The life of a flawed genius (Gazza: My Story - Paul Gascoigne)

Member Name: bucksfizz66

Product:	Gazza: My Story - Paul Gascoigne
Date:	19/06/09 (10 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A real eye opener, very easy to read in spite of this

Disadvantages: None

Paul Gascoigne was probably the most gifted players of his generation, this brutally honest biography was a best seller and winner of the British Book Awards Sport Book of the Year.

We know about Gazza the player, the tackle in the 1990 World Cup Semi Final and the tears at the end of the match, the goal against Scotland in Euro 96 but this book tells us about Gazza the person.

In 33 chapters and 522 pages Paul tells us about his life from when he was born until the end of his playing career in 2004. The stories of his childhood are a mix of happiness and sad, the tragic death of his friends brother who was hit by a car while after Paul had said he would look after him affected him badly. After his childhood he describes the beginning of his career and playing for his boyhood team Newcastle before moving to Spurs. He tells of the pitfalls of having lots of money at a young age. He then tells of the World Cup in 1990 and what it was like to be there. After that he describes his relationship with his wife before moving to Lazio. After Italy he went to Rangers and received death threats after the incident of pretending to play the flute in front of Celtic fans. After Rangers he went to Middlesbrough followed by Everton and spells at Wolves and Boston United.

Intermixed with the football is his life, his relationship with his wife, Chris Evans, Danny Baker and Jimmy "five bellies" Gardner. He also talks honestly about his battle with alcohol and drugs. It is this which gives us the insight into Paul Gascoigne and his demons, he tells his side of the events which were published in the tabloids throughout his career.

I would recommend this book to both football fans and non football fans alike. It has 5 sections of photographs and is written in a style that is easy to read and flows very well. It is a real eye opener to the life that Paul has lead and he deserves credit for his honesty and the way he tackles every subject no matter how painful it must have been for him to describe. This is a very good book.

Summary: The real Paul Gascoigne unabashed