Drive: The Story of My Life

by Larry Bird

The basketball superstar recounts his tragedies--from his father's alcoholism and suicide to his own failed marriage--and triumphs including leading the Boston Celtics to three world championships

Genres: Sports, Biography, Basketball, Nonfiction, Autobiography, Memoir, Biography Memoir

259 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[John Yelverton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good story about a great basketball player, but he really bounces over parts of his life story that he doesn't like. It really wasn't a complete autobiography in my opinion.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun, quick read. Narrative-wise and structurally this book is kind of a mess. Bird just takes the reader through his career up until the point of writing (1989). I personally found 'When the Game Was Ours', his book with Magic Johnson, more insightful. There were three interesting points that he raised, though. The first was his disregard of triple-doubles and how they don't indicate how good a player is (c.f. Russell Westbrook). The second point was that the value of the corner three is much higher than other shots (this was 20+ years before analytics would prove this). The third was that the NBA schedule creates situations where teams will not be able to play at their peak, which is a relevant current issue.

[Jose · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of the best books I've read in a while and as soon as I started reading it I couldn't put it down. Larry Bird is one of the best NBA basketball players of all-time. Not only is he one of the best, but he is one of my favorite basketball players too. I really enjoyed reading this book because it's about basketball , which is my favorite sport.

"Look, son, if this is what you want to do, then that is what you should do. Don't look back. Just look ahead." (Chapter 9, pg 43).

This book is about Larry's life from high school all they way to the pros where he played in the NBA for the Boston Celtics. There are certain decisions in life that you will have to make that are key turning points to adulthood. Larry didn't have the best childhood, with his dad committing suicide and his family not having much money. He had to work to make more money for his family at a young age. I would say the biggest turning point for me was his decision to leave Indiana University. He decided to leave because it was the best thing for him even though everybody was telling him what a bad decision he was making. That shows a sense of adulthood because he was making decisions for himself and what was best for him. He ends up transferring to Indiana State, where he has a stellar college career.

I recommend this book to people who love sports especially basketball. Also to people who just want to read about a kid that went from having nothing to being inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame. It a great read and I feel most people will enjoy it!

[Katie Frederick · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 but interesting!! everyone loves Larry Bird and I get it. what a competitor what a TEAMMATE!!!!! I hate my obsessed w bball era sm.

[Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

MJ is the goat but I appreciate Bird’s approach to the game, love for his teammates, and his rags to riches story. He really highlights other people’s greatness in this book (KC Jones and Robert Parish?? Kings) which I thought was cool considering he could have used his own book to sing his own praises. I was in a reading drought for a few months but this is what I needed to get me back into my groove. Thanks Larry

[Micah Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you enjoy reading autobiographies, then the book Drive: The Story of My Life by Larry Bird is a great option for you. I really enjoyed this book because basketball is easily my favorite sport, and I love filling my brain with more information about the game. Larry Bird is one of the most famous basketball players of all time. Learning from Larry Bird’s opinion on basketball and his personal life is really interesting to me.
I liked that Larry Bird gave an in-depth look at his early life. Usually, when you think of Larry Bird, you think of him playing for the Boston Celtics or even when he played in college for Indiana State. I never knew Larry Bird grew up in a poor family in the small town of French Lick, Indiana. Also, I never knew how much he struggled to choose a college to play in, since he doesn’t like big cities and fame. I don’t want to spoil the rest, but I really liked how the book gave a detailed look on his early life that a lot of people probably don’t know about.
Overall, this book was very good. I don’t like reading books, however this book encourages me to read more. Larry Bird is one of my favorite athletes of all time, and I loved reading more about him.

[Doug Thorsen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty dull. Bob Ryan, who helped him write the book, calls Bird willfully ignorant. This is the tale of an accidental superstar. A man who knew of and cared for little outside of basketball. Prepare yourself for bland sports speak. Bird treats his book like a post game interview. Hardly fascinating stuff. He does not spend a word on injuring his hand in a bar fight right before the 85 finals. Yet he does make a point to express some anger toward len bias for being stupid enough to use drugs. Bird leans into cornball tradition. The whole thing would be less annoying if you didn't know that he is a more interesting person than he lets on.

