of heartbreak, the ultimate love-hate relationship.Why should this matter to the rest of us? I will tell you right now that, if you have never followed any sports and think that to do so is the ultimate waste of time, then this book is not for you. First, you will not understand it. Secondly, what little you do understand will only reinforce your already formed beliefs. Unless you have experienced the common bond of watching your team blow the big game, or the big series, or just stink up the league in general, you will not get a lot out of this book. (Ok, maybe if you're a Yankee fan, you'll be able to laugh at these idiots he's talking about). What does this book consist of? Queenan discusses the psychology behind rooting for a team of also-rans. He explores what makes the true sports fan tick. He does this among chapters discussing fair weather fans (those fans who only follow a team when they are good), sports movies (and how most of them are horrible and don't even come close to reflecting reality), sports announcers (both the good and the bad), and misbehaving fans (those idiots in the stands who do the stupidest things and generally annoy the people around them). Some of these chapters are universal, even to Yankees fans, and thus may be enjoyed by everybody. Some (like an entire chapter on the sorry-looking New York Jets) will only mean something to the fan who has been through something similar. All of these chapters, however, share Queenan's sarcastic wit and his extreme commentary. I love the language that Queenan uses and the way he writes, even if sometimes it seems he's using words just to see whether people understand them or not. At times he sounds pompous, but even then he's entertaining. The fair-weather fan chapter is probably the best, as he itemizes all the different types of front-runners there are, from celebrities who must be seen at courtside of Lakers games, to the mainstream folk who just can't bear to suffer along with the true fan, and thus change their favourite team on the drop of a quarter. As he says, suffering is what makes success taste so sweet. If you haven't been through the dark times, then when they finally do win a championship, you can't truly appreciate it. He loathes front-runners with a passion, and he's not afraid to say it. He certainly takes no prisoners in this chapter, heaping scorn on every type of front-runner there is. If there is any fault in the book, it is the fact that some of the references are very obscure (though as Queenan would say, if you don't know it, you're probably not a true fan). I love sports and follow a lot of them, but some of the references are so old that even I didn't get them. You could figure them out from the context, but I think some of the humour value is lost there. Sometimes he explains them, or at least gives a year that it happened, but other times he goes on like we should be able to keep up with him. I had no trouble skipping the reference, assuming that it was supposed to illustrate some point, and moving on. However, it is a strike against the book. One other thing I would like to know is what he thinks of fans like me. I grew up in Iowa, where there are no professional sports teams, and my father was not a huge fan of anything either. I have my allegiances that have never died since childhood, but they certainly don't seem to fit his criteria. What does that make me? Unfortunately, Queenan doesn't address that, so it feels like something's missing. Even so, this book is definitely a winner. At times it's hilarious, at times it's touching (like when he talks about when his father's last days and how they affected Queenan's spectatorship). You may see yourself reflected in it. You may just find other fans to ridicule. Maybe you're not a sports fan but you're trying to understand a husband (or wife???) who is. If so, get this book. You will either laugh at or along with Queenan as he continues his odyssey. And you might even learn something along the way. Yes, even you Yankees fans. David Roy
Rating:
Summary: What do you do when you're team's 50 games back?
Review: Joe Queenan has written the ultimate sports fan book. True Believers is dedicated to the real sports fan. Not fans of the Los Angeles Lakers or the New York Yankees, but the fans of downtrodden teams like the Phillies, the Blackhawks, and the Eagles. Fans who know what it's like to suffer through years of torment, wondering if your team was ever going to be good enough to win it all. Queenan grew up in Philadelphia, and he has a life-long commitment to all of his hometown teams. He says that fan support must be based either on where you grew up, or who your father rooted for. No other form of fandom is acceptable to him. Thus, he has had to live through the Phillies blowing a 6.5 game lead with 12 games to go in 1964, the Flyers blowing a 3-1 lead in the playoffs to the New Jersey Devils (with two of the last three games at home), and other heartbreaks. Loving Philadelphia teams is the epitome of heartbreak, the ultimate love-hate relationship. Why should this matter to the rest of us? I will tell you right now that, if you have never followed any sports and think that to do so is the ultimate waste of time, then this book is not for you. First, you will not understand it. Secondly, what little you do understand will only reinforce your already formed beliefs. Unless you have experienced the common bond of watching your team blow the big game, or the big series, or just stink up the league in general, you will not get a lot out of this book. (Ok, maybe if you're a Yankee fan, you'll be able to laugh at these idiots he's talking about). What does this book consist of? Queenan discusses the psychology behind rooting for a team of also-rans. He explores what makes the true sports fan tick. He does this among chapters discussing fair weather fans (those fans who only follow a team when they are good), sports movies (and how most of them are horrible and don't even come close to reflecting reality), sports announcers (both the good and the bad), and misbehaving fans (those idiots in the stands who do the stupidest things and generally annoy the people around them). Some