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Books : Playing for Pizza |
Price: $6.99 Prices subject to change.
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
EAN: 9780440244950
ISBN: 0440244951
Label: Dell
Manufacturer: Dell
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 320
Publication Date: July 22, 2008
Publisher: Dell
Release Date: July 22, 2008
Studio: Dell
Sales Rank: 307906
Related Items:
Editorial Review:
Product Description:
Rick Dockery was the third-string quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. In the AFC Championship game against Denver, to the surprise and dismay of virtually everyone, Rick actually got into the game. With a 17-point lead and just minutes to go, Rick provided what was arguably the worst single performance in the history of the NFL. Overnight, he became a national laughingstock and, of course, was immediately cut by the Browns and shunned by all other teams.
But all Rick knows is football, and he insists that his agent, Arnie, find a team that needs him. Against enormous odds Arnie finally locates just such a team and informs Rick that, miraculously, he can in fact now be a starting quarterback–for the mighty Panthers of Parma, Italy.
Yes, Italians do play American football, to one degree or another, and the Parma Panthers desperately want a former NFL player–any former NFL player–at their helm. So Rick reluctantly agrees to play for the Panthers–at least until a better offer comes along–and heads off to Italy. He knows nothing about Parma, has never been to Europe, and doesn’t speak or understand a word of Italian. To say that Italy holds a few surprises for Rick Dockery would be something of an understatement.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
Amazon.com Review:
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.
Average Rating: 
Rating:  -
Leaving the courtroom for the football field, John Grisham gives us Playing for Pizza, where we meet Cleveland Browns third-string quarterback Rick Dockery, who is lying in his hospital bed unconscious from a severe concussion. Rick, it seems, took the field at the end of an all-but-sewn-up game that would have propelled the long-suffering Browns into the Super Bowl. With Cleveland about to go bonkers, Rick throws three interceptions in the final quarter - the last resulting in the massive hit that ... Read More
Rating:  -
I thought this book was awesome. I have recommended it many times and I do not really care for Grisham's usual stuff. I like something different and I enjoyed this. But you do have to be a football fan to understand what is happening and why. Why and or how, did the character end up in the situation that he did? He certainly found his career as a pro-football player in a whole new light. The ending was almost predictable but so what? I found it to be easy and refreshing.
Rating: -
John Grisham is best known for his legal fiction books, of course, but has written four fiction books devoted to other themes: A Painted House, Skipping Christmas, Bleachers and Playing for Pizza. As in all his books, Grishom's style reads almost as if it were non-fiction, and this book is no exception.
Charley Cray captures the essence of the book in his notes at half time of the Italian Super Bowl:
"-- Not a bad setting for a game; handsome stadium, well decorated, enthusiastic ... Read More
Rating: -
I was not a big John Grisham fan until I read this book on the recommendation of a friend. Great for any sports enthusiast but the football references give way to more elaborate storylines and descriptions of small italian villages.
Rating:  -
John Grisham should stick to legal thrillers.
A friend recommended this book. As a Cleveland Browns fan coupled with the fact that I got the book for $1 at the used book rack of the libary I thought it was worth a try. Obviously I thought wrong. All of the critics who panned it were right on the money.
There's virtually no plot and a lot of lose ends. The end is predictable, the characters shallow, the entire situation is unrealistic.
Don't waste your time or effort. ... Read More
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