Rating: 
Summary: A Brilliant, Heart-Breaking Book
Review: This is the less-known but perhaps best of several books about the lure of basketball in the inner city. But where "Hoop Dreams" and "Last Shot: City Streets, Basketball Dreams" chronicled the dreams of African-Americans in the major cities of Chicago and New York, "Fall River Dreams" chronicles the dreams of lower-middle class whites in the nowhere city of Fall River, Massachusetts.I know Fall River, and its depiction in this book is unsentimental and unsettling. This is an author with an eye and an ear for the life of this city, and he writes with a journalist's precision and clarity. Yet what makes this book great is being able to read it now knowing what happened to the book's central subject, Chris Herren. Herren was a can't-miss prospect who ended up missing. Despite some modest success in college and in the pros, Herren did not become the major star everyone thought he would become. His struggles in the book are all the more poignant now that we know what became of his life. The lesson of all these books is that basketball is not the answer to all of life's problems, even if you are the best of the best. Larger forces can overtake you.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent story, amazing kids.
Review: This story is an unbelievable tale of a town's passion for basketball and the problems the basketball players themselves face. Chris Herren is a remarkable story, for, while being one of the greatest high school and collegiate offensive players in recent time, he also fell into many of the traps of high school and, later, college life. This book is highly recommended, and, in a interesting sidenote, Bill Reynolds, the author, married Chris Herren's mother who divorced her husband during the writing of this book.
Rating:
Summary: Great characters, great book
Review: This was one of the best sports books I've read in a while. I really enjoyed Friday Night Lights, and think that this book is it's equal. Thought I am slightly biased, growing up in the Fall River area, and personally watching several Durfee games. But no one can deny the honest and genuine nature of the emotionally charged characters in this story. The relationship between Skippy Karam and Chris Herren is one of a kind. Skip being the living legend trying to go out on top one last time, and Chris trying to live up to all the expectations put on him by the media, colleges, and his family, even though he cleary isn't ready to grow up. The interaction between these two is usually confrontational, but often hilarious as Chris continues to push Skippy to his limit.
Another great character that seems to almost get lost in the mix is Jeff Caron. Jeff is the second best player on the team, but would be a stand out at any other high school in the area. He seems a little jealous at times, but always remains a team player. He is a sort of an outsider among his teammates and the book does a fine job of telling his story.
Rating:
Summary: Desire For The Game
Review: When I read this book for the first time (I've read it many times, since it is so inspiring), I ended it in the middle of the night, and I still was so pumped up from the emotions of this story, that I wanted to go out and play right now. You may be wondering why I was up all night reading it. I simply couldn't put it down. Living within 20 minutes of Fall River, I have heard of Chris Herren many times. The passion and emotions that come alive in basketball put you in a trance, and this book epitomizes all those emotions and smoothly sweeps them together. I definitely recommend this for anyone who needs the motivation to get up and play. I guarantee it'll be hard not to after reading this book.
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