Customer Reviews

This Could Be The Year: My 30 Years as a Miami Dolphins Fan

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Somebody finally put in words how I have felt every football season since I was 7, as a (sometimes sickly twisted) Miami Dolphins fan.

This is a quick, light read that explains how fans of one of pro sports' winningest franchises can somehow feel miserable all the time. In a nutshell, we're like Charlie Brown, eternally believing that somehow, this time, Lucy won't pull the ball away just as he's about to kick it.

Now, coincidentally, the author grew up ten miles from me (I did not know this ahead of time), and he's almost my exact age. So, many of the childhood experiences Mr. Libero describes particularly struck a chord with me.

However, this is only a small reason that I enjoyed this book tremendously. It's cleverly laid out. The author moves back and forth between a game-by-game description of the Dolphins' heartbreaking 2002 season (from a diehard, wall-punching fan's perspective), and a sort of autobiographical slant on memorable moments in Dolphins history.

I found myself regularly identifying with particular memories of cruel games from the past (the king of these being 41-38 playoff loss to SD in overtime- "the Kellen Winslow game"). Of course, there are many, many others. Younger fans will recall the "Miracle at the Meadowlands" debacle on Monday Night Football versus the dispicable Jets.

If you're a Dolphins fan, especially of an age where you remember the 70's and 80's, you will LOVE this book. But, make no mistake, this is a book about being in love with a sports team, and the anguish that you sign up for. As such, any fan would enjoy this book.

As a diehard Raider fan I thought I would be able to read this book from an outsiders persepctive and laugh at another fans misery. Instead what it did was make me read each chapter from a true fans perspective and had me thinking about all the Raiders missed chances. This book was written from passion, a passion true sports fans have for their team. You can tell each chapter was written from an intense recoloection that we all have from that one season of great hope. I could relate to every crying fit, every broken piece of furniture and the hatred for the Patriots after the tuck rule game. I did not love the Raider chapter, but the fact that the Dolphins did not win the Super Bowl that year either, I got over it. Unlike the failed Raider seasons this book made me rethink and relive it all in my head. A book every true fan of any team should read.

Don't let the title fool you, you don't need to be a Dolphan to enjoy this book. As a non-Dolphins fan, I read this book in the hopes of learning something new. As a sports fan we all feel our teams have been slighted or have the worst luck in the league. But after reading Libero's accounts of the Fish's past, it just proves that winning a major sports title, especially with the one and done nature of the NFL, takes a huge amount of luck. Even more so than talent. This book is well written and a very good read. I highly recommend it, even as a Bears fan.

This book is a must-read for Dolphins fans and for fans in general. It will prove to be cathartic and therapeutic for Dolphins fans because it allows them to see that they are not alone in experiencing emotional highs and lows based on the performance of those wearing teal and orange. Do not, however, think that it is a book that is only for Dolphins fans or just for NFL fans because fans of all sports at all levels will relate to the examples of excitement and disappointment, because we have all experienced the same emotions with regards to a favorite team. The author also shows fans that they are not alone and that there are others out there just like them who suffer just as much, or in the case of the author perhaps even more, with each loss.

The author doesn't do a good job in telling stories. He doesn't have a flow that you would expect from a sports writer. It is very choppy. I am not a Dolphins fan, but I found this book informative at best. Would I recommend it? Probably not.

as a life long fin fan, this book hits home solid!..i remember the years,but rich remembers the plays,reasons,and behind the scene info we all want to forget..go fins...

This book is well written and entertaining whether you are a dolphin's fan or not. I love the stories especially about how the helmit did not fit. Check it out, you may learn something.

I am a HUGE Dolphins fan, I can name every player, and I aboslutely loved this book. It really captured what it's like to be a Dolphins fan, something I know alot about! So buy this book, it rules!

GO DOLPHINS!

Vulgar and profane. Skip this, unless you enjoy the language and humor of the elementary school boys bathroom.