Sweet: An Eight-Ball Odyssey

by Heather Byer

Recounts how the author, a New York journalist, took up playing pool as a means of alleviating stress, in a memoir that traces her experiences, from her attendance at instructional classes and her attempts to find a team to her unexpected wins and losses.

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Felicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book. It's not a great book, but pool is my secret passion, especially as a teen, and this is a meander-y look at a NYC woman's foray into the underbelly of pool culture. Very interesting, just lacking in structure a bit.

[Christina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really, really, really wanted to like this book more than I did. As a pool player who has been in the same league for 10 years now (the very same league the author talks about in the book), not to mention being a female in the league, I could relate to a lot of the stuff the author talks about. The frustrations, the sexism, the men who can't stand to be beaten by a woman, etc. But, it just dragged for me in a lot of places. The stuff I found most interesting was when she would talk about her pool game and the highs and lows of winning and losing, or being in the most colossal losing streak (I am going through this right now so I totally identify!) and when she would talk about the game itself or any of the aspects of the game, including a bit of the history. I actually really liked that stuff. The stuff that I sloughed through was more when she talked about her personal life outside of pool. I realize that she had to talk a lot about that in order to give the reader a frame of reference for her getting into playing pool and how it shaped what she was doing and vice versa, but I had a hard time identifying with the author on a personal level that had to do with anything outside of her pool life and I think that is why this wasn't at least a 4-star read for me.

All-in-all though it was still an enjoyable read, albeit a bit outdated since some of the rules in the league have changed since the book was written. It would be nice to see more women write about their pool experience, or just even more memoirs about being in the pool playing life in general.

[David H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about one young woman's adventures and difficulties that arise from learning to shoot pool and later joining a monday night pool league in New York City. This is not a pool instruction book, although it does cover the fundamentals of the game that I love so much. Byer discusses her struggles in learning pool, and trying to master the game. As with alot of shooters (myself included), her game suffers when she is dealing with problems in her life such as romance or work pressures. Other times, she plays so well that she amazes not only her team mates but everyone else in the bar. Much of the book deals with the people surrounding the author. She is candid about her relationships, friends, and the often times,the eccentric people she hangs out with during the league season. Most importantly, it illustrates how a passionate hobby can enrich a person's life. I really liked this book. Heather Byer is an excellent writer; she has worked in the publishing industry since graduating from college.

[Justin Newman · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I am an avid pool player and love a good memoir, this one fell a bit short in a few places. Byer can weave a good story, and uses an extensive vocabulary to do so, but there were so many grammatical issues that it detracted from the success of this novel for me.

Don't get me wrong, sometimes the writing was good enough to make me forget about these problems, but when the pace slowed or the subject matter faltered, I was reminded of the subpar mechanics and sentence structure.

Heather Byer chooses to write this memoir entirely in a present tense format, even when she is referring to past occurrences. I love present tense writing but only when the reader can distinguish current events from completed events. This was a constant struggle for me. On top of that, towards the end of the piece we get a section in future tense?

Well, it was a nice history on billiards and I did enjoy parts of it highly, but I only recommend this one to avid pool players who are more concerned about the story than syntax.

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've always found pool, in all its forms, to be a thing of beauty, so does Heather Bye, and when she sticks to her relationship with pool she's got a really fascinating, and compelling memoir. Her romantic interludes are plodding, and her history sections even more so. But, when you're looking over her shoulder in a pool hall and she's staring down that 8 ball, "Sweet" rips along like an elegant run of the table.

[sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting meditation on pool and the ins and outs of being a woman pool player in NYC. Sometimes exciting and bordering on a page turner of a thriller in the descriptions of matches, while other times dragging to the point that I found myself skimming in the background and reflective moments. All in all a fun memoir-esque read that usually held my interest.

[Dorie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the book, but I also play pool in NYC so it spoke to me. Non-pool-players might not find it as interesting but I suppose that's true with any memoir, or any book in general - if you're not interested in the subject matter, you'll be lost.

Pool players will find themselves saying "yep. been there." repeatedly.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent. Page-turning pool games, terrific character studies, perfect storytelling voice.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Memoir about NYC woman who takes up playing pool. Great descriptions of both people and places.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

I believe someone who was new to pool would really like this book, but it mainly deals with APA pool.

[Jason · Rating 2 out of 5]

Byer had some very interesting insights and is obviously an intelligent person, however, this book went absolutely nowhere.