Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream (1990)

This book came out about 20 years ago, so some of the types and scenes that were undoubtedly fresh when Bissinger wrote them feel a little cliche by now. Still, this is a powerful book. Bissinger does a great job of showing just how corrosive it can be to these teenagers to lionize them as high school football stars without preparing them in the least for the future, while still making the reader's heart race as the Permiam team advances in the play-offs. Football may be a destructive force in the lives of these young men, but it is also what makes this desperate town feel extraordinary, and that's a difficult thing to condemn. I love books that show how much power sports can have in a community, for better or worse, and this is the gold standard. ( )

What more can I say about this? It's a movie, it's a television show. I guess all I can say is that I read it before it was either and I was sold. ( )

Friday Night Lights is based on the 1988 Permian High School football team in Odessa, Texas. The team brings unity to the town every Friday night to rally in support of one common goal, to win. The football team is known for winning numerous State Championships and having great seasons. Odessa has two things, football and oil rigs. It is a racist community that only supports the African Americans when they are on the football field. Teachers could care less about the players’ grades because the game is more important to them. Permian’s star running back, Boobie Miles is one of the best running back in the country. He injures his knee before the start of the season and his return is questionable. With Boobie down it is time for someone else to shine. Quarterback Mike Winchell now has to step up and play better than anyone ever expected him to, otherwise he will be replaced. The Permians have a chance at the playoffs, like they always do, but the question is will they capitalize again? Bissinger does a wonderful job of putting the reader in the scheme. When reading it, I felt as if I was there.

Clayton D. ( )

I came to this book in the wrong direction. I first saw the television show, before seeing the movie upon which it was based. Only now do I get around to reading the book that set the whole thing in motion.

To make a long story short, it's great. Having seen its descendants, there weren't a lot of surprises, but it was nice to see that (at least before the final section of the book about the postseason) it cares more about the town than the team, carefully documenting the rise and fall of Permian, while only using the Panthers sparingly.

It's pretty relentless; constantly hammering home the idea that these young men, and through them, the town, are reaching the peak of their lives while still in high school. It's a bleak vision, but one that rings painfully true. I was never an athlete, and the closest I've ever come to the feelings these boys (and men) go through was in my high school's theater program. It's not the same thing, but I think I can recognize echoes of the football experience, from the exhilarating highs to the empty feelings of loss. It's scary to think that I've already done everything good that I'm ever capable of achieving.

Strangely, the book's biggest gut punch comes from the story of the players from Carter, the team that defeats Permian. The fact that those kids, just about to reach the golden ring of college (and potentially professional) football, could ruin everything by turning to a life of armed robbery is so strange, that I'd accuse Bissinger of fiction, if I didn't know it was true. It's a tiny moment near the end of a large and magnificent work, but it's a terrifying summation of the whole. ( )

Very good! In Odessa, Texas is one of the worlds most powerful high school football teams in the country. Their running back, Bobbie Miles, tramps over all his opponents, but when tragity strikes the team will have to rally together and play throught the season. The book is not a "fast" read but not slow either. I found it hard to put down after the first ten chapters and stayed up hlf the night reading to see what will happen next. A good read for teens through adults, or any sports fan. I most deffinatly recomend it!!!!!! ( )