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Cracked Sidewalks and French Pastry: The Wit and Wisdom of Al McGuire
 
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Cracked Sidewalks and French Pastry: The Wit and Wisdom of Al McGuire (Hardcover)

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4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)

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Cracked Sidewalks and French Pastry: The Wit and Wisdom of Al McGuire + Al Mcguire: The Colorful Warrior + Tales from the Marquette Hardwood
Price For All Three: $65.30

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  • This item: Cracked Sidewalks and French Pastry: The Wit and Wisdom of Al McGuire by Tom Kertscher

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  • Al Mcguire: The Colorful Warrior by Roger Jaynes

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  • Tales from the Marquette Hardwood by Mike Neufeldt

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Al McGuire was the Mark Twain of college basketball. Never was there a figure in the game so quoted and so quotable, on sports and on the human condition. This book collects more than a hundred of McGuire's most colorful quotations, plus photographs from his life and career, in a tribute that is funny, poignant, and brimming with his streetwise sagacity.

McGuire, a brash and fiery New Yorker who grew up working in his parents' saloon, played a rough and tumble game of basketball at St. John's University and briefly in the NBA before entering the coaching ranks. He reached the pinnacle of his profession and gained national fame at Marquette University in Milwaukee, where in thirteen seasons he compiled a 295-80 record, appeared in nine NCAA tournaments, and won eighty-one home games in a row. He was a fine coach who cared deeply about his players and was beloved by his teams and fans alike, but his flamboyance and his mouth sometimes got him into trouble. The end of his coaching career captivated the nation: McGuire wept on the bench as his Marquette Warriors won the national title.

McGuire then began a ground-breaking career in network broadcasting, adding a zest and unconventionality that the college game had never seen. His sometimes bizarre and always entertaining commentary kept viewers tuned in even after the outcome of a lopsided game was a foregone conclusion. When Al McGuire died of leukemia in 2001, the sports world lost a true original.

Foreword by Dean Smith



From the Back Cover

"Tom Kertscher's book-both words and pictures-helps shed additional light on the complex, complicated, and intelligent man that was Al McGuire."-Dean Smith, coach of the University of North Carolina Tarheels, who lost the 1977 national championship game to Marquette

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 144 pages
  • Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press; 1 edition (November 13, 2002)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0299183106
  • ISBN-13: 978-0299183103
  • Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 7.9 x 0.5 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #497,030 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Tom Kertscher
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Customer Reviews

9 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.6 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars An unusual coffee table-type book, November 30, 2003
By m_noland "m_noland" (Washington, DC United States) - See all my reviews
This is a strange coffee table-type book. Author Kertscher apparently did not know Al McGuire personally, and this book is the product of a posthumous project of collecting McGuire-related photographs and quotes. Yet despite the lack of direct personal connection, the book does a good job of communicating the odd combination of street-level wisdom, humanity, and whimsy that made McGuire such an intriguing and compelling character to a generation of basketball fans and non-basketball fans alike.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Fun to read!, November 16, 2002
By Kim M. James (Rochelle, IL United States) - See all my reviews
Growing up in Harvard, IL, I tended to gravitate toward Wisconsin sports. However, I still did not recognize the name Al McGuire. Despite that, I found the book to be wonderful! It made me feel as if I did knew him. Tom Kertscher did a wonderful job of presenting the many quotes and photos, memorializing a man who obviously contributed so much to sports!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Colleague's comment, November 13, 2002
By Michael (DeKalb, IL United States) - See all my reviews
K. Gridley wrote "Very nice...I like that anyone can pick it up and read it without knowing him."
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Cracked Sidewalks and French Pastry
I purchased this book on Al McGuire as a gift for my father's 71st birthday. As a former basketball coach, he had been a strong admirerer of one of the most unique individuals in... Read more
Published on August 2, 2005 by Sergio S. Guerrero Jr.

5.0 out of 5 stars AL
Al McGuire has been truly captured through this book. The photos and quotes truly capture the man, the charachter, and the coach that was AL. Read more
Published on August 5, 2003 by Alex Hausladen

4.0 out of 5 stars Cracked sidewalks and french pastry
Tom Kertscher has done an excellent job in introducing me to Al McGuire. I've never followed college basketball so I wasn't familiar with coach McGuire. Read more
Published on December 15, 2002 by Alan Ballard

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Gift
I don't know basketball, and I'm sure that my elevator doesn't go to the top, but I know a wonderful remembrance when I see one. Read more
Published on November 23, 2002 by Elizabeth Wiseman

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the real Al McGuire
Most people may know Al McGuire as one of television's most colorful broadcasters, but the real Al McGuire can be found in his insights into coaching, recruiting and life. Read more
Published on November 12, 2002 by Greg Borowski

5.0 out of 5 stars This is the real Al McGuire
Most people may know Al McGuire as one of television's most colorful broadcasters, but the real Al McGuire can be found in his insights into coaching, recruiting and life. Read more
Published on November 12, 2002 by Greg Borowski

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