[Rodney Ridge · Rating 3 out of 5]

He was one of my heroes growing up. I tried to play like him. He jumps around alot in this book and I would’ve liked to have heard him talk about how he was one of the biggest trash talkers and could back it up. Still a good read for a Bird fan.

[Autumn Riehemann · Rating 3 out of 5]

not bad but i find sports boring, bought this for my nephew and i wanted to read it to talk to him about it :)

[Frances · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honest autobiography of an amazing basketball player.

[Grant Martignetti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Drive
Larry Bird is one of the greatest players to ever step onto the basketball court in the NBA. Despite his great basketball ability Larry never often spoke to the press about his left and much of it was left a mystery to his fans. This book is a great book to really get into the Life of Larry Bird and learn that there was more there than just a great player. Many didn’t know that he grew up in French Lick, Indiana with his family and faced many problems financially. Although he wasn’t rolling in money he still found time to play basketball every day, even when he broke his ankle he found a way to get shots up every day. Larry never was shown the easy way to success he did it the hard way. He was faced with the death of his father at such a young age when he committed suicide. Larry didn’t let this stop him though, he felt that it is just what his father had to do for the family and Larry stepped up and it drove him to become a better player to reach his goal that his dad also had for him. Larry went on to be a star for his high school basketball team and later joined the Indiana State basketball team where he led them to a championship title and finished his college career averaging over 30 points a game which is still in the top five today. He was drafted 6th overall by the Boston Celtics in 1979 where he helped turn the organization around and won the rookie of the year in his first year and also lead them to 3 NBA titles and win 3 MVP awards along the way.
This was one of the best books I have ever read because it wasn’t just throwing out stats about players of just telling me what he did in his career, but it really gave you the background to the player and how he got to where he was. Many time people just think stars are giving the red line to their fame but really there not, he faced adversity and fought through it, he went through many things that some people never have to face in their life but never gave up. Larry Bird is a true idol, and will always be one of the greatest players to play the game, along with his rival who is often talked about in the book Magic Johnson. I recommend this book to anyone who has a passion for sports and to really read into the life of one of the greatest players to ever play the game.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a pretty straightforward read about Larry’s take on major moments in his Basketball life. He takes you through players, coaches, special games and playoffs. He speaks little of his personal life but that was to be expected. It’s always been about the Basketball with Bird. A cherished childhood memory for me the 85/86 Celtics, Dream team indeed. Nice to know how valuable each player was to the team especially Walton my fav!! One thing I’ll never forget about this book is Larry Bird is from French Lick, Indiana how can you forget a name like Larry Bird and French Lick. ☘️33

[Roger Byykkonen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was never a fan of Larry Bird when I was growing up. I was given this book by my father one year and could not get myself to read more than a few chapters. I finally finished it for my literature class. I felt the reading seemed a little tedious at times. I do have a new appreciation for Larry and what it takes to be a big sports figure in our culture. If you like learning about sports and specifically Larry or the Celtics, then you would enjoy reading this book.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit of nostalgia read for me. I grew up in Central Massachusetts during the Celtics Bird era. My first basketball memories were faint ones of the 1981 finals, and I sat riveted throughout the 1983-1988 years.

Larry is such an icon for me and drives me to improve my work ethic. A fun read, published while he was still recovering from Achilles surgery in 1989, so it does not include his return after the surgery or his time on the Dream team in 1992.

[Thiago S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book... simple and direct as the world was in 90's. Bird is a nice character, loves his sport and is a much more decent guy than todays sports celebrities. And also he had some vision to find out that Michael Jordan would rule the basketball world. Hes very polite with his colleagues and respects hierarchy and the fans. Really deserved the legend status.

[Eirik · Rating 3 out of 5]

Larry Bird is a great guy, and this book supports that. But haven't there happened any other negative things in his life than his father's suicide? The book is actually TOO bright, and also not that good written. It doesn't create a very good flow of reading.

[Justin Tapp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read, particularly things about his dad and family life.

[Todd C · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a lifelong Lakers fan, I hated Larry. But I found his book very interesting, and it changed how I felt about him.

[Angelina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic autobiography. Basketball fans will love it. I finished this the same day Kobe Bryant died; strange but fitting.

