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Playing the Moldovans at Tennis
Another outrageous bet sends Tony Hawks on a travel adventure in an attempt to beat the members of the Moldovan soccer team at tennis. During this hilarious journey, he is taken in by gypsies, narrowly escapes a kidnapping attempt, and smuggles his way onto the Moldovan National Team train. And with the loser of the bet agreeing to strip naked and sing the Moldovan national anthem, this book is just too good to resist.
250 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
35 people are currently reading
1615 people want to read
About the author
Tony Hawks
31 books227 followersTony Hawks, is a British comedian and author, famous for his Quizotic travel accounts undertaking bizarre wagers with friends. Hawks performs stand-up comedy, and is a regular on TV and radio panel games in the UK, including I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, Just a Minute, The Unbelievable Truth and Have I Got News for You, although he first came to prominence as one of two resident performers — the other was Jo Brand — on semi-successful BBC monologue show The Brain Drain.
He first attempted to break into show business as a serious singer-songwriter, but it was with a novelty record that he had his first brush with fame. As leader of the trio Morris Minor and the Majors, he reached number 4 in the UK charts with the Beastie Boys parody, Stutter Rap (No Sleep Til Bedtime) in 1988. It went on to sell 220,000 copies, and was number one in Australia. The follow-up, a pastiche of Stock Aitken Waterman called This Is the Chorus, fared less well.
The full-length feature film version of his book Round Ireland with a Fridge, starring Tony, Josie Lawrence, Ed Byrne and Sean Hughes, was released in Autumn 2010. Filming on the follow-up, Playing the Moldovans at Tennis, with Steven Frost, Angus Deayton, Morwenna Banks and Laura Solon, has just been completed. In March 2011 Tony travelled to Japan to appear at the Okinawa International Film Festival where Round Ireland with a Fridge was nominated for Best Comedy.
Tony Hawks donated half of the royalties from his book Playing the Moldovans at Tennis to a trust fund for Moldova, which was used to open the Hippocrates Centre, a medical centre that provides rehabilitative therapy for disabled children from socially vulnerable families. Hawks continues to support Hippocrates through fundraising and personal involvement. Hawks is the co-founder and public face of the "Tennis for Free" campaign which aims to make Britain's existing municipal tennis facilities available to all.
He is frequently confused with Tony Hawk, largely because the latter's video game franchise uses the possessive apostrophe ("Tony Hawk's"). Hawks maintains a list of emails intended for the skateboarder and his mischievous responses to them on his website. On 2 January 2008 he appeared on an edition of Celebrity Mastermind, with Tony Hawk as his chosen specialised subject. Hawks noted that his correspondents "might be able to do backside varials but they can't spell to save their lives."
In September he will begin his first National Theatre tour since 2003 with a new one man show called Random Fun.
He first attempted to break into show business as a serious singer-songwriter, but it was with a novelty record that he had his first brush with fame. As leader of the trio Morris Minor and the Majors, he reached number 4 in the UK charts with the Beastie Boys parody, Stutter Rap (No Sleep Til Bedtime) in 1988. It went on to sell 220,000 copies, and was number one in Australia. The follow-up, a pastiche of Stock Aitken Waterman called This Is the Chorus, fared less well.
The full-length feature film version of his book Round Ireland with a Fridge, starring Tony, Josie Lawrence, Ed Byrne and Sean Hughes, was released in Autumn 2010. Filming on the follow-up, Playing the Moldovans at Tennis, with Steven Frost, Angus Deayton, Morwenna Banks and Laura Solon, has just been completed. In March 2011 Tony travelled to Japan to appear at the Okinawa International Film Festival where Round Ireland with a Fridge was nominated for Best Comedy.
Tony Hawks donated half of the royalties from his book Playing the Moldovans at Tennis to a trust fund for Moldova, which was used to open the Hippocrates Centre, a medical centre that provides rehabilitative therapy for disabled children from socially vulnerable families. Hawks continues to support Hippocrates through fundraising and personal involvement. Hawks is the co-founder and public face of the "Tennis for Free" campaign which aims to make Britain's existing municipal tennis facilities available to all.
He is frequently confused with Tony Hawk, largely because the latter's video game franchise uses the possessive apostrophe ("Tony Hawk's"). Hawks maintains a list of emails intended for the skateboarder and his mischievous responses to them on his website. On 2 January 2008 he appeared on an edition of Celebrity Mastermind, with Tony Hawk as his chosen specialised subject. Hawks noted that his correspondents "might be able to do backside varials but they can't spell to save their lives."
