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Fall River Dreams: A Team's Quest for Glory, A Town's Search for Its Soul
Fall River Dreams is the story of one season's quest-a classic book about sports, youth, time, hope, and memory in America today.
In this deeply felt, unforgettable book, Bill Reynolds journeys with a high school basketball team through the past and present of an American town. Fall River, Massachusetts, is a once-prosperous industrial center haunted by its history. The Durfee High School basketball team begins its annual drive for a state a quest that inspires and sometimes consumes kids, coaches, families, teachers, and all of Fall River.
In this deeply felt, unforgettable book, Bill Reynolds journeys with a high school basketball team through the past and present of an American town. Fall River, Massachusetts, is a once-prosperous industrial center haunted by its history. The Durfee High School basketball team begins its annual drive for a state a quest that inspires and sometimes consumes kids, coaches, families, teachers, and all of Fall River.
368 pages, Paperback
First published September 15, 1994
48 people are currently reading
450 people want to read
About the author
Bill Reynolds
87 books14 followersBill Reynolds is a sports columnist for The Providence Journal and the author of several previous books, including Fall River Dreams and (with Rick Pitino) the #1 New York Times bestseller Success Is a Choice. He lives in Providence, Rhode Island."
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
May 7, 2024
Wicked cool reading Chris Herren’s origin story and being immersed in the Durfee basketball culture and especially learning the local history since it all takes place so close by! Plus ofc I love a sports book
February 20, 2019
Very well written piece that truly captures the essence of the city, and the unique nature if its people. Being a sports fan and having locale familiarity probably pushed this to a 5 for me, but i think it would entertain most anyone.
July 21, 2024
One of my tops of 2024. Great read.
December 18, 2013
I ENJOYED IT.
"Fall River was, quite simply, a euphemism for the end of the world."—Location 44
"There was a defeatist attitude about everything. By 1960 the city had one of the lowest educational levels in the country, the average adult completing less than nine years of schooling"—Location 2212
Ask anyone who's lived there for any time, in the past eighty years, and they'll probably tell you that Fall River, Massachusetts is a city lost in a time-warp. It's old, and it's tired. Long gone are the memories of its heyday as the textile capital of the world—far overshadowed by the infamy and legend of, alleged axe murderess, Lizzie Borden.
Even the city's motto: 'We'll Try' seems to speak more to an ethos of underachievement, than to one of vitality and success. In his book, FALL RIVER DREAMS: A Team's Quest for Glory, A Town's Search for Its Soul, Bill Reynolds skillfully weaves a pitch-perfect portrait, weft and warp, of the 'Spindle City,' then and now.
In the interest of full disclosure, some portion of my enjoyment (and rating) of this book might be a reflection of familiarity and nostalgia. Fall River is my hometown, and the bulk of my high school days were spent at (the original—the one on the top of the hill, near downtown—built in 1886) B.M.C. Durfee High School, which is much the focus of this basketball story. As a sophomore, I was even fortunate enough to be there as a spectator, at the 'real' Boston Garden, for the 'Hilltoppers' spectacular 1956 state high school basketball championship win. At this point, though, I think I remember more about the ride to and from the Garden, in a friend's 1950 Ford, than I do about the game.
Recommendation: I'm very glad that my, basketball fan, son read and enjoyed this story, and persisted in recommending it to me. Now I recommend it to you—as a basketball fan, or just as a fan of the interesting history and culture of southeastern Massachusetts.
"There was an obstinate streak in him, a Fall River attitude, one that said, this is the way I am and to hell with anyone who doesn't like it."—Location 2432
(Nota Bene: Obstinacy is a (prominent) feature of the Fall River personality that I prefer to think of as tenacity.)
Kindle edition, 5157 Locations
"Fall River was, quite simply, a euphemism for the end of the world."—Location 44
"There was a defeatist attitude about everything. By 1960 the city had one of the lowest educational levels in the country, the average adult completing less than nine years of schooling"—Location 2212
Ask anyone who's lived there for any time, in the past eighty years, and they'll probably tell you that Fall River, Massachusetts is a city lost in a time-warp. It's old, and it's tired. Long gone are the memories of its heyday as the textile capital of the world—far overshadowed by the infamy and legend of, alleged axe murderess, Lizzie Borden.
