Customer Reviews

Maillot Jaune: The Yellow Jersey

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

 

 

I very much liked this book, and I don't mind that it doesn't have much about Lance Armstrong. After all, 1) it was written before his domination of the Tour and 2) it's really meant to be about the older European stars of the Tour -- 30's to 70's is really the strength of the book. Be forewarned that it's pretty week from the 80's on. Hey, there's not much about Jan Ulrich either, and he won the Tour in 1996 before Lance did and supposedly well before the publication date.

Also keep in mind that it's not a text book history. The book is meant to give you a sense of personalities and rivalries. These people are household names in Europe, and detailed factual biographies would be out of place. This book is more like love letters and old pictures in the family album. Old disagreements are of more interest than statistics. This book is for lovers of road racing, not historians. It is heavy on the French side of racing, so there is still a lot to learn about when you put the book down. Think of it as a family history of the Tour written by the French relations.

Ever read a European cycle magazine? They are just like this book, full of gossip and pictures, and what some sprinter's family looks like, and a picture of his first road race when he was 12, and why he can't stand so-and-so who moved over to another team, etc., etc...

Summation: Hey, if you want pictures of Lance, go elsewhere. This book is for you if...
1) you want learn about the personalities of older European stars of the TdF, and find out why they were so beloved,
2) you want to learn about the TdF before the Tour was fashionable in the US,
3) you want to get a sense of the hardships cyclists faced in the early years of the sport,
and 4) maybe get inside of the head of those weird French riders and Tour organizers,
this is a good place to start.

The Tour de France is, to me, the most compelling sporting event ever, so I really enjoyed the historical photographs, as well as the account of the origin of the Yellow Jersey. There are lots of charming anecdotes, and a rough overview of the careers of some of the big names. The bit on Lance Armstrong is too brief and seems to hold him and his accomplishments at arm's length, but then it was written by a Frenchman.

All in all, the text is less than stellar, but the photographs are really wonderful, so I'm glad I bought it, though I'd look elsewhere for a thorough history.

Trying to make sense of the text - translated from the French - is the main enjoyment of this book (if, that is, you consider deciphering tortured syntax enjoyable). The book struck me as a 'rush to publish' to capitalize on Lance Armstrong and the TDF.

While there are some nice photos of past Tours, I think my money would have been better invested elsewhere.

Some really great vintage photos in this book. Text is good but similar to o lot of other TDF books. Depends what you are looking for or how familiar you are with the history of the race. I like the book for the images mostly.

Buyer beware of this book. It is a US edition of a French book that has been available since 1999. The jacket for the book says it has been updated to include a chapter on Lance Armstrong. Hardly - they added a few mediocre photos. Worse yet, I have found errors in the information provided in the body of the book. The editor may use the excuse that tables have not been updated for the 2001 edition. OK, but there are still errors from the 1999 edition. I had hoped to learn something from this book, but can't trust it. As Groucho once asked, "How many Frenchmen can't be wrong?" By purchasing this book (from publisher, not Amazon), I found at least one. C'est la vie? One star for historic photos. Check out Graham Watson if you want current photos. His work is outstanding!