Cohn-Head: A No-holds-barred Account of Breaking Into the Boys' Club

by Linda Cohn

In Cohn-Head , one of America’s most successful female anchors lays bare her hard-fought rise to the top of the sportscasting boys’ club and her life inside the ESPN empire, talks candidly about sports personalities she has met, and reveals her personal top ten lists plus much, much more.   After tracing her upbringing in a dysfunctional family, Linda Cohn tells how she became a diehard sports fan and a goalie on her high school (boy’s) hockey team—setting the stage for college hockey stardom, when she was affectionately known as “Cohn-Head” by her teammates. From here she moves on to her first break in sportscasting. Along the way she describes her close encounters with the likes of Michael Jordan, Matthew McConaughey, and Jay Z.   Written with verve, Cohn-Head is a riveting read—a must for sports fans male and female alike, as well as anyone who seeks insight into how one woman made a man’s world her own.

Genres: Sports, Autobiography

245 pages, Hardcover

First published September 2, 2008

Reviews

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read a lot of those hockey "auto"-biographies allegedly written by a player, coach, or other such individual - who actually sat down with some sportswriter, provided some background, and then let him or her do the actual writing. I enjoy the material, even though I know that the personality's words were interpreted by some professional journalist or other writer.

Cohn-Head is just like that - sort of. But different. Linda Cohn's claim to fame isn't her hockey playing days, even though she did spend time in high school and college between the pipes for the school's team. It's that she's a journalist. SO ... the book goes off in different directions, and the author really IS the author, without someone else trying to organize her thoughts and put them in sentences that sound like the book's subject actually wrote them.

Linda Cohn shows herself to be a lot more than "just" the pretty face on SportsCenter. As stated earlier, her love of hockey comes honestly with a college hockey background. Her carerr shows the benefit of hard work ... and breaks ... and not giving up because an earned opportunity doesn't come OR a challenge arises OR ...

Before I read this book, I thought that Linda Cohn would probably be a very interesting person to have a lengthy conversation with - after reading this book, I know she would be

Perhaps the only weakness in the book is the weak ending ... but even there, it shows that her life and career is still moving forward, and picking a certain period of time to write your memoirs does not mean that the moment is going to end on a momentous event that wraps everything up!

It's a quick read. Read it.


P.S. Several of the reviews I've read mention Linda's self-admitted self-absorbtion. Yes, the book centers around her - but it's her frickin' autobiography, what did you expect / want it to be about??

[Chris Spaight · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this. I did. I like supporting women in sports and the parts about her career had some interesting moments. But she really should've hired a ghost writer. Her writing is just.... flat. It works well for TV and radio, but is a complete slog to read through in book format.

It's a journalistic reporting style in a memoir. Doesn't really work. Even when she does talk about how she felt about her marriage or bumps in her career, there's a distance there that makes it feel emotionless even as she spells out her emotions.

I haven't watched her on ESPN much, so maybe if I was a fan I'd like it more. I was reading as a woman in the entertainment industry who also likes sports. It was valuable in showing me that I don't love sports enough to succeed in sportscasting. And again there were interesting parts.

But it took me a really long time to read for a book of this length, which is always a bad sign.

[Ice · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of America’s most successful female anchors lays bare her hard-fought rise to the top of the sportscasting boys’ club and her life inside the ESPN empire. She talks candidly about her own successes and missteps, and reveals her humorous, rewarding, and frightening interviews with sports personalities. Growing up in a dysfunctional family, Linda Cohn became a diehard sports fan and a goalie on her high school (boys’) hockey team—setting the stage for college hockey stardom, when she was affectionately known as “Cohn-Head” by her teammates.

She got her first break in sportscasting by covering a team she hated. She discusses the sexual tension all too present both in the workplace and the locker room, and her close encounters with the likes of Michael Jordan, Matthew McConaughey, and Jay-Z.

[Jo Oehrlein · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a quick read auto-biography of Linda Cohn, who is famous for her work as a sportscaster on ESPN. She talks about her dysfunctional family life, her time playing ice hockey, and her path in broadcast journalism (which included both news and sports, as well as radio, TV, and SportsPhone). It's interesting to see her dedication to her job -- she often worked 3+ jobs in the first years.

You'll hear some interesting anecdotes about how she feels about women in the locker room, how she learned to get along with colleagues who didn't like her, and some SportsCenter in-jokes.

However, other than short bits about her pregnancy and the times she talks about going to couples counseling (and the note at the end where she talks about divorcing), there's nothing here extremely personal.

Linda comes across as sort of an Aspie -- very tuned OUT to other's emotions and feelings.

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

Usually it takes me awhile to complete a book but I really enjoyed Linda's autiobiography and thus couldn't put it down. Having remembered her from her days as a Seattle sports anchor that connection made it fun to read and glad to see that she enjoyed her time there.

[Stephanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book wasn't bad, it just was dry. I think that if I had listened to it with her reading it, I would have liked it much more. I think she's awesome, though. Sorry Linda.

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked reading a woman's perspective of working in a "man's job" but it wasn't anything earth-shattering. Just a simple and enjoyable read.

[Alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of the best biographies I have ever read. If you have any interest in sports this is the book to read!