In September he will begin his first National Theatre tour since 2003 with a new one man show called Random Fun.
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August 11, 2011Wonderful reading! I am Moldovan, and at times it actually hurt to read some things, and sometimes I wanted to scream "That's not true!", but as a matter of fact - a lot of things in this book ARE true... Though it was written some time in the end of 90's as I undersand, and things are much better here now (at least we have lights in the streets now!), but a lot of things about mentality of Moldovans never changed...
This would probably be interesting to read both for foreigners going to Moldova, or those who have spent some time there already, and would definitely recognize quite a lot of situations described.
Despite of quite a bit of misery described, it also adds much positivism and even optimism! Would recommend with confidence to a lot of my friends.
This would probably be interesting to read both for foreigners going to Moldova, or those who have spent some time there already, and would definitely recognize quite a lot of situations described.
Despite of quite a bit of misery described, it also adds much positivism and even optimism! Would recommend with confidence to a lot of my friends.
December 26, 2017
http://www.mytwostotinki.com/?p=3511
Since I am right now living and working in the Republic of Moldova, it will come probably not as a surprise to you, dear readers, when I am trying to get my hands on any books written by Moldovan authors that are translated in a language that I am able to read. There are indeed a few quite interesting authors whose translated books I will feature here in the future.
Today I am writing a few lines about a rather humorous book by the British comedian Tony Hawks: Playing the Moldovans at Tennis. At the beginning is an eccentric wager: Tony is betting with a friend (after they watched the Moldovan football team in TV losing against England) that he can beat every member of the Moldovan National team in tennis. (It should be mentioned that a short time before his Moldovan adventure he won a bet that included his traveling around Ireland - with a fridge!)
"All I knew about Moldova was the names of eleven men printed on the inside back page of my newspaper. None of them sounded to me sounded like they were any good at tennis..."
So, the bizarre quest is simply: tracking down the country's football team, challenging them one by one to play tennis with him - and win! (Maybe I should mention that the loser of the bet is supposed to sing the Moldovan National anthem on a crowded street in London - with his pants down...)
What follows is the hilarious report of Tony's adventures mainly in Moldova, with a visit in Northern Ireland (where the football team has a match that would give Tony the opportunity to challenge some players he hadn't met yet.) and an exciting trip to Nazareth where things seem to go wrong for Tony...
The guiding principle of the book, the tracking down of eleven football players reminded me of course a bit of The Twelve Chairs. There is plenty of action, unexpected turns of fate, meetings with the Moldovan underworld, gypsies, and every day challenges such as power cuts, huge manholes in the almost unlit streets of the capital Chisinau, adventures in the public transport, but also encounters with plenty of helpful people, especially his guest family with which Tony created a bond of friendship for life.
A good part of the humour of the book is based on the clash of culture between an over-optimistic Englishman and a local population who seem to be a bit reserved and not particularly surprised about Tony's plan. In a country where almost everyone is focused on surviving the next day, that is probably not surprising. (The book was published in 2000, but things have not changed a lot and Moldova is still the poorest country in Europe.)
Usually, I am a bit reserved regarding the genre "Humorous Travel Books". Too frequently, the humour in the book is of a condescending and disrespectful nature; the content of this kind of books can be described as "Foreigner from a wealthy Western country travels to a poor country about which he doesn't know anything and doesn't want to learn anything, with the sole purpose to poke fun at the hapless and primitive natives, in order to entertain other prejudiced and obnoxious foreigners from wealthy Western countries." The travel prose of AA Gill and some other hacks belongs to that category. I don't like that at all.
Fortunately, Tony Hawks is a different kind of person. His humour is self-depreciating, and he is genuinely interested in getting to know and understand the Moldovans. He is even questioning if he is doing the right thing with his bizarre adventure, which seems to him rather frivolous as time is passing, considering the living conditions of everyone around him.
Of course I am not telling you here if Tony was successful and was really able to beat all players. You have to read it by yourself, and I can assure you, it is a very entertaining book. And since there not many books about Moldova, it is still a must-read for anyone who travels there.
50% of the royalties of this book go into a fund that supports a local children's health centre in Chisinau, the Tony Hawks Centre. Tony is still traveling regularly to Moldova and is doing additional fundraising for the good cause. If you want to learn more about the Tony Hawks Centre, or about Voinicel, another NGO in Chisinau that supports children with special needs and their parents, visit their respective websites. And maybe you consider also if you can make a donation - it is for a good cause!