Even the city's motto: 'We'll Try' seems to speak more to an ethos of underachievement, than to one of vitality and success. In his book, FALL RIVER DREAMS: A Team's Quest for Glory, A Town's Search for Its Soul, Bill Reynolds skillfully weaves a pitch-perfect portrait, weft and warp, of the 'Spindle City,' then and now.
In the interest of full disclosure, some portion of my enjoyment (and rating) of this book might be a reflection of familiarity and nostalgia. Fall River is my hometown, and the bulk of my high school days were spent at (the original—the one on the top of the hill, near downtown—built in 1886) B.M.C. Durfee High School, which is much the focus of this basketball story. As a sophomore, I was even fortunate enough to be there as a spectator, at the 'real' Boston Garden, for the 'Hilltoppers' spectacular 1956 state high school basketball championship win. At this point, though, I think I remember more about the ride to and from the Garden, in a friend's 1950 Ford, than I do about the game.
Recommendation: I'm very glad that my, basketball fan, son read and enjoyed this story, and persisted in recommending it to me. Now I recommend it to you—as a basketball fan, or just as a fan of the interesting history and culture of southeastern Massachusetts.
"There was an obstinate streak in him, a Fall River attitude, one that said, this is the way I am and to hell with anyone who doesn't like it."—Location 2432
(Nota Bene: Obstinacy is a (prominent) feature of the Fall River personality that I prefer to think of as tenacity.)
Kindle edition, 5157 Locations
November 20, 2013
This book is one of the most descriptive books I've ever read. It goes so in depth of each character it's breath taking. By the time you're knee deep in this book you'll know all of the characters back stories and their thought process. From Karam to Herren you know everyone's relationship with each other and how it developed. This team had extreme difficulty staying together as a team in the beginning and their coach had trouble getting them to focus, but they developed into a basketball powerhouse and a team no one will forget. The only thing I didn't like about this book is that it starts off extremely slow.
June 17, 2022
Basketball is everything at Durfee High School in Fall River, Massachusetts. The coach, Skippy Karam, is a former Durfee High School player himself whose family has lived in Fall River for some time. The book provides a history of the rise and deterioration of the city's economy and other social challenges. However, the book really revolves around the 1992-1993 high school boys basketball team and its quest for the state championship with junior Chris Herren leading the team.
July 22, 2023
I don’t know if I got a misprinted copy of this book, or an early draft… All I know is that my copy was filled with typos and was very repetitive. I felt as though I read the same 10 or 15 anecdotes several times over, and I was frustrated by spelling mistakes and grammatical errors that popped up every 20 pages or so.
A great story, and a good read, but spoiled by obvious errors that make it read as though it was never checked by the editor or publisher.
A great story, and a good read, but spoiled by obvious errors that make it read as though it was never checked by the editor or publisher.
September 14, 2019
Great book! It really is the “Friday Night Lights” of high school basketball. Chris Herren is one of my top 10 favorite basketball players ever, so this book being about him and his high school basketball team was awesome...recommend to anyone that coaches basketball, as I could empathize w/ Coach Karam and what he had to deal w/, despite all the success.
March 29, 2020
A beautiful story about the basketball machine and a tremendous story of the decline of American manufacturing towns. You could transplant the Fall River of this book to Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, or Wisconsin of 2016 and the calamitous election would make more sense.
February 10, 2018
336 pages
January 20, 2019
For the Hoops junkies!!
May 1, 2024
3.5 stars. Would have been four stars but there is numerous editing errors and repetitive narrative descriptions. But if you like basketball even just a little bit, you will like this book.
October 20, 2024
Slow to get into it, sped up for a great finish.
February 21, 2025
great book for any sports person
March 22, 2017
Great book
Very interesting read about high schoolbooks and beyond. Chris Herron makes the story for this particular book. Must read! T
Very interesting read about high schoolbooks and beyond. Chris Herron makes the story for this particular book. Must read! T
March 23, 2014
I come to this book almost by chance. I read once a good review and note it in my wishlists. Then, one day the ebook was in Amazon with more than a 60% discount, and I bought it. I knew Bill Reynolds, the author, from Cousy: His Life, Career, and the Birth of Big-Time Basket,the biography he wrote about Cousy. And, just at the very start of Fall River Dreams I discovered that I already knew one of the main characters, Chris Herren, from Basketball Junkie: A Memoir (there is an ESPN movie, too, Unguarded). Simply, I didn't remember Herren had gone to Durfee High School in Fall River, Massachusetts.
