Description:
The motivation behind most sports biographies is more inspiration than revelation, but in Davis's case the two fit like hand in the outsized fielder's glove he's wielded so brilliantly in Cincinnati, Los Angeles, Detroit, Baltimore, and now St. Louis. Indeed, each chapter is a mixture of memoir and pep talk divided under the subheads of "Adversity/Blessing" and "Strategy/Life Lesson." The real surprise is how compelling Davis's life and life lessons have been even beyond his storied battle with and return from colon cancer, an odyssey that arced from doubt and despair to Comeback Player of the Year. Like his great buddy Darryl Strawberry, he managed to survive growing up in the gang country of Los Angeles--a feat in itself--fueling his big dreams with enormous talent. An extraordinary junction of faith, speed, power, and dedication took him to the Majors with a "Can't Miss" weight on his shoulders, but injuries detoured the great promise. Davis, doggedly persistent, shares what he's drawn from that with insight and humility instead of bitterness or regret. "It's important to see things as they are as well as how you wish they could be," he writes simply. It's a most valuable reminder in any pursuit. --Jeff Silverman
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