Since I am right now living and working in the Republic of Moldova, it will come probably not as a surprise to you, dear readers, when I am trying to get my hands on any books written by Moldovan authors that are translated in a language that I am able to read. There are indeed a few quite interesting authors whose translated books I will feature here in the future.
Today I am writing a few lines about a rather humorous book by the British comedian Tony Hawks: Playing the Moldovans at Tennis. At the beginning is an eccentric wager: Tony is betting with a friend (after they watched the Moldovan football team in TV losing against England) that he can beat every member of the Moldovan National team in tennis. (It should be mentioned that a short time before his Moldovan adventure he won a bet that included his traveling around Ireland - with a fridge!)
"All I knew about Moldova was the names of eleven men printed on the inside back page of my newspaper. None of them sounded to me sounded like they were any good at tennis..."
So, the bizarre quest is simply: tracking down the country's football team, challenging them one by one to play tennis with him - and win! (Maybe I should mention that the loser of the bet is supposed to sing the Moldovan National anthem on a crowded street in London - with his pants down...)
What follows is the hilarious report of Tony's adventures mainly in Moldova, with a visit in Northern Ireland (where the football team has a match that would give Tony the opportunity to challenge some players he hadn't met yet.) and an exciting trip to Nazareth where things seem to go wrong for Tony...
The guiding principle of the book, the tracking down of eleven football players reminded me of course a bit of The Twelve Chairs. There is plenty of action, unexpected turns of fate, meetings with the Moldovan underworld, gypsies, and every day challenges such as power cuts, huge manholes in the almost unlit streets of the capital Chisinau, adventures in the public transport, but also encounters with plenty of helpful people, especially his guest family with which Tony created a bond of friendship for life.
A good part of the humour of the book is based on the clash of culture between an over-optimistic Englishman and a local population who seem to be a bit reserved and not particularly surprised about Tony's plan. In a country where almost everyone is focused on surviving the next day, that is probably not surprising. (The book was published in 2000, but things have not changed a lot and Moldova is still the poorest country in Europe.)
Usually, I am a bit reserved regarding the genre "Humorous Travel Books". Too frequently, the humour in the book is of a condescending and disrespectful nature; the content of this kind of books can be described as "Foreigner from a wealthy Western country travels to a poor country about which he doesn't know anything and doesn't want to learn anything, with the sole purpose to poke fun at the hapless and primitive natives, in order to entertain other prejudiced and obnoxious foreigners from wealthy Western countries." The travel prose of AA Gill and some other hacks belongs to that category. I don't like that at all.
Fortunately, Tony Hawks is a different kind of person. His humour is self-depreciating, and he is genuinely interested in getting to know and understand the Moldovans. He is even questioning if he is doing the right thing with his bizarre adventure, which seems to him rather frivolous as time is passing, considering the living conditions of everyone around him.
Of course I am not telling you here if Tony was successful and was really able to beat all players. You have to read it by yourself, and I can assure you, it is a very entertaining book. And since there not many books about Moldova, it is still a must-read for anyone who travels there.
50% of the royalties of this book go into a fund that supports a local children's health centre in Chisinau, the Tony Hawks Centre. Tony is still traveling regularly to Moldova and is doing additional fundraising for the good cause. If you want to learn more about the Tony Hawks Centre, or about Voinicel, another NGO in Chisinau that supports children with special needs and their parents, visit their respective websites. And maybe you consider also if you can make a donation - it is for a good cause!
July 22, 2019
Super funny and moving book, really. I wanted to give it 4* this time, but why. I'm sticking with the 5*.
I don't think this book is about tennis*, if this is what you were wondering. You don't need to know any rules in order to be able to follow the adventures of Tony through half of the world.
I can imagine to be willing to read this book another time *again*. According to my memory and goodreads, I already read it twice in German, but, but! since I don't have the recollection of a second year, I am going to stay with: read twice, once in 2007 in German, once in 2019 in English.
Who's having the Romanian edition please? :)
*maybe 20 pages evolving around tennis, from 250.
I don't think this book is about tennis*, if this is what you were wondering. You don't need to know any rules in order to be able to follow the adventures of Tony through half of the world.
I can imagine to be willing to read this book another time *again*. According to my memory and goodreads, I already read it twice in German, but, but! since I don't have the recollection of a second year, I am going to stay with: read twice, once in 2007 in German, once in 2019 in English.
Who's having the Romanian edition please? :)
*maybe 20 pages evolving around tennis, from 250.