Bill Reynolds is not my favorite sports writer. I rated Cousy: his life, career and the birth of big-time basketball a 3-stars book. And it is the same rating I think deserve Fall River Dreams. It's not a bad piece, I liked it, but it lacks something.
Reynolds is supposed to follow a entirely season of the team, but it seems to me more a history of the team, the players, the coach and the city than the specific season. If you follow a team that way, living with them, traveling with them, enjoying, suffering with them, I expect a book about all what you can not see from outside: relationships, frustrations, desires, etc. Reynolds offers a part of that describing widely the place where action goes and the background of every people involved, but he immerse in the everyday just briefly. In fact, he expends so many times explaining the whole background that he repeats himself often.
Actually I enjoyed this focus because it is a really different context for me, an european man. I only know this universe of high school sports and the US culture and costumes from movies and books, and so I've found this book very interesting. This kind of importance children's sport has simply not exist here in Spain. But I also believe the book could be not interesting but outstanding if it had deepened further in the development of the current basketball season.
Another fault is the fact Fall River Dreams seems a book about Coach Karam and, above all, Chris Herren, not about Durfee High basketball team. In fact, the last chapter treats entirely his decision about which college would choose. And this was already the following season the rest of the book covers. I think this chapter spares.
Bill Reynolds is not my favorite sports writer. I rated Cousy: his life, career and the birth of big-time basketball a 3-stars book. And it is the same rating I think deserve Fall River Dreams. It's not a bad piece, I liked it, but it lacks something.
Reynolds is supposed to follow a entirely season of the team, but it seems to me more a history of the team, the players, the coach and the city than the specific season. If you follow a team that way, living with them, traveling with them, enjoying, suffering with them, I expect a book about all what you can not see from outside: relationships, frustrations, desires, etc. Reynolds offers a part of that describing widely the place where action goes and the background of every people involved, but he immerse in the everyday just briefly. In fact, he expends so many times explaining the whole background that he repeats himself often.
Actually I enjoyed this focus because it is a really different context for me, an european man. I only know this universe of high school sports and the US culture and costumes from movies and books, and so I've found this book very interesting. This kind of importance children's sport has simply not exist here in Spain. But I also believe the book could be not interesting but outstanding if it had deepened further in the development of the current basketball season.
Another fault is the fact Fall River Dreams seems a book about Coach Karam and, above all, Chris Herren, not about Durfee High basketball team. In fact, the last chapter treats entirely his decision about which college would choose. And this was already the following season the rest of the book covers. I think this chapter spares.
May 18, 2016
The underlying story here is of moderate interest, but the rendering is even less impressive; Reynolds seems not to trust his story to carry a reader's interest (and frankly is right to a degree in that regard) and makes the cardinal sin of making this apparent by repeatedly trying to force a belabored contextualization of the story into the city of Fall River, and less so, eastern Massachusetts and the nation as a whole. He almost seems to be making an attempt to reproduce in text a cinematic effect of conveying the visual dominance of, for example, the grey stone mills of Fall River; however, while this effect can in the right hands be pulled off subtly in a visual context, without having to draw specific attention to the motif, it's nearly impossible to artfully accomplish in prose without merely coming across as repetitive. Toward this end and others Reynolds repeatedly reiterates and repurposes whole chunks of information, ranging from phrases to near-paragraph-length fragments (and not mere stylistic rhymes and echoes either), perhaps a giveaway of his day job where context must be provided anew in each column. The structural problems are one thing, but errors like this should have come out in the editing wash; unfortunately, the book is indifferently edited top to bottom--there are frequent spelling mistakes, factual errors, instances of unsteady tense agreement, etc. There's also a distressing tendency on Reynolds' part to give too much credence to the underlying conservatism and that old trap of nostalgia into which many of the older Fall River residents fall; it's fine for them to make that mistake, but it's irresponsible at best and immoral at worst for Reynolds not to challenge that easy and facile mistakes, if not face-to-face with them, at least in his role as narrator. It would have been easy for him to do so one way or the other, too, because one of the strongest points of his book is the way in which he frankly acknowledges his presence in and impact on the story, an always intricate dance that seems to never be executed well, but Reynolds (with one only marginally notable exception that I recall) handles it to perfection. Perhaps owing in part to his clear strength as a first-person narrator and primary reporter, the background material in Fall River Dreams weakens precipitously when he strays from his own reporting to secondarily-sourced material, one more point that suggests Reynolds would have served the story better had he accepted the underlying material for the small-scale coming-of-age story it essentially is.
