Rating: 
Summary: Barry Bond's Best
Review: As I began to read the book, This Gracious Season, by Josh Suchon, my initial reaction was that this was more than I ever wanted to know about baseball - or Barry Bonds, for that matter. But it didn't take long to really get into it as I counted each and every homer and read about all the other records he shattered. The author has an engaging style and a superb way of integrating the past with the present so that by the end of the book the reader has a complete picture of Barry Bonds - the man, the career and the records. I look forward to following Barry Bonds this season, and to another book by Mr. Suchon, in the not too distant future.
Rating: 
Summary: More than Barry Bonds
Review: First, I'll admit I like Barry Bonds. I think he's hounded, and then people are surprised when he lashes out. That's that.So for the book, I don't think anyone who hates Barry should buy it (why would you?). But for those who like the man, or tolerate him, or want to learn more about him, I'd highly recommend it. I think it is well written and compelling. What I've been surprised about (pleasantly) is that there's a lot more to the book than just Barry Bonds. I've learned a lot about the other players on the team, including those who came and went during the 2001 season, I've learned things about Bobby Bonds, Willie Mays, Willie McCovey and other Giants past, and about the Giants organization in general. I think this has made it a nice read and not just a Barry-Love-Fest as someone else feels. Furthermore, I think the parts about Barry aren't glowing or one-sided. I think most of the details are presented as facts, and there are certainly paragraphs describing some of Barry's more surly moments as well. The prose flows nicely, as does the art of "flashing-back" to other moments in baseball to illuminate Barry's psyche (such as the final moment of the 1991 NLCS) So, I'd buy it. But again, if you hate the guy, why would you expect to spend [price] and enjoy reading a whole book about Barry Bonds?
Rating: 
Summary: Editors, what were you thinking?
Review: I am quite the Barry Bonds fan, so I looked very forward to reading This Gracious Season. Unfortunately the story was nearly impossible for me to focus on through all of the mis-punctuation, misuse of words, and failed attempts at lace. I think, that Josh Suchon, must have received, a royalty, from every, comma, used.
Yes, the story was a good one. But that has little to do with the author, being as this was a biography. I like that he threw in personal tidbits, but they were drowning in a sea of Josh Suchon's attempts at using a thesaurus, and showing off his ability to look up sports stats. One of my favorite movie lines (paraphrased) is applicable here: Sometimes more isn't better; it's just more.
Barry, I love you. Josh, stick to the papers.
Rating:
Summary: Trying to glorify and ego
Review: I felt the book was pretty laughable and contrived, making much more out of the issue that it warrented. There was no substantive discussion of the very dark side of Bonds at all. It's as if the author just plain ignored all of Barry's detrimental realities and tried to make the reader beleive that it's always someone else's fault when there is a problem. The book would almost be funny if the author didn't actually seem to beleive the drivel he wrote. Trying to make some sort of silk purse out of a jerks ear. Give this one a miss.
Rating:
Summary: Trying to glorify and ego
Review: I felt the book was pretty laughable and contrived, making much more out of the issue that it warrented. There was no substantive discussion of the very dark side of Bonds at all. It's as if the author just plain ignored all of Barry's detrimental realities and tried to make the reader beleive that it's always someone else's fault when there is a problem. The book would almost be funny if the author didn't actually seem to beleive the drivel he wrote. Trying to make some sort of silk purse out of a jerks ear. Give this one a miss.
Rating:
Summary: Engrossing
Review: I have recently completed reading This Gracious Season, and I wish the book had no end!! It was great to find and read a sports novel that was not a statistic-laden glossary, one that included all of the elements in and behind the dugout. Not being a tremendous fan of Barry, I have now come to respect him more after knowing of all that went on during his record breaking season.
Rating:
Summary: Engrossing
Review: I have recently completed reading This Gracious Season, and I wish the book had no end!! It was great to find and read a sports novel that was not a statistic-laden glossary, one that included all of the elements in and behind the dugout. Not being a tremendous fan of Barry, I have now come to respect him more after knowing of all that went on during his record breaking season.
