One on One: Behind the Scenes with the Greats in the Game [Hardcover]

John Feinstein (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 5, 2011

John Feinstein's illuminating recollections from two decades of interviews with sports legends.

John Feinstein's career is a sports fan's dream-a lifetime of encounters with the great figures in sports, not just on the field, but in the locker room and behind the scenes with legends like Bob Knight, Dean Smith, Mike Krzyzewski, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, and John McEnroe.

Since his days as a young Washington Post journalist, Feinstein has written twenty-eight books and countless magazine articles and newspaper columns, covering college basketball, golf, tennis, baseball, and very nearly every sport in between. He has told us of victory and defeat, of athletes and coaches we love--and love to hate. But some of his best stories have been left untold, until now.

One on One is an incredible portal into the sports we love-from the box scores and the pageantry of game night and into the hard work and intensity that turn players and coaches into legends.

Editorial Reviews

Review

PRAISE FOR JOHN FEINSTEIN

"One of the best sportswriters alive." (USA Today Larry King )

"Feinstein is the most successful sportswriter in America...He has the gift of re-creating events known to us all while infusing them with excitement, even suspense." (The Wall Street Journal Jay Nordlinger )

"Feinstein's genius is his ability to peel back several layers on the personalities involved...reminding you in the process that even the most obscure players have a story worth telling." (Golf Digest Sam Weinman )

"Fascinating...[Feinstein's] work, like that of the best American sports writers, is richly detailed and emotionally articulate...Feinstein's storytelling is so compelling, his understanding of the structural cruelties and emotional consequences of winner-takes-all competition so acute." (The Guardian David Goldblatt ) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

John Feinstein is the bestselling author of Moment of Glory, Are You Kidding Me?, Living on the Black, Let Me Tell You a Story, Caddy for Life, Open, The Punch, The Last Amateurs, The Majors, A Good Walk Spoiled, A Civil War, A Season on the Brink, Play Ball, Hard Courts, and two novels. He writes for Inside Sports, Golf, Tennis Magazine and Basketball America and commentates on NPR and CBS.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 544 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1 edition (December 5, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316079049
• ISBN-13: 978-0316079044
• Product Dimensions: 6.3 x 1.7 x 9.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #308,098 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #53 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Miscellaneous > Journalism

More About the Author

John Feinstein spent years on the staff at the Washington Post, as well as writing for Sports Illustrated and the National Sports Daily. He is a commentator on NPRs "Morning Edition," a regular on ESPNs "The Sports Reporters" and a visiting professor of journalism at Duke University.His first book, A Season on the Brink, is the bestselling sports book of all time. His first book for younger readers, Last Shot, was a bestseller.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

96 of 104 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Lots of Great Sports; But, Lacking Insights and Critical Examination December 5, 2011

By Peter Hillman

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

A long-time John Feinstein fan, I eagerly awaited "One-on-One: Behind the Scenes with the Greats in the Game," especially after hearing the author interviewed on NPR's "Fresh Air" last week. He told some fascinating stories about McEnroe, Woods, Capriati and others that we ordinary folks can't glean from the mainstream media. Such intimate telling, one could hope, would let us in on what makes some of our sports greats tick; and, what they, and Feinstein, think of the outsized roles they and their sports have come to play in our society.

This, sadly, is not that book. The title is a complete misnomer.

This book, rather, as Feinstein states clearly in his Introduction, is "a trip through reporting my first ten books, bringing me--and the reader--up to the present day." What's more, although the author adds: "This isn't meant to be a memoir," to this reader, the book most definitely has the pace, tone, look, structure and content of a memoir. There is very little "one-on-one behind the scenes," and hardly any that reveals something more interesting than what kind of tennis racquet someone used, or how nobly Bill Buckner owned up to an error.

Taking the book as the memoir it really is (and a very shallow one at that), other Feinstein fans surely will enjoy reading recaps of the author's long and up-and-down relationship with his "mentor," Bobby Knight, leading to the break-through book "A Season on the Brink"; his encounters with other great college basketball coaches; his passion for professional tennis and golf (also resulting in splendid books); his experience reporting on Army-Navy.... I found his chapter on his coming-of-age, soaking in the old Forest Hills tennis atmosphere and the entire New York sports scene of the 60's and 70's, very helpful in understanding Feinstein's transformation. The vignette of one of his early bosses at the Washington Post, Bob Woodward, saying of Feinstein's talent: "Don't blow it on sports," is beautiful!

But what's missing, in my view, is any sustained and meaningful, critical examination, of (1) what in Feinstein's view makes his favorite sports figures tick; and (2) what they, and the author, think of their work and accomplishments in a broader societal setting. In this regard, the book exists in a sort of vacuum. Decades go by but rarely does Feinstein critically appraise, let alone acknowledge, how all of the sports have evolved so radically. We read a lot about how much Feinstein ended up being paid for his first book or by the Post but there is hardly anything noted by anyone about the outrageous sums of money in pro sports. Drug testing, drug problems? None suggested here. Nothing about the sometimes-disturbing aspects of our sports. Lacking in any real perspective, the book struck me as a real ho-hum travelogue through events already well-delivered by the author. Unfortunately, the "Greats" in the games remain one-dimensional.

Which is not to suggest that there aren't some really fine parts. Portrayals of Ivan Lendl, Steve Kerr, Mary Carillo and David Duval struck me as insightful, honest "behind the scenes" looks and appraisals--as the title promised. More often than not, however, Feinstein believes the reader will be content just to have stock scenes and very conventional and unrevealing portraits.