May 16, 2016
Bill Reynolds, in his novel, Fall River Dreams, published in 1994, addresses the history of Durfee High School, it's basketball team, and the history of a town named Fall River, Massachusetts. He talks about how the basketball coach, Damon Runyon named Skip Karam, has been coaching for over the past 30 plus years, then talks about basketball and some of the players he is coaching in the story, Chris Herren being the main player, and finally talks about how Fall Rivers has gotten to how it is in the present day. Reynold’s purpose is to inform us in order to make us realize the story behind Durfee High School, it's basketball team, and Fall River, Massachusetts. He adopts a serious tone for his audience, the readers who are interested in the topic of sports and history.
Some pros of this novel is that when he talks about the history about the high school he makes you feel like you are there, same goes for when he is describing the basketball scenarios. Another pro would be that the way Bill Reynolds puts the story together really makes it come together. I would say there are not many cons to this novel, although one thing that I believe would make this novel even better is if Bill Reynolds were to go into the lives of the student athletes more so we can get better perspective of how it was to be a student athlete living at the time in Fall River. Other than that this novel is really good.
In the novel, Fall River Dreams, it is about a small town, where unemployment is high and all the people in Fall River do not really have much so the people rely on the Durfee High School basketball team to bring them happiness with wins and championships. I can relate to this novel because I live in a small town and play basketball just like the student athletes who are mentioned in the novel. Another way that I can relate to this novel lot, except in my case it's my family, not a town. I can tell when my family is depressed due to the fact of not having enough to pay bills or something like that but when I have a sporting event and my family members attend it is like they forget about all the issues and just have a great time watching me play. So I feel like they somewhat rely on me to make them happy.
I would recommend this novel to the people who like to read sports stories and like to read a good story. Overall Fall River Dreams by Bill Reynolds is a really great novel. You will not regret reading this novel, it is very interesting.
Some pros of this novel is that when he talks about the history about the high school he makes you feel like you are there, same goes for when he is describing the basketball scenarios. Another pro would be that the way Bill Reynolds puts the story together really makes it come together. I would say there are not many cons to this novel, although one thing that I believe would make this novel even better is if Bill Reynolds were to go into the lives of the student athletes more so we can get better perspective of how it was to be a student athlete living at the time in Fall River. Other than that this novel is really good.
In the novel, Fall River Dreams, it is about a small town, where unemployment is high and all the people in Fall River do not really have much so the people rely on the Durfee High School basketball team to bring them happiness with wins and championships. I can relate to this novel because I live in a small town and play basketball just like the student athletes who are mentioned in the novel. Another way that I can relate to this novel lot, except in my case it's my family, not a town. I can tell when my family is depressed due to the fact of not having enough to pay bills or something like that but when I have a sporting event and my family members attend it is like they forget about all the issues and just have a great time watching me play. So I feel like they somewhat rely on me to make them happy.
I would recommend this novel to the people who like to read sports stories and like to read a good story. Overall Fall River Dreams by Bill Reynolds is a really great novel. You will not regret reading this novel, it is very interesting.
December 20, 2013
Fall River Dreams was in my opinion an average book, with an average read. The book had its high points and its low points. The book did give me some interest because it is all about basketball. So if you are a big sports person then I recommend you read this book. One of the problems with this book is the foul language used throughout the book. Every inappropriate word is used that you can think of. If you do not like foul language then do not read this book. Fall River Dreams is about a high school basketball team in Massachusetts with high expectations. The book takes place in the 90’s on the Durfee basketball team lead by Chris Herren. Herren is a star junior athlete with high expectations because both his brother and father won a state championship when they went to high school. The team starts off the season with a loss and Chris wonders what his future holds. Fall River a failing blue collar town has only sports to keep their heads held high. This book in my opinion is the basketball version of Friday Night Lights. As the season progresses Herren starts to get into drugs and alcohol. The coach starts to have a love hate relationship with Chris. Chris was the only reason for their success in the games throughout the season. After barely making the playoffs the pressure got even worse. Schools like Duke, UNC, Syracuse, and Kentucky scouted him for college ball, but his grades were awful. The coach, Skip Karam is a basketball legend at Durfee high school. He won a championship as a player and has won six as a coach. By this time in the book he has been coaching for thirty years. Karam was known as one of the hardest coaches of all time. He did it the hard way and his way. Karam after coaching for so long though was not pleased with how kids at this time were acting. Karam and Herren go through a tough journey throughout the book and while there are boring parts here and there it has its moments. It is all and all a good read and worth giving a chance.
