1300 187 187
Bestselling author Jay Atkinson explores what his thirty year career as a rugby-playing vagabond has taught him about authenticity, commitment, passion and the joys of raising hell
If all sports are really about war, then rugby is a heartthumping epic of bayonet charges and hand-to-hand fighting. In Memoirs of a Rugby-Playing Man, Jay Atkinson describes his thirty year odyssey in the sport: from his hell raising days at the University of Florida, through the intrigue of various foreign tours, club championships, all star selections, up to his current stint with the freewheeling Vandals Rugby Club out of Los Angeles. Atkinson has played in more than 475 matches, for which he’s suffered three broken ribs, a detached retina, fractured cheekbone and orbital bone, four deadened teeth, and a dislocated ankle. Atkinson’s book explains why it was all worth it—the sum total of his violent adventures, and the valuable insight he has gained from them.
Praise for "Memoirs of a Rugby-Playing Man"
"Mr. Atkinson has written a hymn of praise for the rugby game and the rugby community that will ring true to anyone who has played rugby at any level, and will grip even those who haven't." -"Wall Street Journal"
"Atkinson's stylish, unabashedly macho memoir is fueled by two passions: his love of grind-it-out athletic competition and the obvious joy he takes in the high-testosterone, alcohol-fueled comradeship of his fellow rugby players.... Seeded throughout come lessons and insights gleaned from three and a half decades of broken bones and bruised hearts, soaring victory and stunning loss.... Nobody has better explored the game (and the life) of rugby better than Atkinson." -"Boston Globe"
"As a thirty-five-year veteran of the sports, the author's passion translates easily to the page, providing a reflective look at his entrance into what he dubs the 'blood fraternity' . . . A testosterone-laden tale deserving of an audience well beyond the locker room."---"Kirkus"
"Raucous... With intermittent nods to his fiction classes with famed novelist Harry Crews, the brash writer lists his many injuries from the game, but he remains loyal to this sport requiring commitment, skill, and discipline. There is a short stint in jail, drinking and brawls aplenty, and arguments that spill into the streets. Still, Atkinson, wised up from lessons on the rugby field and off, has created a brawny, engaging treat for followers of the sport and the curious." -"Publishers Weekly"
"A reminder of what the game's all about: the friendships you make, the places you go, the lengths you go to to get your weekly fix, the financial sacrifices those of us not swept up into the white card-infested, gouging claim-ridden, money-infected world of professionalism have to make in order to play. It's a reminder that playing and loving rugby, from top level to bottom level, is a lifestyle choice from which few return and even fewer w
ISBN: 9780312547691
ISBN-10: 0312547692
Audience:
General
Format:
Hardcover
Language:
English
Number Of Pages: 336
Published: 24th April 2012
Dimensions (cm): 24.2 x 16.6
x 2.9
Weight (kg): 0.508
9am - 4pm AEST, Monday - Friday
