Customer Reviews

Hometown Legend

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I fell in love with this book! While it's an easy read, the book gives us an excellent profile of rural America. The story has all the elements that will touch your heart. It'll make you laugh, cry and cheer. I loved the characters, especially Buster Schuler. Some of his lines had me laughing out loud. All I can say is Jerry B. Jenkins, you are without a doubt.

Of all the novels that claim to embody the American spirit, I believe Jenkins' tale of Athens City and its demise carries more ingredients than most. The football aspects are obvious, and Jenkins plays them well. The sport is truly the one game many in the nation are passionate about, particularly in a rural Southern town.

But this book has so much more inside it. Although there are many storylines, they all revolve around the enduring feeling of hope. Because it's a Jenkins' novel, God becomes the center of everyone's hope. Even for those who aren't deep-seated in their faith (and even get annoyed when characters like Rachel harp and harp until you see it her way), Jenkins delivers a message that even beyond spirtualness one can have an impact through selflessness and giving. The most poignant moment of all in this regard comes when Calvin finally gets it and realizes his love with Bev.

Behind the religious message and faith in God, Jenkins has produced a practical book that underscores so much of what Americans are all about: compassionate and caring. I think we have all seen that in the wake of Sept. 11.

I do not understand why this book did not get more attention. It's far better than the Left Behind series--more touching, more personal. I bought this book after seeing the movie (also great), and it's simply fantastic. I am very critical, and am not even much of a fan of stuff called "Christian fiction," but this is so much more than that, and I was completely blown away.

Buy this book!

This book, Hometown Legend by Jerry Jenkins, takes place in the south in high school. It is pretty intresting because it switches points of view from a child who grows up to be a teacher and a assistant football coach. This person is name Sawyer and he lives in this town until the end and in this book its shows difficulties and happiness that can happen in one place. The title of the story is based on a football lengendary player who hurt his neck in a championship game and died. After the coach knew he was dead he quit only ot come back again later to coach a team of 15 players to the championships. My favorite part of this book was when the football gmaes were occuring becasue they were always full of so much adventure and intensity. I recommend you read thhis book because it will give you a blast and it is very exciting.

Read this book and see what coaches can do for a community. This book is a great story about adversity, compassion, joy and discipline. It will make you laugh and cry. If you love highschool football the book reads real fast. Can't wait to see the movie about it.

Cal Sawyer is a widower and the top business employer of Athens City. He struggles with his feelings about Bev, one of his long time employees and to keep his American Leather Football Company--a small town factory--afloat. But if his company unravels, so does the city of Athens, once renowned for having a champion football team under coach Buster Schuler. If Cal's company crumbles, the high school his daughter Rachel attends will close its doors along with the town itself.

But when Buster Schuler returns to coach the Crusaders after resigning twelve years earlier following a tragedy, a candle of hope ignites in the city. The painful memory accompanies Schuler, but doesn't shake his dream to be back on top one more time. He's determined in spite of a rag tag team.

Cal's daughter Rachel has faith that Athens City won't become a ghost town. She strives to do her part to keep it alive and makes an effort to bring faith to one of the town's newest members, Elvis Jackson. But she finds herself saying all the wrong things to him. He carries a load of secrets, besides the football, and has a way of making Rachel see things she was unaware of about herself.

You don't have to be a football fan to enjoy this story. Jerry's characters come to life and you'll find yourself pulling with the inhabitants of Athens City and cheering on the Crusaders. They struggle to get back on top with little more than a prayer, and that prayer is a group of girls--one assigned to pray for each football player throughout the football season. Although Rachel's answer to prayer may not be what she hoped for, is in many ways better than she imagined.

Jenkins keeps the story moving along quickly and, once he establishes the characters, keeps them true to their personalities. The most believeable (and engaging) parts revolved around the football episodes and the narrator's relationship with Rachel; however, for me, the narrator's interactions with Bev did not ring as true as the rest of the storyline. Also, though the Christianity was sincere, it sometimes intruded unnaturally into the narrative (mostly toward the end). One other issue that detracted from the novel was when the coach kicks kids off the team for NOT fighting. Is this the action of a Christian coach? Even so, the characters are fully developed with both strengths and weaknesses. As the story progresses, the reader will easily predict where the plot is going; however, Jenkins does present a few surprises along the way. Overall, I can see this novel appealing to a wide audience--it has football, family relationships, and romance.

I have read all of the left behind books so I had an idea of Jerry Jenkins writing syle. What I found in this book was much more then I expected.

The story starts out by telling the reader how Cal Sawyer (Once one of the best wide receivers in the state) came to his current position as owner of American Leather in a small town - Athens, Alabama.

Cal's old high school football coach encounters a great tragedy in his life, quits coaching, and moves to Kansas. Twelve years later the town is falling apart. The school has a year left before it will close down and needs a football coach for the last season, and American Leather has laid off hundreds of employees and may shut down.

This is when Cal gets the phone call from his ex coach Buster and meets him to talk about some things. Busters' wife has become an alcoholic since the incident twelve years ago and is now in a local rehab center. Buster needs a job and thought Cal could help him out. Cal brings up the situation with the school and after some talking they decide to coach the team in its final season.

As the season unravels, many situations unfold in everyones personal life which makes this book such a heartwarming story. I read the book from cover to cover, I didn't put it down until I was done reading it. Do yourself a favor and read it!!!

Jerry B. Jenkins is one of the best known Christian writers out there today, and here he writes a novel with an earthy and real premise of a dying factory town and a dying high school and football team. Having lived at least some of my life in the deep south, most of the characters seemed real, although others, like Coach Schuler, seemed a bit too unrealistic to me, especially in some of the ways he treats his football team. Overall, however, this book was a good effort, teaches good values, had a good lesson, and held my interest throughout.

ISBN 0446529028 - My review is based on my reading of an ARC I picked up at a thrift store, so if I comment on things that didn't show up in your book, don't worry about it. First, I'd like to point out something on my book that isn't on yours: the publication date on it is September 10, 2001. Jenkins is the sort of author whose books normally catch attention, even mine, upon release, and I have to think the timing - if it was published then - on this one buried it. It's time for you to go back and pick it up.

Athens City is a small town in Alabama, where football is more than a sport, it's the lifeblood of the town - and the town is dying. The high school football coach left town following a tragedy in 1988 and for the last 12 years things have gone from bad to worse. American Leather, the town's main employer, is failing; jobless people have to leave town to be able to survive; the high school is facing its last year and can't even find a coach to take them through it. Until, that is, circumstances bring Coach Schuler home. With little more than hope on their side, can the team, the school, the company or the town get through alive?

I'm not a fan of Christian writing, but found that religion in the first half of the book slipped naturally and easily into the story. Near the end it began to feel as if Jenkins thought you might not get the message he was sending and the religious references began to feel forced and a bit heavy-handed. The hillbilly-esque writing, including a million uses of "a course" instead of "of course" or even "o' course", didn't read as naturally as the author seems to think it does. Still, with or without a faith in god, Hometown Hero is an easy read with an inspirational storyline and a really touching secondary story in Athens City's star player. Go, read!

- AnnaLovesBooks