Customer Reviews

Idiot: Beating "The Curse" and Enjoying the Game of Life

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

I'm a huge Sox fan, but hugely disappointed with this book. First, it's clear they rushed it to print to cash in on the recent WS win. Very poorly written (which isn't Damon's fault, as he's not a writer) The book jumps all over the place and repeats itself constantly. He continually talks about how the players don't care about the Boston media, but then focuses on it repeatedly. We all know Shaugnessey is an idiot. He didn't have to put it in the book 10 times.

As someone else mentioned, he does come off very cocky. Pinpoints certain stats in certain years to make himself sound like the league MVP. He calls out teammates/ex-teammates for specific plays/decisions.

I was hoping that this would be an "inside" look at the 2004 Sox from the player/clubhouse standpoint. Don't buy it if that's what you're looking for. Unfortunately, it's just an inside look at a player who thinks a lot of himself. I was surprised that he came off like this. I expect it from someone like Schilling, but really thought Damon was more down to earth. Oh well. I'll wait for Bill Mueller or Tim Wakefield to write a book before I buy another one.

I am glad I read this book before I saw Johnny Damon in a Yankee uniform, because the book is boring and could have been written by a tenth grader. Damon is in love with himself, talks trash about his ex-wife and the whole book sounds like a bad tv interview. I can happily look at Johnny Damon in Yankee gear and know it's no loss to the Red Sox.

Idiot is a good title for this book because it's written more like a high school dropout than a high school graduate. Damon gives very little real insight about the game or the team other than to indicate how cool he is. Hard to believe he even had a ghostwriter for this crap.

Like so many others, I am also a die-hard Sox fan and was, before reading this book, a big Johnny Damon fan. Still love the Sox, but a Damon fan no more. I'd assume (maybe wrongly) that someone writing their first book would write about the things that matter most to them. It comes as no surprise that the book is mostly about baseball and that makes sense because it's been the biggest part of Damon's life since he was a teen. What are the other most important things in his life? Apparently not his kids. Hardly mentions them. His new wife? He seems to like her, but we get no indication of why. Helping others? Well, if you count partying, I guess so. No, what Johnny really likes is himself. He loves his hair, he loves to party, he loves how he's a "go to friend", he loves how he "takes lots of balls for the team" as a leadoff man (he must mention that at least half a dozen times), and he loves to be a passive aggressive critic of his teammates. From what he's written, he seems to have no depth as a person and seems to be living in a perennial frat party.

The inaccuracies in the stats, cited by others, are appalling.

Idiot indeed.

I was very much looking forward to reading this book. I've been a big Red Sox and Johnny Damon fan for a long time. Now, I don't think so much of Johnny. I figured, with the book being billed as a narrative on his baseball life, that it would be very biographical--what happened to him throughout his life. As others have said, he certainly did not fail to highlight the amazing ballplayer he saw in himself. He genuinely thinks very highly of himself. It was quite shocking. The one part that really brought me over the edge of not liking the book so much was when he talked about how he should have made the All-Star team, but Joe Torre never picked him. At one point, he also says that he had a chance to be named the 30th man to the All-Star roster, but Ichiro's fans in Japan got on the internet and voted. I can certainly understand those feelings if they were coming from a fan. Like I said, I really loved the image of Johnny Damon I knew before. I am sorry to say that he really did come off as a bit of a jerk in the book.

Up until I read this book, he was my favorite Red Sox player. Now, not so much. He truly is an idiot and a self centered one at that. No one should speak of the mother of their children in the way he does in this book. His children may read this someday and what will they think. He should be ashamed of himself.

The only thing I got from this book, other than the fact that Johnny Damon thinks very, very, very highly of himself, is that anyone can get a book published...even if there is no meaningful content!
I love the Red Sox and I still love Johhny Damon as a baseball player, but as an author, Mighty Johnny has struck out!

...and were just looking for a legitimate excuse, you should definitely read this book. Any Red Sox fan who was devastated by his defection to the hated Yankees should definitely give this one a whirl, as you will come away thinking, "Good riddance." You also come away with the understanding that for Johnny, it's all about himself and it's all about the money.

What this book is NOT is a good behind-the-scenes look at the 2004 Red Sox. You get a few good bits, but not enough to justify the price of the book. What you get a lot more of is Johnny Damon being repulsively full of himself. His statement that "I banged 9 women during my wife's 36-hour labor" was absolutely appalling and morally repugnant. Then he has the gall to blame HER for their divorce because she was "too paranoid." The book was pretty badly written and was full of typographical errors and factual mistakes that every casual fan will pick up on. I knew from previous input I had from others that I might not like the book, but I didn't expect to come away flat-out hating the guy. That is what this book will do to you. The degree of selfishness and boastfulness is nauseating.

Please save your money. If you MUST read it, get it from a library.

It's an interesting read, with some good anecdotes and inside-details about the team and their chemistry. But I can't fathom how they let this many mistakes get through - what was Peter Golenbock doing, sleeping through the whole thing? For example:

- misspelling people's names (including Sox bench coach Brad Mills)
- in the same paragraph referring to Jim Edmonds correctly and also as Jim Edwards
- talking about David Ortiz hitting a 2-run homer in game 1 of the ALCS to bring the score to 8-7...no, it was a 2-run double
- describing Mark Bellhorn's homerun in game 6 of the ALCS as going to right-center....no, it went to left field.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. Do you blame Damon for this? Maybe - shouldn't he know the name of his own team's bench coach? But again, Peter Golenbock supposedly contributed to this book, but I don't see how that's possible.

It's still an enjoyable, if quick, read, but you will have to look past tons of mistakes.

Johnny came off as being very "full of himself", something of which I didn't think he was. Like other diehard Sox fans, I was very disappointed in this book.It was actually a hard read for me as I had a problem getting through it due to Johnny's conceit.
Not a book that I would recommend to others.