November 3, 2008
I found myself laughing out loud while reading this book. I would highly recommend it to anyone who likes travel memoirs and has a good sense of humor.
In preparing for my trip to Chisinau, Moldova I was desperate to find anything on Moldova. Seeing as most people don't know where Moldova is or that it even exists (I didn't until I was assigned the trip) I shouldn't be so shocked. Most books available are more academic histories. While I love history more than most (I'd better since I am still paying off my student loans) I still wanted something more accessable. Several readers on Amazaon.com recommended this book over others for being both hilarious and insightful.
This book is spot on in its descriptions of life and culture in Moldova. The whole time I was there I struggled to put my observations and feelings into word, and Hawks did it perfectly and humorously. Even for those with no interest in going to Moldova - it is a fun and quick read.
In preparing for my trip to Chisinau, Moldova I was desperate to find anything on Moldova. Seeing as most people don't know where Moldova is or that it even exists (I didn't until I was assigned the trip) I shouldn't be so shocked. Most books available are more academic histories. While I love history more than most (I'd better since I am still paying off my student loans) I still wanted something more accessable. Several readers on Amazaon.com recommended this book over others for being both hilarious and insightful.
This book is spot on in its descriptions of life and culture in Moldova. The whole time I was there I struggled to put my observations and feelings into word, and Hawks did it perfectly and humorously. Even for those with no interest in going to Moldova - it is a fun and quick read.
January 20, 2009
Someone had left this book in an airport. I've recommended it to five or six people as one of the more fun books I've read; the whole premise is wonderfully ludicrous, like Hawk's "Hitch-hiking Around Ireland with a Refrigerator". Finally I actually met someone from Moldova; I bought and gave him the book as a present. We became friends over the story, which he couldn't wait to share with his family and friends when he went back. Great read.
October 22, 2008
After "Round Ireland with a Fridge," I knew I had to read everything by Tony. This book is the result of another bar bet and also hilarious.
October 13, 2016
Ce carte minunată ai scris, Tony Hawks!
„Tenis cu moldovenii” (ediția a doua, cu un epilog al autorului, Cartier, 2014) este o carte în care râzi și apoi suspini. > > goo.gl/qjv3gB
Este o carte în care, citindu-o, ți se face ciudă că unele previziuni sumbre s-au împlinit deja. „Străzile erau largi, mărginite de copaci, iar traficul, deși constant, se desfășura fluid. Mă întrebam cam peste câtă vreme aceste străzi vor fi blocate?” Sunt deja, Tony, de mult timp și bineînțeles știi asta. Nu sunt convins încă dacă „multele anomalii ale acestei țări” au devenit astăzi mai puține.
Dar e bine că măcar ceva s-a schimbat. „Mi se părea că întunericul era mai întunecat aici, în Moldova”. Sau nu?
Cu siguranță că acum nu este așa „faptul că un actor de comedie din Anglia a venit în Moldova ca să încerce să-i bată la tenis pe fotbaliștii din echipa națională a Moldovei nu este o știre de presă”.
Am regăsit-o în cartea lui Tony Hawks pe Corina, „elegantă și frumoasă”, cea cu „o voce feminină plăpândă”. În plus, „grijulie, circumspectă, controlând totul”.
Este aici și Iulian, cel cu „maniere elegante și cu o față plăcută când zâmbea”. Și Emil, pe atunci George Harrison în trupa „The Flying Postmen”. Și Leonid, ziaristul sportiv care „părea să posede cunoștințe enciclopedice despre fotbalul din Moldova”.
Sunt atâția oameni și atâtea lucruri din Moldova încât, uneori, nici nu știu dacă această carte este de proză documentată, foarte dramatică, sau ficțiune.
Îmi pare însă că acest lucru este adevărat. „Prima dată când am devenit vulnerabil și avem mare nevoie de ajutor. La așa ceva moldovenii reacționează!”
Îți mulțumesc, Tony, pentru că m-ai făcut cu această carte a ta să râd și să oftez.
Și pentru contribuția ta din Moldova la faptul că „oamenii cu orice fel de dizabilitate trebuie să fie respectați de către societatea în mijlocul căreia trăiesc și să aibă dreptul la o viață pe cât e posibil normală și satisfăcătoare”.
Corina a mărturisit la finalul cărții: „Tony, vreau să-ți spun că sunt fericită pentru tine”.
Ce vreau să-ți spun eu la sfârșitul acestor note de lectură?