[Toren Spencer-Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

1. Historically, the three-pointer has not been an easy shot to make.
2. The average human being cannot hit that many three’s.
3. If it’s that easy to hit three’s, then you need more challenge: shoot from further out on the court, for example.
4. When I played high school ball, it was easy, but when I went to the pros, it was more difficult.
5. Once I found a dirty, snow covered basketball in the street, but I took it home and cleaned it up, and played with it just like it was a normal basketball.
6. Even though I practiced a great deal and became very skilled playing basketball, sometimes when I would play, all my shots would miss and I’d be a complete failure for that game.
7. When I said to myself that I was trying to psyche him out, none of them said anything, although they all laughed.
8. The crowd was a big factor. Sometimes I would focus on one person in the crowd, for some reason.
9. I learned that I loved to pass.
10. I wanted to make the process of shooting as automatic as possible.

11. When I heard the next All-Star game was in Seattle, I was worried bcause I don't like the Kingdome. Fortunately, the contest was going to be in the Nassau Coliseum.
12. The problem that year was my elbow: I had to give myself some time to recover.
13. I was the team's go-to man.
14. It was too easy. I wanted more of a challenge.
15. I was concentrating on getting to certain spots on the floor to shoot.
16. I put a little extra arc on it, and the ball went right through.
17. ...or, it might turn into an immediate fast-break for the other team.
18. I went to the locker room and I heard a voice in the corner saying, "Hey, Larry Bird! Come over here and talk to me Larry."
19. The victories were almost too easy for Bird's team.
20. I received many cash gifts because of my talent.

21. A celebrity's life can get really ridiculous sometimes.
22. Eric Fennster - he was six-ten, and could play both center and forward. He was built like a football player, and had actually been a defensive back.
23. We had beaten them by thirty points, and I knew that they would be really psyched up for that game.
24. In my opinion, they had a chance to mess everything up for us.
25. I realized that the better I got as a player, the more this was going to happen and that I'd really have to watch out.
26. One of his coaches, Ed McKee, would speak for him, when he didn't want to speak.
27. The press only wanted to talk to me, when the other guys played just as hard.
28. I missed one off-balance shot that could have won the game for us.
29. In one game, Coach put us in for about five minutes and we just went crazy, passing and shooting the ball around.
30. That senior year went like clockwork.

31. In the end of one game, one of the guys trips over Carl Nicks' legs and is called for traveling, then we won the game.
32. I was looking forward to playing against Magic myself.
33. But he sort of upset me. He was talking as if we were going to lose and it sort of aggravated me.
34. They worked from a list of criteria that we had all worked on together.
35. Mr. Woolf had to resort to any and all tactics he could think of to get them moving.
36. As it kept going and going, I realized that this was exactly the life I wanted.
37. My biggest defensive worry was trying to keep players like Dr. J from doing just whatever they wanted to do on the court.
38. "You're not playing hard. You sick or something? If you don't want to play, I'll go in there." --Michael Jordan
39. Here's a fellow who was even slower than I was and he was a guard. He looked as if he was always just holding on, as if he was ready to die, but had one more gasp while he tried to hold onto that cliff. And then he'd just pop a three-pointer on you.
40. Fitch had been in the Marines, and there was a lot of drill sergeant in him. Some of his practices were killers

41. That year was a memorable season.
42. I found that living in Boston was less bothersome than living in French Lick. You can't just run over to the Chestnut Mall, a few minutes from your house.
43. It's like an open invitation to the public to stop in. Constantly signing autographs.
44. Someone told me, "You look tired." I was tired. I was really worn out. I really felt bad."
45. It turned out that Robert just needed time to get in shape and an opportunity to play.
46. He could face any opponent, regardless of size.
47. It all came down to a Boston showdown with Philly.
48. We got off to a rough start with a talented Philly team, but in the end, we were victorious.
49. You didn't know whether to laugh or feel sorry for the guy.
50. The series was won in the trenches.
51. The idea of having Dennis on the Celtics had pumped me up right away.
52. At our home games, sometimes our friends from the neighborhood would be in the crowd.
53. The basketball players now are good, but Dr. J and his teammates were also great in the 70's.

