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Loading... Paper Lion (edition 1967)by George Plimpton
Work detailsPaper Lion by George Plimpton
 Deb85 | Mar 12, 2011 |  Readable and enjoyable tale of a geeks adventure into jockland- before the apothoesized themselves. Things in sports were better then, and this book is a fine example of the difference. (  ) JNSelko | May 11, 2010 | Excellent writing about being a outsider in the Detroit Lions camp. One of Plimpton's earliest and best examples of participatory sports journalism. (  ) Othemts | Nov 19, 2008 | Forty-five NFL seasons have passed since writer George Plimpton convinced the Detroit Lions to let him experience the NFL, firsthand, as a last-string quarterback. In addition to fluid writing, gallows humor, and unconventional journalism, this classic offers an irresistible portrait of professional football was a game, not an industry. Plimpton’s takes us inside a smoking, drinking NFL where plays are improvised in the huddle and America’s best athletes network for summer jobs. Whether you’re a football fan or not, ‘Paper Lion’ will be a Sunday afternoon well-spent. ( )1  seanpmurray | Apr 27, 2008 | Hopefully there is a worthy biography of the late George Plimpton coming soon but in the meantime, the Paper Lion is a great place to start. Alan Alda played Plimpton in the movie adaptation of this book and that should give you some sense of its humor and playfulness. It is a very enjoyable read and evokes a different time (the pre-radical 60's), place (NYC, etc.), lifestyle (Ivy League "preppie" before the word preppie entered the larger lexicon) and era in professional sports (pre-tattoo, dreadlocks and the need for drug tests). Plimpton, who was very slight and not overly athletic, eventually had a series of these books where he put himself in the midst of large, skilled professional athletes with predictable results. He was looking for a good story and hoping to come out alive - he achieved both. If you enjoy humor and have even a mild interest in sports, you will like this book very much. (  ) SBmeier | Apr 19, 2008 | no reviews | add a review
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Wikipedia in English
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The sense of fun is woven throughout the book, with Plimpton telling many stories of high-jinks and hanging out with the other players, talking, singing, playing cards, and pranks. In discussing coaches, he focuses on how each coach's character is revealed by how he plays cards.
Throughout the book, there are tips from top players of the time. Plimpton covers quarterbacking, defensive safety, and playing on the line.
Plimpton is a keen observer of human quirks and uses them to bring people to life on the written page. He has a light, breezy style, which makes this a fun book to read.