Customer Reviews

Into the Story: A Writer's Journey through Life, Politics, Sports and Loss

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As a fellow journalist, I read David Maraniss' latest work with fascination. He writes with such elegance; he makes it look effortless.

In the preface of 'Into The Story,' Maraniss examines his journalistic philosophy, how he approaches a story and how many 'reporters/writers' of the day seemingly miss the point of objectivity; they try to insert themselves into the story instead of getting out of the way. Search for the truth and report the story accurately. In addition, observation and awareness of the subject cannot be overstated enough. It's a poignant moment. More than that, Maraniss doesn't high brow it, or come across as self-righteous, when he could. He's earned the right.

In the first few essays, Maraniss examines the accidental death of his baby sister and the brilliance of his older brother, who is able to juggle academia and minutiae outside of his field. Maraniss writes with glowing admiration, seeded in his love for his siblings. Reporting on the death of his sister, Wendy, he wrote, "Wendy died immediately of a ruptured aorta; literally, a broken heart." Wonderful writing, as painful as that had to be.

He touches on writings from previous books and delves into past essays from the Washington Post, as well as other publications. The tireless research, coupled with an uncanny grasp of language, is the reason why he can effectively cover such diverse genres - from politics to social mores to sportswriting.

All in all, one of the best reads in a long time.

David Mariniss is a great writer. He has a gift for narrative and almost always tugs on the heartstrings. Somehow, despite Mariniss's immense talent, INTO THE STORY, doesn't quite work. It is hard to explain, but in reading the pieces straight through, they don't hold up as well as they do individually. The best are taken from his great books on Clinton and Lombardi. When reading them, you want to pick up those books again. The others read like "bonus" pieces that on their own satisfy, but in an anthology come back to the same punch line once too often. Perhaps that is what becomes apparent, that he has one tale, a great one, but read so many times in a row it loses its spark.

David Maraniss is one of my favorite authors. I have read all his books, except the one on Al Gore, which I have no interest in. This book is sort of a "Reader's Digest" version of some of his other books. One of my favorite books of all time,

I've only gotten through the first couple of chapter of this book, but it seem to be really interesting from a humanistic point of view. He doves into the trials and tribulations of his sister's tragic death and with him coming to terms with is fatality. In addition, delivers correlation between on-site reporting and what actually is on the front-page for viewers to realize. This is definitely a must read as added clarification for those who have one source of information as their guide to journalistic reality.

I HAVE COME TO EXPECT ONLY THE BEST FROM ANY ORDER TENDERED TO AMAZON...AND AM NEVER DISAPPOINTED. THIS LATEST D. MARANISS BOOK WAS DELIVERED WELL WITHIN THE GIVEN TIME FRAME...A CONVENIENCE BECAUSE IT WAS A BIRTHDAY GIFT. THANK YOU...ONCE MORE!

Very disappointing book. I expected more from this talented journalist who wrote great biographies of Clemente and Lombardi. The non-judgmental political correctness is annoying as is the trivial mistakes (it was Thurman Munson who Sparky Anderson referred to, not Carlton Fisk).
It seems that Maraniss wanted an anthology collection and downloaded his journalistic notebook to create this book.
Don't bother.