Thank you,
🌹🌹Toren Spencer-Gray
www.scholarlyinformation.com

[Joel Edminster · Rating 2 out of 5]

August 3, 2021

I’ve always loved basketball, and have been playing the sport regularly since second grade. When I moved to my current home town, I played on a team in my town’s adult rec basketball league for many years. The team’s color is green; the “jersey” I wore for every game is a green retro Celtics tee-shirt, number 33 on the front and back, “Bird” in caps above the number on the back (acquired at the NBA store in Manhattan one long-ago visit). As an NBA fan who grew up in northern California—go Warriors!—I always rooted for the Celtics to beat the Lakers through those two teams’ rivalry through the 80’s. And I always loved Bird—the Hick from French Lick.

I’ve had Bird’s 1989 biography, Drive, for years, but have never gotten around to reading it. The other day I was down in the basement doing exercises, and, running my eyes over the bookshelf that holds all my sports books, I focused in on it and decided to finally read it. I finished it yesterday.

And wasn’t terribly impressed. Ghost-written by the Boston sports journalist Bob Ryan, the book is a pretty polite and pedestrian tour through Bird’s very non-pedestrian life. A big and slow white guy who can’t jump “over a piece of paper” (as I heard one wag describe Tim Duncan upon his recent retirement), Bird bucked all odds through sheer hard work (er, drive). Known for being tough and brash, Larry comes across as anything but in the book. Few anecdotes (the best parts of sports bios) exist—at least few interesting ones; Bird’s aim I guess was just to skim over his life and his seasons in the NBA. For example, I have a poster in my office of Bird and Dr. J choke-holding one another; I figured his book would cover that incident, but it does not. I also would have enjoyed Larry Legend discussing the game in which he reputedly took all of his shots left-handed—and dropped 40-plus.

The book’s timing is curious, too. Released at the beginning of the 1989-1990 NBA season, it comes at a point where the man is still very much actively an NBA star. His best years at that point were behind him, yes (his three titles came in 81, 84, and 86), and he was battling injuries, but still—a lot more was to come, especially the whole Olympic Dream Team business in 92.

So overall, meh, but glad I read it. Fun to relive those days a bit.

[Ben Westhoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightfully-bonkers encapsulation of the pre-MJ era, when Bird and Magic Johnson traded off winning championships every year. It's fun hearing Bird's behind the scenes stories of his Celtics and Indiana State teams, but what I found most fascinating was his account of his childhood. He came from absolutely nothing in French Lick, Indiana -- his family couldn't even afford a car. His dad felt bad that he couldn't provide, and so decided to commit suicide one day, a tragedy to which a sad-but-not overwhelmed Bird dedicates all of one page. Bird didn't even start playing basketball until high school, and soon developed the skills (and the height) to win acceptance to Bobby Knight's Indiana program. Bird arrived to the school with, basically, the clothes on his back. Feeling like a poor, out-of-place hick, he just left, hitchhiking home and getting a job at a grocery store or something. His friends and family finally convinced him to give college another try. He got up at dawn to practice free throws, but by the time he was drafted he'd never given ANY thought to the pros. Didn't watch them, didn't know anything about them. ETC. Like I said, bonkers. All of this craziness is written in the homespun style you'd expect, and though Bird's politics are predictably retrograde, he is generous in his assessments of everyone he's played with and for. Definitely recommended for NBA fans, or just for anyone who likes to raise their eyebrows in bewilderment.

[Miles · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading this book because it gave a firsthand description of everything that happens and Larry Bird gives a very indepth description of every player or coach he comes along giving every player you once knew a new face in your mind. The only parts i did not like in the book was when it came to the Celtics trade acquisition or free agent signings,because afterprobably the third or fourth one it gets onfucing on who is still on the team. This book answers one of our essential questions because it shows people's values and belief in the sense that on road trips everyone does something different some people go to pray some people go out and party while the book also shows how some people's values change as they become more mature. It is hard to fail when you try your hardest,“I’ve got a theory that if you give 100% all of the time, somehow things will work out in the end.” (Bird 184) in everything he did Larry put 100% in and he reaped the rewards pretty fast. I wouold recomend this book to any sports lover because it shows how superstars become superstars.

[Brady]

Larry Bird has had such an impact on the game of basketball. The book dives deep into his life and how hard he works in order to be one of the best. The title of the book is perfect because of Larry Bird’s inner drive and his commitment to the game and his team. It’s really interesting to know about Larry’s life before he became a star in the NBA. I really liked the focus on not just his life in basketball, but also his life at home. It shows there is more to his personality than just basketball. I love how the book has a great interest in explaining the rivalry between Larry and the Lakers point guard back in the 80s, Magic Johnson. I never got to see the rivalry between these two great players because it was such a long time ago, but having Larry explain to us what his relationship with him was like was great to read. I am not a big fan of books in general, but reading about a great basketball player and the struggles he has had is really interesting and a great book for any sports fan to read. I wish there were more sports books like this one.

