Sports books...

[fajrdrako]

From August 14, 2008: Do you or have you ever read books about the Olympics? About sports in general? Fictional ones? Or non-fiction? Or both? And, Second: Do you consider yourself a sports fan?

The easy answer is "no", and "no". Whatever instinct makes people like sports, I don't have it.

There are some sports I love: fencing, equestrian sports, archery, gymnastics. But I don't find myself making any time to watch them. I just love them in theory.

I watched a few minutes of the Olympics coverage with josanpq the other day - swimming events - and was somewhat amazed at how boring I found it, how uninteresting even the most beautifully toned and muscled bodies, how full of platitudes the announcers and the athletes were. I was more interested in catching glimpses of China.

The only sport I like watching on TV is European football.

So - do I read about sports? No, though sometimes sports come into things I read. I once (in my teens) went on a spree of reading Paul Gallico, after seeing and loving the Disney movie, The Three Lives of Thomasina, based on his novel. Paul Gallico was a sports reporter for years, and I read all his short stories about sports - and loved them because I liked his style of storytelling. Subject matter was irrelevant.

The Olympics have been featured in some books I've read about ancient Greece. Now, that was fascinating. Cynisca, winning the Olympic gold in 396 BC - yes! Go for it, girl! But it was history, not sport, I was reading.

I can't recall otherwise reading books about sports, ever. Most movies about sports bore me. The only sports movie I can think of offhand that I actually enjoyed was Bend it Like Beckham.

Comments

[rosiespark.livejournal.com]

I don't have the sports gene either, and haven't bothered with the Olympics at all. Though I did used to like watching Wimbledon years ago, and had quite a crush on Boris Becker when I was sixteen or so. *g* Football bores me to tears.

Sports movies are okay if the sports content just provides the framework for the plot and character stuff. Like Bend It Like Beckham, which I thought had tremendous charm. If (and it's a BIG if) you consider boxing to be a sport, then Cinderella Man is another one I liked. Can't think of any others...

[fajrdrako.livejournal.com]

Football bores me to tears.

It isn't so much the sport that I like as all those hunky men running around with bare knees. Especially the Italians. Sometimes I even notice scores. Occasionally.

I haven't seen Cinderella Man, which I'd forgotten all about, though now that you mention it, I've wanted to see it. Do the Rocky movies count? I kinda liked the first one, way back when.