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Loading... Playing for Pizzaby John Grisham
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. My boyfriend gave me this as part of a birthday basket... what was he thinking?? Did he even read the cover to see what the book was about? Football, football, and more football. The main character isn't even that likable. This is my least favorite Grisham of all time. The ending was dumb, the girl was unlikable, too. Guys who don't read much might like this, don't know. (  )dhunt706 | Apr 14, 2009 |   Meh. I prefer Grisham's law books. But considering I'm not a fan of football--and I'm from Ohio, where OSU fever is a state religion--I could be biased. I AM a fan of Italy and other stories of living abroad, so that made up for my lack of sport-ish-ness. A few funny parts--the pasta that almost made him cry, learning the thrills of trying to parallel park in Italy while fighting with a stick-shift (it made me feel proud that I am an expert stick-driver!), etc. Not a lot of character development. Rick is still a 3rd-string jock named... Rick. He leaves a cold note to the woman who I thought treated him pretty well--"I've been ditched by better women"--and who I liked much better than the art history student. For me, the look at Italy was the book's saving grace. I've always dreamed of going abroad for awhile, and perhaps someday I will. Italy is near the top of my list, but Greece is my escape of choice. (  )wispywillow | Mar 22, 2009 | When Ray Dockery's lacklustre NFL career ends with a bang, he's unable to give up on the game and decides to play in Parma, Italy for a season while he evaluates his options. Unsurpisingly, he learns to love the game, leave prima donna thoughts behind and make friends with his teammates. While the plot was nothing special, the characters were likeable and the tenuous ending worked well. (  )Elishibai | Mar 1, 2009 | I admit that I only picked up this John Grisham CD in my library because I could not find another CD with a narrator I could easily understand (I am hearing impaired). After reluctantly placing this disc into my CD player, what I found was a most engaging story. Agreed that some of it was not totally realistic, but, in exchange for a well-written literary novel, what I got was a surprisingly entertaining story. It was laugh-out loud funny in some places (driving that manually-controlled Fiat) and as exciting as a play-by-play (the football games themselves). Don't choose this book unless you want light entertainment and have at least an inkling of the rules of football. If you are okay with both, you'll find some fun reading here. After reading this book, I was later delighted to find out that there is actually a Parma Panthers team that plays American football in Parma, Italy! (  )SqueakyChu | Feb 16, 2009 | 1  New to Grisham, when my local library added the audio version of Playing for Pizza, it seemed like a quick way to get into him during commutes. I should've picked something else. Cardboard characters, a plot from the mirror of some frustrated Romance Writer trying to bring Three Coins in the Fountain up-to-date. Because other reviewers consider it atypical, I may have another go at Grishim; else he would be off my list ( )Kendall41 | Jan 16, 2009 | 0.108 seconds to build listing  no reviews | add a review
Amazon.com (ISBN 0385525001, Hardcover)Playing for Pizza: A Q&A with John Grisham Q: American football in Italy seems like an unlikely subject for a John Grisham novel. What was the inspiration for Playing for Pizza? A: Three years ago when I was in Bologna researching "The Broker", I discovered American football. One of my guides in the area played football for the Bologna Warriors for 10 years. I couldn't believe that American football actually existed there, but the more I heard about it the more intrigued I became. Q: There is some great football writing in this novel. What kind of research was involved in capturing how this American institution is played in small town Italy? A: The only way to research the book was to go to Parma and watch a game. The coach is an American who played at Illinois State, and he proved to be extremely valuable. I met many of the Italian players and the story simply unfolded. Q: Speaking of research, you write lovingly of Italian food and wine in this book. What's your idea of the perfect Italian meal? A: First course: prosicutto and melon; second course: stuffed tortellini; third course: roasted stuffed capon, all served with a great Barolo wine. Q: Without giving away too much of the plot, your protagonist falls in love by the novel's end. Did you know when you started writing that Rick would get the girl? A: Of course. Q: You have a new legal thriller coming in January 2008. Can you give us any hints about what to expect? A: I really don't like to talk about a book until it's finished. Sorry. But it will not be another work of non-fiction, nor will it be about football. Lots of lawyers in the next one.(retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:58:19 -0400) The first test round has been closed. Visit the Open Shelves Classification group for details. |
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