[Braden · Rating 4 out of 5]

A couple of years ago, my dad got me this book as a gift to read in times when I was bored and had nothing else to do. Since I like basketball and the NBA, I had fairly high expectations for this, even though I normally do not like reading biography-style books. In general, I thought it was a pretty good book. The topics were things that I was interested in, and because I already liked Larry Bird, it made the book a good bit better for me.

One of the themes or lessons in the book has to do with persevering through struggles at a young age, which is something that I feel like I can learn from. When Bird about how he was very poor as a child, to becoming a basketball star, to becoming homesick, and considering quitting the sport altogether, it was a very inspiring story that I will definitely remember.

I would most likely recommend this book to anyone who likes basketball and has some background knowledge in the sport. Some of the ideas and people in the book may be harder to understand if the reader does not have some kind of prior knowledge.

[Brody Hartman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Larry Bird aka Larry Legend aka the hick from French lick and the great white hope. Larry bird was one of the best NBA players in the 80s and is in my top 5 of all time players. Drive is about Larry bird and is an autobiography about himself talking about his early life to his basketball life. He talks about his struggles of his injuries and other basketball incidents. That’s about it the books basically well about himself. this book was also made in 1990 before he retired and the whole aids problem with magic Johnson his rival and best friend. Since this novel was written in the time he was still playing if you want a better book about Larry bird and a career retrospective after he retired you should instead get when the game was ours. This book goes into both Bird and Johnson on their early lives living in very different lives in the Midwest and their college careers and their rivalry until the whole drama about magic Johnson and what both Bird and Johnson think about the current state of basketball and looking back on their careers.

[Mark A. · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you grew up during the "Golden Era" of NBA basketball, you would certainly be familiar with Larry Bird. He was my favorite player, and spent hours trying to emulate his fall away jump shot. What no one ever told me was that it is much easier to make that shot when you are 6'9" tall. LOL!!!!! While Bird was my favorite, he and Bob Ryan do an excellent job providing a summary of his life and the iconic NBA stars this legend played against, in Drive.
While the book is older and stops before he retired or played on the first Dream Team, it was still a stroll down memory lane. Reading it, somewhat let me go back to a time when NBA basketball was at its peak in popularity. I also enjoyed getting a first-hand account of Bird's upbringing and his high school and college basketball playing days. Overall it is just a fun book for anyone wanting to read about an era that has gone by in American sports. Three stars.

[David Nazz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not a five-star book on the merits.

It is five stars for sentimental and nostalgic reasons.

This is fun, quick, easy read is a time capsule back to 1989.

Structurally it is a mess. Bird just takes the reader through his career up until the point of writing (1989). 'When the Game Was Ours', his book with Magic Johnson, is a superior read. However, for those of us who are a certain age, for whom Bird v. Magic was our introduction to basketball. Those of us who were not old enough to remember the NBA before them, this is a must read. It is trip back in time. I read it in 1989 when I was 13. Revisiting it now was pleasure. Yes, the book is lacking in many ways. There are a number of blatant grammatical errors too. But, I do not care this is a special book to me even if it might not be to you.

[Killer of Dreams · Rating 3 out of 5]

I usually don't enjoy reading and this was a pleasure to read. It was gratifying to see Bird's views on 80's NBA basketball. I enjoyed Bird's demeanor to situations. Among his memorable views, he didn't care about what Isiah and Rodman said about him and he even respected his alcoholic father's decision to kill himself. An internal thought I had through much of the reading was how it seems contradictory that as much as he says he is a private man, he has relinquished this information for commercial use.

I'm unfamiliar with biographies but the structure of this one was great. There seemed to be a progression of learning through his life and an open future to his career. It started off a bit slow, with his childhood and time at Indiana State, but I greatly enjoyed the latter section on his professional career and the smaller sections on his views on arenas, referees, and players.

