jsmorris's Full Review: John Grisham - Playing for Pizza
Usually John Grisham writes about courtroom dramas and other legal aspects but he left his comfort zone with PLAYING FOR PIZZA. This is a heartwarming tale of American Football in Italy and has all of the things a good book has: football, drama on the field, drama off the field, a crazed sports writer, a down-and-out quarterback, etc. I enjoyed his detour and even had a few smiles while reading.
PLAYING FOR PIZZA centers around Rick Dockery, a third string quarterback who had a disastrous career in the NFL in the United States. When Dockery loses a playoff game by throwing multiple interceptions and losing a large lead, on the last play of the game he’s knocked unconscious. He comes to in a hospital with his agent, Arnie, giving him the bad news that he’s been waived and no other NFL team is interested in him. Rick knows nothing other than football and tells Arnie to find him a team and not in arena ball. Arnie does what is asked and gets an offer for Rick to play in the Italian league which pays far less than arena ball but not even the arena ball teams want Rick on their roster.
A pending paternity suit and no other offers on the table force Rick to accept the contract. Rick travels to Italy where he finds things very different than he has ever experienced. Football is very different in this country: The players are not paid, only a maximum of 3 Americans are allowed on one team (who are paid a pittance of a salary), and many of the players are middle aged. They play for the love of the game and the free pizza and beer parties each week which is very unusual for Rick to understand. He is also forced to learn how to drive a standard shift car, learn how to parallel park (which caused a few smiles with the descriptions and problems he encounters), and figure out new customs. Not only is this a feel good type of book but it makes the reader take a look at life and wonder if our expectations are skewed – what happened to living life for the love of it or the fun? When did things become so goal and money oriented? What would life be like if we did what we loved because we loved it with no other ulterior motives?
The subplots were fun and some were superfluous but necessary or it would be a very short book. I’m not sure about the entire opera singer, Gabriella, scenario where Rick sees an opera, falls madly in lust, has a few lunches with her and well if I told the rest it would spoil this subplot. Suffice it to say it left me scratching my head. Yes we know professional athletes lust after young beautiful women and have sexual escapades with many women but if it’s not important to the grand scheme of things, why include bits and pieces of these incidents?
The best subplots involved Rick’s teammates. Each had vivid personalities and was interesting. Even Tommy, the old man on the team was interesting. He seemed to live a non-Italian life which was thought to be boring, but instead was fascinating. I got to the point where I enjoyed hearing about Franco, the local judge; Giancarlo, the cement truck driver; Sam, the coach; Nino, the restaurant owner who boasted to have the best food in Parma; and many others. Each of these characters was unique and very devoted to football because they loved to play the game.
The moral of the story was to look at your life and see if you are living for the fun or are you selling out for money and fame. The ending left me wondering what would happen next (possibly a sequel?) and I was not happy things were left open ended – I want to know what happens next! That explanation does not give away the ending; it just lets you know that you will wonder after you read that last page.
Overall the book was enjoyable and should be read by any football fans or those who are interested in knowing about American sports in other countries. There are some enjoyable times and some that are fair. It’s a quick read with only 262 pages so you can get through it quickly. I’d recommend it when you want a change of pace and are tired of the courtroom dramas, mysteries and romances.
A departure from his acclaimed legal thrillers, Grisham s #1 New York Times bestseller about an American s introduction to Italian football and food i...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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