Richard Williams (4) (1947–)

Since there are some fine reviews for this book, I’ll only make a few observations. The opening is a moving and riveting portrait of how impactful the tragic death of Ayrton Senna truly was; not just to his country, to whom he became a symbol of hope and excellence, but to the entire racing world, who knew that he was the greatest among them, perhaps the greatest of all-time.

You can feel Senna here in these pages, warts and all. The great moments on track are covered, including a near out-of-body experience for the religious Senna, when he went beyond the car's limits and something greater seemed to have taken over. By the end of this book, you feel how great Senna was, and understand why the word Senna, is and always will be followed by a moment of awe and sadness.

A byproduct of the portrait so deftly painted of this fine but flawed man, with talent so great it supersedes generations, is the understanding and insight provided to the reader about the corrupt politics and sometimes lack of integrity in Formula One. If you’re a real fan, you’ll already know, but this may be the finest book available to those who really don’t understand the nuances of this pinnacle of racing. After reading this, you’ll have a rather low opinion of some truly big names in the sport, and suspicions that the word of those over the years running the sport may not be all that trustworthy. Somerset Maugham once remarked that Monaco was a sunny getaway for shady people. It might be fair to say that after reading The Death of Ayrton Senna, many will come away thinking Formula One is a shady place for sunny people. At least some of them are sunny. Senna was like a bright sun whose good qualities combined with his talent to outweigh his flaws, and that definitely comes across in this relatively brief — by today’s bloated standards — look at his life, death, and impact.

When it comes to the crash that took him from us, no other section highlights more the shady nature of Formula One, especially at that time. The reader will come away asking themselves: Who is lying here? Because obviously, as this section highlights, someone is not being completely forthcoming. Senna’s well-founded suspicions that year about a rival team is covered, as is the mystery surrounding his crash, since many believe — and still do — that Senna was so good, that to make an error that basic was not in his racing DNA. That only leaves more questions, questions that will probably never be answered to anyone’s satisfaction.

All we can do is celebrate Senna’s life, and mourn his loss. And this book accomplishes both. I’d recommend this with the highest rating for any fan of the sport — whether a fan of Senna or just the sport in general. But most of all, I’d recommend this book to anyone who wants to grasp the world of Formula One. Both a touching tribute, an honest portrait, and a sometimes unpleasant look at the world’s pinnacle of racing.… (mais)

This book has been languishing on my bookshelf for quite a few years now. I think I originally bought it from Waterstones or Amazon as the synopsis struck me as something that would appeal to me but it has suffered from a few aborted attempts to read it. I am a big football fan but I haven't read a lot of books on the subject save for a few by journalists that I like, such as Jonathan Wilson. I have a keen interest in the tactical side of the game and hoped that this book would look into what made the chosen players unique in their position. Certain players, such as Maradona defined the position during the era he played and took it to a new level. I wanted to find out what was different about his game and what made him so much better than everyone else. I also hoped to gain some more insight into players I never got to watch play such as Puskas.

In the introductory chapters the author starts to explain what makes the number 10 position so special and how there have been quite a few slight variations on it over the years. He also details how hard it was to narrow his selection down to the final 10 (technically 11) players chosen. Those players are Ferenc Puskas, Pele, Gianni Rivera & Sandro Mazola, Gunter Netzer, Michel Platini, Enzo Francescoli, Diego Maradona, Roberto Baggio, Dennis Bergkamp, and Zinedine Zidane. It is a good mix of players from different nations who played during different eras of the game and provide a wide range of playing styles.

Sadly, despite the introduction, we are treated to a potted history of the chosen players which frankly lacks detail. There are also some very strange asides during these histories which are very out of place and detract from the matter at hand. There is no tactical insight and there is very little in the analysis of what made the player different to his compatriots. I would have expected some discussion on how Bergkamp for example would find space where none seemed available but Zidane's game had a more physical edge to it than is normally associated with a number 10. There are some wonderful passages, for example, Zidane's balletic movement and control of the ball seemingly at odds with his physical size and strength. There are however, some really glaring holes in the author's research, one of which in particular really irritated me. Williams implies that Zidane bulked up during his time in Italy using questionable methods prevalent in Italy at the time. This is a perfectly valid claim, but, he states that Zidane "used the drug Creatine". Creatine is not a drug, it is a food supplement which aids in muscle growth and recovery and it has never been banned by WADA, USADA or any other doping control agency. It is readily available and used by most athletes around the world where strength is a factor. A simple google search would have turned up this information but it would seem that Williams preferred the more sensationalist approach. He doesn't deal any further with this claim, which is quite inflammatory, basing it entirely on this one line.

This book promised a lot but delivered a fraction of that promise.… (mais)

If you recognise the man on the cover, you'll know you want to read this book. If you don't, I'm here to tell you - it is Chet baker - then you need to read this book. You may think that some of the pieces in here are not for you (Sinatra, Muddy Waters, whoever) but you'd be wrong. Richard Williams' writing brings each musician to life. If you've blood in your veins you'll immediately want to rush out and sample their music. It was published in 2000 and therefore should be viewed almost as a review of popular music of the 20th century. Rolling Stone magazine would call these 'think pieces'. But that barely does them justice.

I have read other books by this author and to my mind he is one of the best and most thoughtful writers out there. It is no wonder Miles Davis showed even a white Englishman such respect. But maybe I'm biased, as I happen to agree with every word of his portrait of Miles.

you like this, definitely find yourself a copy of Nick Kent's The Dark Stuff. These two books make great companion pieces.… (mais)