The Comeback Summer

by Geoff Lemon

Geoff Lemon takes on  The Comeback Summer  of cricket, in this gripping follow-up to the multi-award-winning  Steve Smith’s Men . 
 
At the height of the 2019 season, the biggest names in Australian and English cricket faced off for sporting glory – and public forgiveness. It was always going to be a summer to remember. Steve Smith, captain of the Australian team, a batsman with a shot at rivalling the greatest of all time. Ben Stokes, star of the English team, an all-rounder with a knack for moments of genius. Both disgraced in scandals of very different kinds. Both attempting a tough comeback trail through the most crucial contests in the World Cup back-to-back with the Ashes.

Geoff Lemon was there, in the commentary boxes and on the boundaries, for this season of unparalleled drama on the field.  The Comeback Summer  is an insightful, lively and sharp take on the cricketing world, which asks why we’re so obsessed with the idea of sport as a means of redemption.

Genres: Sports, Nonfiction

310 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2020

Reviews

[Jarvo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Its traditional at Christmas that I get a cricket book to read: this year I got to choose, which meant that I could avoid a ghost written autobiography. Australia boasts a particularly fine stable of writers on cricket and Geoff Lemon comes with a burgeoning reputation. For the first fifty pages or so I wasn't quite sure why, but then there is a chapter which describes his entry, which is highly modern, and based on web commentaries, blogs and podcasts. This is a marvelous piece of sports writing, as are chapters on the experience of covering the English cricket season of 2019, and another on the world cup final itself (a game, he says, which just had no right to exist). His coverage is insightful, and admirably even handed. I feel that I've got a much better insight into the enigmatic Steve Smith and his freakish performance levels than I've ever had before.
The book has a theme which is that people love narratives of redemption in sport, but the reality is a bit more prosaic. You can't make up for deep moral failings with performances on the pitch, however exceptional.

[Paul Farrow · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book that aimed to explain the stages of redemption of cheating and being involved in an altercation fell into the trap of accepting runs or performances were the only currency worth writing about. Most prominent in the book was Smith, after runs galore in the Ashes, but still with with no explanation about the cheating for which he, Warner and Bancroft were banned. Cricket Australia brushed all of that under the carpet, as did the players. Reference to Stokes less detailed. He had a trial, the Australian players didn’t. Really well written, although a dash of impartiality would have made it much better.

[Leon · Rating 3 out of 5]

"A person who cannot definitively say whether they have had any Jägerbombs has definitely had some Jägerbombs. A Jägerbomb is an experience that does not pass one by. A person who has had between 15 and 24 standard drinks in one evening is shitfaced. A person who tries to bribe a bouncer £300 – three hundred quid! – to get into Mbargo – Mbargo! – is beyond shitfaced."

[Sam Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fantastic tome

While not quite as juicy of a topic as the brilliant Steve Smith's Men, this is another great read by Geoff Lemon. This man just knows exactly how to tell a story.

[Steve · Rating 2 out of 5]

Where Steve Smith's Men was punchy and informative, this book feels a bit like it drags. It does, however, bring back the memories of that 2019 Ashes series, including that incredible Stokes' innings to win the improbable test for England.

[Lachlan Zammit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Come for the Jägerbomb paragraph, stay for the Steve Smith Eminem rap. The Comeback Summer is very entertaining, captures the romance of cricket beautifully and is thoughtful in its analysis and critique of the moral lives of our idols. Fantastic book!

[Mark Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. Examining Sportsmen's poor behaviour but also the great cricket of 2019. Still wish I'd gone to that Women's World Cup Final (was miffed as England had been eliminated due to rain).
A while later and I could have shot it.

[Brett Oaten · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as compelling as Steve Smith's men, but enjoyable and some good observations

[Alex Bellamy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Geoff Lemon's writing is just so rich and clever and delicious - he's almost too quick and witty that you need to slow down your reading of his work to make sure you don't missing anything.

[Aarnts · Rating 5 out of 5]

clever, poetic, entertains, pop cultured, emotive and analytical. Pulled apart the stokes trial. Written word rap about Smith that had even me rapping. What a cricket book should be. And still I can’t easily or comfortable read about that Test in England in 2019