Că și eu cred, la fel ca tine, că „dacă gândești pozitiv, poți face ca lucrurile să se întâmple”. Nu ți-am spus asta, în 2013, pe scenă la TEDxChișinău, unde am fost amândoi speakeri, pentru că nu îți citisem cartea încă.
Acum, când încă sunt emoționat după ce am citit „Tenis cu moldovenii”, cred că, de fapt, cartea ta, Tony, este tony-fiantă.
Cu proprietăți de întărire.
Pentru Moldova și pentru oamenii ei. > > goo.gl/qjv3gB
„Tenis cu moldovenii” (ediția a doua, cu un epilog al autorului, Cartier, 2014) este o carte în care râzi și apoi suspini. > > goo.gl/qjv3gB
Este o carte în care, citindu-o, ți se face ciudă că unele previziuni sumbre s-au împlinit deja. „Străzile erau largi, mărginite de copaci, iar traficul, deși constant, se desfășura fluid. Mă întrebam cam peste câtă vreme aceste străzi vor fi blocate?” Sunt deja, Tony, de mult timp și bineînțeles știi asta. Nu sunt convins încă dacă „multele anomalii ale acestei țări” au devenit astăzi mai puține.
Dar e bine că măcar ceva s-a schimbat. „Mi se părea că întunericul era mai întunecat aici, în Moldova”. Sau nu?
Cu siguranță că acum nu este așa „faptul că un actor de comedie din Anglia a venit în Moldova ca să încerce să-i bată la tenis pe fotbaliștii din echipa națională a Moldovei nu este o știre de presă”.
Am regăsit-o în cartea lui Tony Hawks pe Corina, „elegantă și frumoasă”, cea cu „o voce feminină plăpândă”. În plus, „grijulie, circumspectă, controlând totul”.
Este aici și Iulian, cel cu „maniere elegante și cu o față plăcută când zâmbea”. Și Emil, pe atunci George Harrison în trupa „The Flying Postmen”. Și Leonid, ziaristul sportiv care „părea să posede cunoștințe enciclopedice despre fotbalul din Moldova”.
Sunt atâția oameni și atâtea lucruri din Moldova încât, uneori, nici nu știu dacă această carte este de proză documentată, foarte dramatică, sau ficțiune.
Îmi pare însă că acest lucru este adevărat. „Prima dată când am devenit vulnerabil și avem mare nevoie de ajutor. La așa ceva moldovenii reacționează!”
Îți mulțumesc, Tony, pentru că m-ai făcut cu această carte a ta să râd și să oftez.
Și pentru contribuția ta din Moldova la faptul că „oamenii cu orice fel de dizabilitate trebuie să fie respectați de către societatea în mijlocul căreia trăiesc și să aibă dreptul la o viață pe cât e posibil normală și satisfăcătoare”.
Corina a mărturisit la finalul cărții: „Tony, vreau să-ți spun că sunt fericită pentru tine”.
Ce vreau să-ți spun eu la sfârșitul acestor note de lectură?
Că și eu cred, la fel ca tine, că „dacă gândești pozitiv, poți face ca lucrurile să se întâmple”. Nu ți-am spus asta, în 2013, pe scenă la TEDxChișinău, unde am fost amândoi speakeri, pentru că nu îți citisem cartea încă.
Acum, când încă sunt emoționat după ce am citit „Tenis cu moldovenii”, cred că, de fapt, cartea ta, Tony, este tony-fiantă.
Cu proprietăți de întărire.
Pentru Moldova și pentru oamenii ei. > > goo.gl/qjv3gB
May 17, 2021
Excellent concept: a few drinks, watching the soccer, you’re good at tennis, could you beat the Moldovan soccer team at your own sport? If not, you have to strip naked to their anthem.
The author has a lot of drive to organise a trip there and push his way into some matches against the players. Half way in, I was kinda barracking for him to succeed however as got a bit closer to meeting the players I was put off by a couple of things. I could possibly misunderstand the British sense of humour but if you’re going to someone else’s country and they are doing you a favour as part of a bet, shouldn’t you be grateful? I felt really bad for the players and other people he met or encountered because he says some nasty things about them: bald, fat, bad teeth, full of it and then goes on to mock their poor tennis performances. He does praise them afterwards (which makes it ok?). He also reflects on some nice things which is nice. So I feel a bit conflicted.
I did learn a fair bit about the Moldovan experience which was good for my around the world reading challenge. I might have rated the book a 3 if it had been kinder. 2.5 star rating if possible.