of these chapters are universal, even to Yankees fans, and thus may be enjoyed by everybody. Some (like an entire chapter on the sorry-looking New York Jets) will only mean something to the fan who has been through something similar. All of these chapters, however, share Queenan's sarcastic wit and his extreme commentary. I love the language that Queenan uses and the way he writes, even if sometimes it seems he's using words just to see whether people understand them or not. At times he sounds pompous, but even then he's entertaining. The fair-weather fan chapter is probably the best, as he itemizes all the different types of front-runners there are, from celebrities who must be seen at courtside of Lakers games, to the mainstream folk who just can't bear to suffer along with the true fan, and thus change their favourite team on the drop of a quarter. As he says, suffering is what makes success taste so sweet. If you haven't been through the dark times, then when they finally do win a championship, you can't truly appreciate it. He loathes front-runners with a passion, and he's not afraid to say it. He certainly takes no prisoners in this chapter, heaping scorn on every type of front-runner there is. If there is any fault in the book, it is the fact that some of the references are very obscure (though as Queenan would say, if you don't know it, you're probably not a true fan). I love sports and follow a lot of them, but some of the references are so old that even I didn't get them. You could figure them out from the context, but I think some of the humour value is lost there. Sometimes he explains them, or at least gives a year that it happened, but other times he goes on like we should be able to keep up with him. I had no trouble skipping the reference, assuming that it was supposed to illustrate some point, and moving on. However, it is a strike against the book. One other thing I would like to know is what he thinks of fans like me. I grew up in Iowa, where there are no professional sports teams, and my father was not a huge fan of anything either. I have my allegiances that have never died since childhood, but they certainly don't seem to fit his criteria. What does that make me? Unfortunately, Queenan doesn't address that, so it feels like something's missing. Even so, this book is definitely a winner. At times it's hilarious, at times it's touching (like when he talks about when his father's last days and how they affected Queenan's spectatorship). You may see yourself reflected in it. You may just find other fans to ridicule. Maybe you're not a sports fan but you're trying to understand a husband (or wife???) who is. If so, get this book. You will either laugh at or along with Queenan as he continues his odyssey. And you might even learn something along the way. Yes, even you Yankees fans. David Roy
Rating:
Summary: Funny but not particularly enlightening
Review: Subtitled "The Tragic Inner Life of Sports Fans," True Believers is Joe Queenan's look at what makes a man (as women generally don't fall for it) spend his life following a losing team. "It's perfectly clear why people root for the Yankees and the Lakers: the return on investment is relatively high, and the vicarious sense of achievement...can at least partially compensate for a rotten job, a horrible marriage, a receding hairline, a tiny brain. These fans know exactly what they get out of the arrangement. "But what about the pitiful souls who root passionately for accursed poltroons like the Red Sox, the Cubs, the White Sox, and the Phillies? Why would anyone organize his emotional life around mountebanks like the Cleveland Cavaliers, the San Diego Padres, and the Phoenix Suns, none of whom have won a single championship in their entire history?" I have a particular stake in this question because I live in Massachusetts, home of what seems to me to be the most devoted fans in the history of the sport. Although the Boston Red Sox have not won a World Series since 1918, the locals will still not give up on them. They continue to come very close, only to lose in the end, usually to the New York Yankees, whose name can only be said in public surrounded by derision. (To momentarily follow a tangent, I want to mention Super Bowl XXXVI, which was won by another local team, the New England Patriots. I don't follow sports, in general, other than what I hear--which opens me up to massive amounts of derision--but apparently the "Pats" had not been having such a good time recently, either. The day after their success, though, you would have thought that the whole team had been elected God. Over a million people cut work and school to go "worship" at the celebration ceremony. This is a perfect example of the kind of devotion an entire community displays over their home team.) Queenan examines this phenomenon from the inside, having been a Philadelphia Phillies since birth, despite their continual losing streak, simply because he was born there. He wears this as a badge of honor, looking down on those with wavering allegiances who choose their favorite teams based on who is winning ("front-runners"). He devotes an entire chapter to them, explaining that the only way to be a real fan is to follow your team through the bad patches. Only then can you truly appreciate their victories...if they ever happen. True Believers is full of funny asides like this, along with a surprising number of Shakespeare allusions and movie references, but, ultimately, left this reader without a solid answer. Queenan simply seems to revel in the fact that his son is already exhibiting this behavior of rooting for Philadelphia (despite his father's half-hearted offerings of the teams of the boy's New York birthplace--who at least have a chance of seeing a pennant). It must be a bonding thing, because he also states that the day his son said that if you are offered Michael Jordan tickets, you take them--no matter the consequences to the offerer--was the day he became a man. Queenan doesn't appear to know why this happens, so I am left to conclude that simply, to quote Walter Cronkite, "that's the way it is." Say it ain't so, Joe.
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