January 25, 2013
This book is usually written about some football team in the South or a basketball team in New York. So from that standpoint, reading about Fall River, Massachusetts already sets this book apart. In other respects, the song remains the same only the location has changed. A once prosperous town, now fallen on hard times is lifted up for a moment in time by a special group of teenage athletes. Bill Reynolds writing about the Durfee High School basketball team is tight and riveting. Despite the fact that the subject is basketball, this book is an easy read. It is also a difficult read. On the one hand, it is difficult to watch grown people put so much of their lives and hopes in teenagers playing a sport. One wonders if they could be doing more for their young people if there was some perspective about their lives. There are also the athletes, some of whom will have their shining moments in high school and spend the rest of their time on earth reminiscing about these couple of years. Like the town, you get the feeling that they are doomed to be dragged back down by whatever ails the local economy and surroundings. But while they are on top, they are an interesting bunch of characters who manage to get the most of what time they have been given in the spotlight and do manage to create some memories to last a lifetime.
October 23, 2011
I really enjoyed this book. It's about Fall Rivers, MA which is a rundown mill town where the town as a whole doesn't have much going well for it. This follows the local High School's basketball team for a season and focuses on Chris Herren who was the star of the town. He went onto play Division 1 ball and a few stints in the NBA as well as drug rehab. It looks at the basketball team, which is as big to the town as most football teams are to their Texas' towns. I grew up in a town similar and the basketball team was the talk of the town so it was easy to relate to it. I would recommend reading this if you enjoy a story about sports, high school, and small town happenings.
January 24, 2008
This is like Hoop Dreams or Hoosiers, but still good. It is about the boys basketball team in Fall River, MA, and the passion of the town for the team. What makes it more compelling is the team's star, Chris Herren, ended up going to Fresno State and playing for the Celts before blowing it all on heroin. Sort of like our little Conant High in Jaffrey, but with a community even sadder and more tied into the program.
May 15, 2009
One of my all-time favorite books. A must read for any sports fan. This book is the Friday Night Lights of basketball. It follows a season at Durphee High School in Fall River, Massachusettss, where high school basketball is king, and its players are heroes. The season in question just happens to be the senior year of former all-american Chris Herren. The story outlines the town's history and the rich basketball tradition. I could read it again and again.
April 15, 2013
When someone told me they had read a book about basketball in Fall River I assumed there had to be another state--Indiana, most likely--with a town named Fall River. But I was wrong. This book is a terrific sports book that follows the Durfee High School basketball team, their coach, and their troubled and troublemaking star player. It's a great sports book and even here on the west coast, 3,000 miles away, it is one of the most borrowed books from my bookshelf.
July 24, 2016
Pretty good story about a basketball phenomenon from rough area of Boston. Skills go to his head, starts smoking meth or crack, cant remember. Somewhat gets his stuff together and has a brief NBA career. Other part of story focuses on the town, Fall River, MA.
August 16, 2016
Knowing how Chris Herren's basketball career turned out (sabotaged by heroin addiction) takes some of the shine off this story. Otherwise a pleasant read and a good portrait of longtime Durfee High School coach Skippy Karam.
May 29, 2007
followed one season of a high school basketball whose whole town relied on the team's success. i would say it's probably like the friday night lights of basketball books.
July 4, 2007
If you love high school basketball like me, this is a must read. Well written and gripping.
Currently reading
July 14, 2007A book about a small town near New York City and their how important their high school basketball team ment to them.
January 5, 2008
Excellent read. A facasinating look inside the world of High School hoops in Fall River Mass.and the recruting by big name college coaches.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews