Customer Reviews

A Season on the Mat: Dan Gable and the Pursuit of Perfection

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm a high school wrestler and avid Dan Gable fan. I could not have been more thrilled to get this book. It was a good book if you're an avid wrestling fan. The only problem was, like many people said, it was shallow and neglected to convey the emotion and the blood, sweat, and tears all these wrestlers have put in their whole lifes for this sport. It also neglected to talk much about Gable's wrestling career, just giving quick stats here and there. I think it would have been a lot better if a wrestler wrote it (Nolan Zavoral is obviously not). Other, than that it was a page turner and I finished it in about 4 days. Pretty good for a guy who had never previously read a book all the way through.

I enjoyed this book because I am a die hard wrestling fan. It is so hard to find any book about the REAL sport of amateur wrestling, and so I devoured every word. However, I agree with others who write that "something" was missing. I think that that is because the author must not really grasp the nature of the sport as he certainly did not capture nor convey its essence, intensity or the spirit of the legendary coach. The writers lack of ardor coupled with lack of understanding for the passion involved within the wrestling family is what led , I believe, to the "flatness" of his account. I could have done better!!

...but you can't help but be taken in by the story of Dan Gable. The lessons that he preaches, and embodies, go way beyond the mat--perserverance, hard work, dedication, and perhaps most importantly, leading by example.

For that reason, I enjoyed the book, and got through it pretty quickly. I would have no reservations about recommending this book based on that alone.

But, I'll admit, it gets bogged down quite a bit as it becomes a point-by-point recap of the season. Starts to feel like the same things over and over again. I'll agree with other posters who say that it may have lacked some of the intensity and emotion that it could have had. For that, I would recommend "Four days to Glory." An awesome book on high-school wrestling that seems to be to do a better job of making you feel the drama of what wrestlers go through and why they do what they do.

I'd say buy both of these books for a pretty complete picture of Iowa wrestling "from cradle to grave." The afterword in the paperback version of "A season on the mat" does a good job of bringing closure to both books (hard to explain, but you'll see what I mean).

This book is a must for the hardcore wrestling fan. I am not a fan, but was won over by the dedication and intensity it takes to excel. Gable is a complex man, but he loved his kids and pushed them to do their best. I would have loved to compete for him.

This is one of the most inspiring books on wrestling I have read. When I push my self I think of how much Gable would push himself so much more and that inspires me.

I grew a Dan Gable fan (as did any other Iowa kid who touched the mat in the last 30 years). I have studied much about him. This author did a great job in two areas: 1)analyzing the murder of his sister and the implications for the Gable family. Very detailed (such as Dan told his father who probably (and Dan was right)killed his sister on the ride back to Waterloo and that his father struck him for not telling him sooner. 2) Dan's only collegiate loss to Larry Owings. In depth and probing. You feel some of the pain Dan was bearing.

However, the author was very weak on his ability to convey the wrestling spirit during the Hawks tremendous season. At times it was liking reading a $2 romance novel.

Overall, this would have been a better book if it was just a Dan Gable biograghy.

It should be noted that Dan was not happy about a lot that was in the book. It exposed alot of his (and his Parents)flaws. Dan has an enormous ego and has been treated with kid gloves by reporters and authors up until this point. I doubt the author would have been given this much access if Dan knew that the dirty laundry was going to get mixed in.

Anyway, with the lack of books on Dan Gable/wrestling - this is a must read.

A Season on the Mat is a story with three main characters: 1) Dan Gable, 2) The University of Iowa wrestling team, and 3) The team's varsity starters. The book is written in a compelling manner with excellent character development. I found myself cheering (sometimes almost out loud) when reading of the success of the team and the team's key athletes. Similarly, I found myself sorrowful when reading about their rare moments of failure.

Nevertheless, the key character within the book is wrestling icon Dan Gable. Zavoral does an excellent job of providing an objective portrayal of Gable that should satisfy both the amateur wrestling aficionado and the uninitiated. I enjoyed reading about the life of Dan Gable; his relationship with his parents, his wife, his children, the state of Iowa, the University of Iowa administration, his assistant coaches, and his wrestlers; and the two key life moments that motivated him to worker harder than anyone else to reach the pinnacle as a wrestler and coach. Moreover, whereas most Gable biographies are written by sycophants who communicate only Gable's venerable qualities, Zavoral is equitable in also discussing Gable's eccentricities.

Most reviewers have written favorably (and I would say accurately) regarding A Season on the Mat. Yet, a minority of reviewers have stated that the book lacks "justice," is "cheerless," and is "shallow." To this specious minority I say, "We must not have been reading the same book." The book provides justice in its balanced and detailed depiction of Dan Gable. Furthermore, I found myself almost cheering out loud when Gable's athletes overcame adversity via sweat and hard work to finally reach the podium at the culmination of a long and arduous season.

Yes, the book is a little "shallow" when detailing the histories and experiences of the team's varsity starters or when describing the rigors of weight cutting or a Dan Gable practice. However, the book is not intended to be a 900 page tome that provides each character the same importance and coverage as the title character, Dan Gable. Nor is the book intended to be an encyclopedia of everything one needs to do to succeed at wrestling. Rather, the book is intended as a chronicle of the trials, tribulations, travails and outcomes relative to Gable's last season as Head Coach of the University of Iowa wrestling program. Therein, the book is highly successful as a quick, entertaining, page turner that tells a meritorious story of personal and athletic achievement.

gives a great look into a sucessful college wrestling program and what it takes to be a great team, a great wrestler and a great coach.

I could not have been more excited to read this book. I'm fascinated by wrestling, the lore that surrounds it and the legend of Dan Gable. I only wish there was more access to coverage of wrestling. As such, I enjoyed the book for what it was - a sort of play-by-play review of the season. The book did not, however, give any sort of insight or analysis of any real depth into the culture of wrestling, or the effects of the absolute sacrifice made by its participants. No real effort was made to fully characterize the wrestlers (or even Dan Gable for that matter), and they remained somewhat thin (no pun intended) throughout the book. I came away thinking "Wrestling at Iowa sounds tough" - I should have been lead to shake my head in wonder at the trip to hell and back that such a season must be.

An excellent summary of a tough year for the great Iowa Hawkeyes. A tough loss to the Oklahoma Cowboys at the NCAA Duals could have given the Hawks a vision of their future, but they overcame the pressure. Gable led his team to a NCAA Championship after a third seed. Gable's Hawkeyes not only won the tournament, but came away with 5 champions, the highest point total in NCAA history, and the greatest win margin to date. A great inspirational book for any wrestler who needs to see the way champions deal with setbacks