Roger Federer: The Greatest [Paperback]

Chris Bowers (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 9, 2010

The skyrocketing career and dramatic personal life of tennis's hottest star, updated to include the full 2009 season

 

Authoritative and affectionate, this biography traces the rise of Federer, from his first tentative strokes with a tennis racket to how he dealt with being sent away to a training academy where he struggled to communicate in a French-speaking part of Switzerland; and how he handled the sudden death of his first real coach and mentor. It looks at his development as a sportsman and how he has matured into a family man with his marriage to Mirka Vavrinec and the birth of their twin girls. It also examines how Roger bounced back from arguably one of the most challenging periods of his career when a serious illness and a dip in form caused him to break his run of successive Wimbledon championship wins, and lose his number-one spot to rival Rafael Nadal. In characteristic style, Federer silenced his critics by winning the French Open title for the first time, reclaiming his Wimbledon crown, and ending 2009 at the number one position for the fifth time. This is a candid look at one of the most winning and dynamic figures in modern sport.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Chris Bowers is the author of Fantastic Federer and The Book of Tennis, and writes regularly for the Independent, the Observer, and the Times.

Product Details

• Paperback: 372 pages
• Publisher: John Blake (July 9, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1844549569
• ISBN-13: 978-1844549566
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,413,637 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Overview of Perhaps the Greatest Tennis Player to Date, September 5, 2011

By 

David P. Craig "Life Coach 4 God" (Tustin, California) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Roger Federer: The Greatest (Paperback)

I thouroughly enjoyed this biography of Federer. The author does an excellent job of writing a balanced account of Federer with relationship to his personal life; tennis exploits; and contribution to others with his generosity. Overall it is a very pleasant account of Federer that will be a welcome addition to any tennis fanatics library. I learned a lot about tennis, and the person and work ethic of Federer. Now I am an even bigger fan of perhaps the "greatest" male tennis player of all time.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Much better than the average rating suggests, January 11, 2012

By 

CBP the bookworm (NSW Australia) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Roger Federer: The Greatest (Kindle Edition)

The 2-star review pulls down the average star rating of this book more than it deserves, and frankly I can't imagine what the reviewer might mean by it being "not a real biography". It's an excellently-written book, and is well-paced without erring either on the side of being too dramatic or too dull. If you want high drama, you won't get it here, but if you want good solid research and plenty of detail, this is definitely worth purchasing.

The author explains in his introduction that since Federer has not, at this stage, felt sufficiently ready to write his autobiography, this one is "unauthorised" - or, as Bowers prefers to call it, "independent". Fair enough. But it is in no way antagonistic or secretive, since other members of the Federer family and many of Rederer's close friends and associates did contribute.

I thoroughly enjoyed the whole book, and I can't think of anything that would have made it better, hence the 5-star rating.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not worth reading, September 13, 2011

By 

David J - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Roger Federer: The Greatest (Kindle Edition)

My expectation was not high because this book was not a real biography. However, I was surprised. There are hardly any interesting inside stories in it. Also the writing style is uninvolving and very dry.
I am thankful to Amazon for their 7 day return policy for Kindle contents.