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Summary: A wonderful, passionate book!
Review: I wish all the US writers who bash "the beautiful game" that know nothing about it would read this book. It's a wonderful insight into the lives of soccer fanatics (both American and Italian), professional athletes that haven't made it to the top level, and Italians in general. I made my grandfather read it (who is purely a american football and race cars kind of guy) and even he loved it. My highest recommendation!
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Summary: A fascinating fairy tale.
Review: The Miracle of Castel di Sangro is an absolutely fascinating book. I was lucky enough to be part of the Castel di Sangro joy in 1996/97 and I have had the honor to be at the stadium in the final match against Pescara. The way McGinniss describes the people, the players and the same rules of football is really beautiful. The memory of those fantastic people at Castel di Sangro deserved to go down in history, and thanks to this wonderful book it has happened. The fairy tale of Castel di Sangro will live forever in our hearts.
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Summary: Un Talesesque Giro
Review: I too was infected with the tifoso virus during the 1994 World Cup. McGinniss's book has made my obsession--my "special time" watching "Giostra di Gol" on my Dish, my trip to LA to see Napoli's only victory in 1998 over Chivas (a friendly), and my regular trips to the newsstand to buy two-day old copies of the GdS--seem somewhat normal.The astonishing thing about this book is the very human element which exists behind Italy's fabled Calcio. McG caputures this brilliantly. The access he was given was incredible. If you liked this book, I would also recommend "Hand of God: the Diego Maradona Story" by Jimmy Burns. Burns had much less access to his subject, but I can think of no other english language books about calcio. FORZA JOE !!
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Summary: An extraordinary memoir: fast-paced, fascinating, and funny
Review: This is a great book--not just about soccer, but about life. McGinniss tells the tale so skillfully that I couldn't help but start rooting for the underdogs from Castel di Sangro. McGinniss' wit and self-deprecating style make this a candidate for one of the best sport-related books of all time.
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Summary: Here in Italy soccer=religion and McGinniss knows it!
Review: I'm Italian, and I was so lucky to read in English "The Miracle of Castel di Sangro". Now also in the USA you will understand why soccer is a religion here in Italy: Joe McGinniss will take you to this tiny town of Abruzzo to see a miracle and then you will have the Faith!
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Summary: A fun look into the sexy lifestyle of Italian soccer players
Review: Great book that is interesting from both a relationship perspective as well as a sports perspective. The lifestyles and stories of sexy, flamboyant soccer players in the world-famous Italian soccer league are both intriguing and new. Given that the US is virtually the only country in the world that does not have soccer mania, it is interesting to get a glimpse into the people and the sport that the rest of the world is obsessed with.
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Summary: A funny, moving, wonderfully true-to-life tale.
Review: The Miracle of Castel Di Sangro is an absolutely wonderful book, through and through. Tremendously funny in places (many places), heartbreaking in others, written with the fluid grace of McGinniss' numerous other masterpieces of non-fiction, this book somehow manages to make the reader who knows and cares little about soccer into an ardent fan of a motley and courageous team from one of Italy's remotest areas. The reason for this, I think, is that The Miracle of Castel Di Sangro is, at its heart, not a book about soccer, or about Italy, and certainly not about McGinniss. It is a book about humanity-our ability to rise above ourselves, to betray, to love, to become furiously angry about injustice and at the same time to find ourselves in occasional partnership with it. The book reads as smoothly and engages us as deeply as the best novels, but what makes it special is the author's unflinching honesty and his gift for taking ordinary life and making it into art. A lesser writer-one might even say a lesser soul-would have written an account that sugar-coats the miracle of Castel di Sangro. McGinniss, while giving the heroic players and townspeople every ounce of their due, refuses to do this. Beautifully written and finely structured, as heartbreaking as it is uplifting, The Miracle of Castel di Sangro is, in these overly careful days, not only a beautiful and gripping book, but a morally courageous one.
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Summary: Another Masterpiece from McGinniss
Review: The intensity and passion of the players on and off the field comes alive with McGinniss' new novel. With the brilliant investigate style that was evident in Fatal Vision, McGinniss portrays the players not only as equals, but as friends. The Miracle of Castel Di Sangro is not only a book about soccer, it's a book about life. I recommend this marvelous book to anyone who wants to know how it feels to win, to score, and to feel alive. Zack Katz
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Summary: Fantastic, moving, changed the way I think!
Review: I was lucky to get to read an advanced copy of this book, it is great. Don't think that it is about soccer. It is about an Italy through the eyes of an american, and an american through the eyes of Italy. McGinniss draws you in with his magnificent writing. A wonderful memoir and a story you will never forget!
Rating: 
Summary: A Pleasant, Occasionally Frustrating, Read
Review: The Miracle of Castel Di Sangro is a wonderful read. McGinniss is an excellent writer, and soccer (or football) fans will particularly enjoy his description of spending a full season with one of the most unlikely soccer teams to ever find success in Italy's famous soccer leagues (specifically in Serie B). To sum up the plot, McGinniss spends a full season with a squad of soccer players from a tiny mountain town who have "miraculously" reached a level of competition against some of the most storied football cities in Italy. The motley crew of players makes for a wonderful cast of characters, and the twists of fate they face keep things moving at a frenetic pace. However, it is hard to believe that any adult can be as naive and idealistic as McGinniss professes to be as unexpected events unfold during his time with the Castel Di Sangro team. After all, this man covered the OJ Simpson trial and should be familiar with the darker side of human nature. In the final analysis, this is a delightful book marred only by McGinniss'occasional bouts of self-righteousness.
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