I've watched numerous Larry Bird interviews and the flow in this book didn't feel like Bird was writing it. Bird speaks in short sentences and he speaks with pauses. He doesn't go as in depth. Here it felt like Bird was talking in in-depth, run-on sentence and it stripped away Bird's style. I tried to imagine Bird speaking through the words but it was impossible.

A larger issue I found was that Bird's so humble. You'd think that's not really a negative trait but it gives a fog to Bird's greatness. He mentions more bad games and injures than good games and healthy periods. Every great game he played is overshadowed by him applauding teamwork or the heroic clutch finishes of Dennis Johnson or some role player. He mentions his MVPs in reference to how supportive he was of Magic winning his first. This is the guy that won three in a row and he mentions the first one to how another player said he'd win one now that that player wasn't distracting Bird, and then later when Magic stops his streak. But he's so humble that he talks great about his teammates and opponents more than himself. He talks about how much trouble he had with Dr. J in his first few years but Bird smoked him in the '81 playoff series and most contemporary views agree that Bird deserved the 1981 MVP over Dr. J. In all of this you forget that Larry Bird was top tier player, coming second in MVP voting four times and winning the award three times in a row. The man was a legend.

By the end I was scratching myself asking how he could even be a top 15 player of all time. I watched old highlight videos and took a look at his career statistics to remind myself how great he was. He's definitely a top 10 player and possibly top 5.

I found one few discrepancy with the biography compared with other interviews. He says he only trash talked with Michael Cooper once but Magic Johnson says they used to go at it all the time.

Overall, it was fun to read. It should deserve five stars, because I would definitely read it again but at the same time I don't want to because I already did. It's five stars because it's Bird but it's four because it's a book about him, if that makes sense.

Rating Update 26 May 2019
Four stars to three stars. There are four star sections with Bird detailing parts of his career, and the last chapter on his preferences, but the slow start and some sections are respectively two and three stars.

September 1, 2019
Update
With the adoption of my new rating system, a three star rating is befitting. The original review and rating update conform to the new rating system. The main reason behind retaining the three star-rating is explained in the rating update from May 26, 2019.

January 1, 2019
Update
I do not remember the contents of the second part in the book, which take up nearly half of the book (which is why I have outlined the rating in grey, despite the green inside color). For this reason, I will have to speculate and give broad ratings to each of the individual parts based on what was previous said in the review. For the third chapter, I find it appropriate to rate the entire chapter three stars because it was a smooth and pleasing read (three stars) for at least more than half of it. For the fourth chapter, there was nothing written in the review about it so I believe that it was an OK read.

Part 1: Where I Come From. Pages one through sixty-six. Sixty-six pages. Two stars.
Part 2: The Career. Pages sixty-nine through one hundred and ninety-five. One hundred and twenty-seven pages. Three stars.
Part 3: Observations. Pages one hundred and ninety-nine through two hundred and fifty. Fifty-two pages. Four stars.
Part 4: Where I Stand. Pages two hundred and fifty-three through two hundred and fifty-nine. Seven pages. Two stars.

Seven hundred and thirty-five points divided by two hundred and fifty-two pages equals 2.92 stars.

January 2, 2020
Update
I have wondered if the book should be lowered to a two star-rating if the majority of the second part is two star-rated. I can't see this to be the case and find that the book is held to at least a 2.5 rating with the three and four star-rated content.

March 17, 2020
Update
Again, I have thought to lower the rating of the book to two stars. The holistic feeling for this novel is one of enjoyment: "I usually don't enjoy reading and this was a pleasure to read". I cannot lower the rating. The broad ratings I gave each part in the update from January 1, 2019, is this holistic feeling of appreciation and liking for the book. There is, overall, a liking for the three star-rated sections, and an extreme liking for the four star-rated sections, which allows for the ignorance of slower parts in these sections, which individually could be rated as two, three, and four star-rated portions.

[Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a book I'd wanted to read for a long time. It was very interesting to get a more in depth look of the inner workings of his mind - key plays that have stood out to him over time, teammates he enjoyed playing with, and to learn more of his family and upbringing especially since he's been very quiet on these aspects of his life with the media.
This book was written almost as if he was talking making it an easy to read, easy to follow story. I was disappointed there wasn't more detail about big games in his career. Practices or games that have stuck with him over the years, but then again, that's not really Bird's personality. I enjoyed the book but am left wanting more.