The Meaning of Cricket: or How to Waste Your Life on an Inconsequential Sport

by Jon Hotten

Cricket is a strange game. It is a team sport that is almost entirely dependent on individual performance. Its combination of time, opportunity and the constant threat of disaster can drive its participants to despair. To survive a single delivery propelled at almost 100 miles an hour takes the body and brain to the edges of their capabilities, yet its abiding image is of the gentle village green, and the glorious absurdities of the amateur game.In The Meaning of Cricket , Jon Hotten attempts to understand this fascinating, frustrating and complex sport. Blending legendary players, from Vivian Richards to Mark Ramprakash, Kevin Pietersen to Ricky Ponting, with his own cricketing story, he explores the funny, moving and melancholic impact the game can have on an individual life.

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports

224 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 9, 2016

About the author

English author, sport and music journalist. Contributor to Kerrang! magazine (1987–92) and Classic Rock Magazine, author of cricket blog The Old Batsman.

Reviews

[John A. Hopkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an avid follower of cricket, this was an excellent read and taught me a thing or two. Mr Hotten talks about his own love and talent (or in his words lack of) and intertwines this with stories from the earliest days all the way to modern T20. Even though I consider myself a huge cricket fan, I was unaware of the old single wicket games played between individuals many centuries ago. Mr Hotten ably brings this to life just as well as his descriptions of test matches, the sublime skill of the historic greats – W.G. Grace, Bradman and Barry Richards (disappointed George Headley and Graeme Pollock didn’t get a mention, but it is a short book). Overall, worth a read.

[Hal K · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is ok. One of those where some chapters are brilliant, both funny and insightful, while many others fall a bit flat. Hotten is clearly a good sports writer and clearly has the eccentric passion, and obsessiveness of a good one. There are bits in this book that hint at his talent, momnets where you feel the book gathering some momentum, you feel "the meaning of cricket" is about to be groundbreakingly cracked. The early chapters on the history of the game I found to be the strongest, the eccentric characters, the crazy rules, the idea of mercenary batsman trotting around on horseback to offer local villages their services: this stuff is great. Then...it just lets itself drag on a bit then with a few too many uninteresting personal anecdotes and dull stories of contemporary amateur's. A kind of unwanted melancholy hangs over the end too, the authors unrealised boyhood dreams seemingly the reason.

[Carrie Ill · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book for anyone who likes sports. You don't have to know cricket to enjoy it (although it doesn't hurt to know a little). As a relative newbie to the cricket world, I enjoyed it immensely and learned a great deal about the sport. But the real value of this book is not what it taught me about cricket. The value is in the way it described the challenges and joy of sport, from youth, amateur, and professional.

[Joebacca · Rating 3 out of 5]

now i have to go learn cricket

[Michael Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely book based on authors blog charting evolution of the summer sport intertwined with personal journey and focus on era defining players and those who influence game off the field

[John Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always enjoy a cricket read.

A sport that seems to lend itself to good writing.

Recognised tha authors name from Kerrang! of all places.

[Mbuye · Rating 4 out of 5]

You don't have to be a cricketer or a cricket enthusiast to enjoy this glorious memoir of players and games, but if you are – !

[R. Moores · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a reasonably interesting book about cricket.

[Catharine · Rating 5 out of 5]

The thinking woman's cricket book!

[James · Rating 2 out of 5]

A collection of blogs, these pieces had different tones and pace, and they were all distinct with little sense of flow. This would have been fine if I liked all of the chapters individually, but I found some much more interesting than others.

The piece I took most from was that on the manufacture of bats, as it was at least different from other cricket writing. The potted histories of the game were less insightful for me, presumably on the basis that most of these tend to rely on the same sorts of sources, and the accounts of Hambledon and touring teams rarely produce new insights. The writing itself was fine, just not particularly lively when retelling stories I've heard elsewhere, while the Ramprakash chapter was too heavy on figures and seemed a bit esoteric for a general book on cricket.

I'm presuming this was edited from the original blogs but I would have liked further revisions to make it flow better like a test bowler, rather than the 'allsorts' of a middle-overs T20 all rounder. Much of it I've forgotten completely and it had its moments but I think there are better general musings on cricket.

[Paul Carter · Rating 4 out of 5]

A joy from start to finish. Up there with The Tao of Cricket.

[GDJ Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely amble through the world of cricket with a man who cares deeply about the game.