Rating:
Summary: Josh Suchon misses the show - some of it
Review: In spite of his Hall of Fame ability, Barry Bonds has long had a reputation as an arrogant unfeeling individual who does not serve well as an ambassador for the game, in the same sense that McGwire, Sosa, Gwynn, and Ripken have done, and a book about him doesn't seem to attract any interest outside of Giant country. To coin a phrase made notorious by Barry himself, are baseball fans still missing the show? This particular book is about author Josh Suchon's experience of Barry's record-breaking 2001 baseball season, which had the baseball world agog. And Suchon makes the mistake of allowing himself to become too close to his subject, even acknowledging that he envisions his book on Barry's bookshelf. But the book is not a "whitewash", as others have claimed. The title is based on the Shakespeare quotation set forth after the title page, and, in the present context, the word "gracious" is meant to describe Bonds's performance and not Barry himself. Suchon doesn't deny Barry's shortcomings; he simply places them in the perspective of his other qualities such as his work ethic and his willingness to play in pain. He also places Bonds's shortcomings in the perspective of the demands made on his time, the expectations held of him, the behavior of other ballplayers, and the context of the given situation. These are better derived from the book than described by me, but, to take one example, the infamous "Barry's corner" of the Giant clubhouse exists largely for therapeutic purposes. The $3,000 couch on which he lounges is a vibrating couch that heals his back, which was purchased by Barry, and not the team. Beyond that, Suchon misses very little. Like Ishmael, he makes his presence known but wisely does not impose too much of himself in describing events as they unfold, knowing full well that the story in itself is remarkable enough. Suchon covers the season from beginning to end, including the Giants' failure to sign Bonds to a long term contract before his "option" season started; and his relationship with his father, Bobby Bonds - an ex-Giant and star in his own right - and Bobby's teammates, Barry's godfather, Willie Mays and his boyhood idol, Willie McCovey. As a young boy, Barry was a fixture in the Giant clubhouse and would gaze at the players whose records he would someday chase. Barry's present-day complex relationship with the Giant front office and with his manager, teammates, and opponents, as well as the peaks and valleys of a season in which individual glory didn't necessarily bring about team success, is also discussed. Suchon also describes the challenges that Bonds faced during a season that must have sometimes seemed less than gracious, including a threat against his life, the actual death of a close personal friend, and a revision of perspective after September 11 (the post-tragedy hiatus also stymied the momentum he had built up beforehand). Most treacherous of all is the disdainful manner in which Bonds was treated by opposing pitchers who often simply refused to pitch to him, regardless of the game setting. Giants fans will long remember Houston Astros manager, Larry Dierker and his pitching staff skulking on the lowest end of the cowardice scale, and the TV camera shots of Barry's daughters holding signs pleading, "Please pitch to our Daddy". The relationship that Barry developed with the fans is worth several psychological treatises on human nature. Possibly the most unpopular ballplayer outside of the San Francisco Bay Area, Bonds has always been lustily booed when the Giants play on the road and when he chased McGwire's home run record last year, few fans were rooting for him to break it. And yet - when Giants opponents refused to pitch to Bonds, the fans - ESPECIALLY the Houston Astros fans !!! - would boo their own team with at least equal fervor! They might have been rooting for Barry's defeat but not at the expense of honor. It's a curious and gratifying aspect of the baseball fan that his sense of fair play might actually outweigh his personal dislike for an individual player. The book ends after Barry has signed a long-term contract to finish his career with the Giants. And Suchon strikes out by failing to adequately analyze the motives of the star who has said that he wants a World Series ring more than anything else including money but who merely sold his services to the highest bidder. Indeed, Bonds sold his services to an organization that devotes an extremely disproportionate share of its payroll to reward HIM and cannot or will not purchase the services of other stars that might help propel Bonds and his teammates into the show that Barry says he wants to perform in more than any other. Moreover, under Dusty Baker, the Giants have become a moribund organization that lives and dies on Bonds's shoulders. Under predecessor Roger Craig, the Giants were able to master the fine art of moving base runners and MANUFACTURING runs - when their sluggers couldn't overpower the opposition - and "stealing" wins with the hit-and-run, the sacrifice, and the squeeze play. But under Dusty Baker, Giant stewardship has become an entirely personality-driven affair, in which managerial decisions are based on favoritism, not talent or ability to deliver. And sound fundamental baseball is an ancient memory. This is a team designed to win only if its sluggers produce every day (which even Bonds is not capable of doing) because its manager does not demand or coach excellence in baseball fundamentals. Bonds must know all of these things and how they affect his championship dreams, but like the lady of Kent (!!!!), he "went" anyway. When analyzing Bonds's personality, the author fails to adequately expose and account for this. As a result, notwithstanding his thrilling depiction of the most gracious season ever bestowed on a ballplayer by the baseball gods, Josh Suchon still misses some of the show.
Rating:
Summary: It was like being there!
Review: Okay, I'll admit it. I DO like Barry Bonds, so I looked forward to reading this book. Was Josh Suchon a Bonds fan? Well if he wasn't when he started, he was by the time he was done! I think the book was written fairly, without bias, and it was very exciting, moving, and a great read. I knew the outcome, but I couldn't put the book down. And I didn't want it to end. If you don't like Bonds, don't buy this book. If you are on the fence, you ought to give it a try, because it may change your mind. Suchon did a great job recreating a fabulous season, during a very trying time in our history. I will read this book again and again. Thanks for writing it, Josh!
Rating:
Summary: Pretty much a love letter to Barry
Review: This book could have been great, showing the "real" Barry Bonds, the one who takes every advantage for himself at the expense of the great game and sometimes his own team. Instead, it is more or less a book written as Barry wanted it. The fact that the author admits he envisions the book on Barry's shelf is enough evidence that his goal was not to acurately tell the true story of the man and the season of 2001, but rather to tell a fictional story of Barry and furthers the fantasy of those blinded by their loyalty to the Giants that Barry is anything more than a good ball player who could care less about the game, his teammates, and the fans who pay his salary. The many inconsistencies between the accounts in this book and the reality of the season give further evidence that this is a work of fiction. The authors deliberate smooching of Barry to gain favor and be "allowed" to speak to the man shows the real sham here. Read other accounts of the same events by multiple other writers and you will see how Barry-serving and lopsided this book is. It's pretty much a fantasy.
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