Inside the Peloton: Riding, Winning & Losing the Tour De France

Rating:
Summary: You should only buy this book if....
Review: You should only buy this book if you really enjoy reading about some of the legends of cycling. These amazing riders are a great story tell the history of the Tour de France. But, the drawback with this book is you have to interpret some very slanted opinions, and try to stay with the author as he jumps around, often completely off the subject. I'm not sure of the authors origin, but it heavily reads as a British interpretation of cycling, with a few vague barbs and criticisms against American cyclists and the culture that they grew up in. He makes many overtly negative remarks about the current champion, Lance Armstrong, and indirectly references him throughout the book. I wonder if the author makes a concientious snub at Lance by not dedicating a chapter to him as he does with all the past champions. Even negative occurances in cycling history seem to be the fault of the "Continental culture" that surrounds the riders of the Tour de France.
I much prefer Samuel Abts style of writing, where he gets the riders words to tell the story. He must have an amazing trust from the peloton for so many of them to speak freely with him.
Graeme Fife appears to have met with a few of the riders he writes about, but for the most part his words read like a book report. He often waxes poetically off the subject of the rider, and extends the pages with irrelevant "filling", apparently culled from a library or popular opinions rather than the riders themselves.

Rating:
Summary: You should only buy this book if....
Review: You should only buy this book if you really enjoy reading about some of the legends of cycling. These amazing riders are a great story tell the history of the Tour de France. But, the drawback with this book is you have to interpret some very slanted opinions, and try to stay with the author as he jumps around, often completely off the subject. I'm not sure of the authors origin, but it heavily reads as a British interpretation of cycling, with a few vague barbs and criticisms against American cyclists and the culture that they grew up in. He makes many overtly negative remarks about the current champion, Lance Armstrong, and indirectly references him throughout the book. I wonder if the author makes a concientious snub at Lance by not dedicating a chapter to him as he does with all the past champions. Even negative occurances in cycling history seem to be the fault of the "Continental culture" that surrounds the riders of the Tour de France.
I much prefer Samuel Abts style of writing, where he gets the riders words to tell the story. He must have an amazing trust from the peloton for so many of them to speak freely with him.
Graeme Fife appears to have met with a few of the riders he writes about, but for the most part his words read like a book report. He often waxes poetically off the subject of the rider, and extends the pages with irrelevant "filling", apparently culled from a library or popular opinions rather than the riders themselves.