Which in my mind is really a shame, given how ubiquitous and prolific Feinstein has been the past 25 years. Hopefully, now that he has gotten a rather self-absorbed memoir out of his system, he can focus on producing the great insightful "one-on-one behind the scenes" book he surely has within him. Read more ›

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Memorable moments and unforgettable people during a ten-book journey...thus far...featured in an eleventh book January 4, 2012

By Robert Morris HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

Memorable moments and unforgettable people during a ten-book journey...thus far...featured in an eleventh book

Others have their reasons for holding this book in high regard. Here are three of mine. First, with all due respect to the celebrities in sports with whom John Feinstein has been directly associated (e.g. Bob Knight, Mike Krzyzewski, John McEnroe, Arnold Palmer, Dean Smith, and Tiger Woods), I enjoyed even more being introduced to others who offer unique insights into the sub texture of "the thrill of victory ...and the agony of defeat," a tag line associated with the ABC's Wide World of Sports program on television (1961-1998). They include Steve Alford, Damon Bailey, Jim Cantelupe, Steve Kerr, Christina and Derek Klein, Esther Newberg, George Solomon, and Ted Tinling. For reasons best revealed in the book, each is a major contributor to Feinstein's personal growth and professional development.

Also, I really appreciate sharing Feinstein's perspectives on what he enjoys most (and least) about his career in sports journalism thus far, especially his take on what it is like to have access to so many major events, scrambling to make both domestic and international travel connections, and coping with hamster-brained "officials" who deny access (i.e. handlers, gatekeepers, security guards). What did he learn (and from whom did he learn it) about how to manage the logistics of travel, access, accommodations, food, rest and relaxation, and aspects of extensive travel?

Finally, there are his thorny relationships with various people, notably with Bob Knight, but also with Jim Courier, Rick Pitino, Bobby Valentine, Jim Valvano, and Tiger Woods. Eventually, he seems to have achieved mutual (albeit somewhat grudging) respect with each.... Knowing only what Feinstein shares about these relationships, I have only his point-of-view but he seems to make an effort to portray both sides of the given disagreements, misunderstandings, and accusations. There are other, less volatile relationships that Feinstein especially enjoys, such as those with his Washington Post colleague, Bob Woodward, as well as with Bud Collins, Sally Jenkins, Ivan Lendl, Jeff Neuman, and David Robinson.

My personal co-favorites among Feinstein's ten previous books are Civil War and Let Me Tell You a Story but he will probably be best-remembered for Season on the Brink. All are first-rate. Hopefully, he will publish several more books in years to come and then another One on One. Read more ›

15 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Another winner from Feinstein December 14, 2011

By InNJ

Format:Hardcover

I don't know of a writer who has been on the scene at more major sporting events than John Feinstein -- Final Fours, World Series, Wimbledons, U.S. Opens (tennis and golf), and many more. "One on One" takes us back through 25 years of encounters with the biggest names in sports, and it's an amazing journey.

Of course, names are "dropped." Would you expect him to leave out all the interesting people? Bob Knight and Mike Krzyzewski, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, Martina Navratilova and John McEnroe, and the rest each changed his or her sport in some way -- good or bad -- and Feinstein's encounters with them make for a great read.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining, but also misleading February 17, 2012

By Kelly Dunbar

Format:Hardcover

As a long-time John Feinstein fan, I was really looking forward to reading this book. However, I found the title to be a bit of a misnomer. There was very little sitting down "one on one" with any greats, and a lot of the interviews were simple rehashed stories. Now, there were some new stories as well, which were good, but on the whole, I felt like he drifted a bit from the purpose of the book. He seemed to make too may stories about him, which was annoying.

I have read every one of Feinstein's books, and I absolutely loved them all. Very insightful, you could tell how much work he put into the interviews, etc. Having said that, I feel like I walked away from One on One with very little new information. Now, when he was describing his research on the Majors, his '99 book, he was talking about how he was scheduled to sit and interview Tiger, and as I was reading this, I though, "hmmm, I remember Tiger was hardly mentioned in that book, and I always wondered why." Then he proceeded to tell the backstory in One on One, about how Tiger couldn't forgive JF for writing many bad things about his Father in the past, and it was nice, fresh information. The backstory on A Season on the Brink was also very insightful; how it came to pass, the fallout with Knight in the intervening 25 years, it was a fascinating story.

But sadly, these are few and far between. Too many rehashed interviews, it was almost as if he couldn't figure out what to do for his next book, so he just threw this together. Yes, there were untold interviews with Payne Stewart, Ivan Lendl (did anyone honestly care about the tennis portion? It's beyond a dead sport) etc, but they weren't all that interesting.... I will say that the last 80 or so pages did a good job catching up with Damon Bailey, some of the good characters from The Last Amateurs, and the guys from A Civil War, but these were hardly the greats in the game! And therein lies the problem with this book; when he did actually sit down for new interviews, they were hardly with Legends. It was too memoir-ish, with huge bouts of name-dropping, and he had too many stories where it seemed to be all about him.

The story about being stuck in Yugoslavia, going to see the mother of the recently defected hockey player, had no place in this book. What the heck did that have to do with the theme he was trying to stick with? Yeah, it was slightly interesting that he almost got arrested, but in the end, it was much ado about nothing. To me, this book should have been titled "My Adventures in Sportswriting." At least then the book would have followed the path set forth by the title. It also bothered me that he barely spent any time on certain books, like A March to Madness, which is, in my opinion, his best book. Having said that, it was still a good book, and I read it in under a day, but I felt like I had already read a lot of it, having read all of his other books. For all the other JF fans out there, if you read this book and didn't find it to be a repeat, then you either didn't read his 1st 10 books, or you forgot what they said after all these years and thus found this one to be fresh. Read more ›