The author has a lot of drive to organise a trip there and push his way into some matches against the players. Half way in, I was kinda barracking for him to succeed however as got a bit closer to meeting the players I was put off by a couple of things. I could possibly misunderstand the British sense of humour but if you’re going to someone else’s country and they are doing you a favour as part of a bet, shouldn’t you be grateful? I felt really bad for the players and other people he met or encountered because he says some nasty things about them: bald, fat, bad teeth, full of it and then goes on to mock their poor tennis performances. He does praise them afterwards (which makes it ok?). He also reflects on some nice things which is nice. So I feel a bit conflicted.
I did learn a fair bit about the Moldovan experience which was good for my around the world reading challenge. I might have rated the book a 3 if it had been kinder. 2.5 star rating if possible.
August 13, 2021
A nice light, entertaining read. The story follows English comedian to Moldova, Northern Ireland and Israel as he tries to win a bet with his friend Arthur. The bet is that Tony will beat the Moldovan national footie team at tennis, all 11 players. The loser of the bet will sing the Moldovan national anthem, naked on the High Street. Tony's experiences in Moldova are quite interesting; his attempts to contact the players and teams to set up the tennis matches, his feelings about Moldova, his thoughts on the lovely family with which he stays while in Moldova. It's the briefest of insights, but I found it all very interesting. He then must follow the National team to their match in Northern Ireland to try to play 3 players he missed while in Moldova and then to Israel to meet the final player. Does Tony win the bet? Well, you will have to read to find out. Entertaining story, generally a fun read.
July 22, 2010
I don't recommend reading this book in a public place. There are so many moments in there that made me laugh out loud resulting in strange looks from the people around me. It was such an enjoyable read and would recommend it to anyone looking for something light hearted to cheer them up
November 1, 2010
Fun book! Just as entertaining as Round Ireland With a Fridge and I learned a lot about Moldava as well!
September 28, 2024
Wat ik verwachtte, was een speels boek dat Moldavië zou reduceren tot het decor van een wat onbenullig verhaal: een Brit met te veel geld en tijd, die nog nooit van Moldavië heeft gehoord, moet voor een absurde weddenschap alle leden van het Moldavische nationale elftal verslaan in tennis.
Maar wat ik kreeg, was een verrassend treffend portret van het jonge postcommunistische Moldavië, en bovendien een positieve indruk van de aanstekelijk optimistische levensinstelling van Tony Hawks. Hawks' humor deed me denken aan die van Jeremy Clarkson, die in het Nederlands vertaald op eenzelfde manier schrijft. Blijkbaar werkt het goed om Britse humor in het Nederlands te lezen.
Het is goed om een westers boek over Moldavië te lezen dat vanuit een niet-academische invalshoek geschreven is. Dit land verdient het om vaker opgemerkt te worden en dat heeft Hawks beslist ook gedacht bij het meemaken en opschrijven van zijn avontuur.
Maar wat ik kreeg, was een verrassend treffend portret van het jonge postcommunistische Moldavië, en bovendien een positieve indruk van de aanstekelijk optimistische levensinstelling van Tony Hawks. Hawks' humor deed me denken aan die van Jeremy Clarkson, die in het Nederlands vertaald op eenzelfde manier schrijft. Blijkbaar werkt het goed om Britse humor in het Nederlands te lezen.
Het is goed om een westers boek over Moldavië te lezen dat vanuit een niet-academische invalshoek geschreven is. Dit land verdient het om vaker opgemerkt te worden en dat heeft Hawks beslist ook gedacht bij het meemaken en opschrijven van zijn avontuur.
June 20, 2008
I was living in Moldova as a Peace Corps volunteer when I read this book. Really quite funny. If you want to learn a little something about post-soviet Moldova, it's a great read. And did I mention funny?
March 24, 2014
Although this book is done on a fairly silly bet--whether he can beat the entire Moldovan soccer team at tennis--it does provide a unique look at Moldova and Transnistria which got out from under the Soviet thumb in the 1990s only to be once again up for grabs by Russia it seems...
June 5, 2009
The first Tony Hawks book I read. It made me want to read the others. Laugh out loud funny.
April 10, 2024
Tony Hawks is a funny guy. After all, he is a comedian, and comedians tend to have to be funny. But in recent years, he’s progressed from being “funny ha-ha” to being possibly a little bit strange. It’s not his fault, I guess. He just can’t resist a challenge. So when he got drunk one night and was bet that he couldn’t hitch hike around Ireland with a fridge in tow, he did, and then promptly wrote a book, the hilarious, if not terribly imaginatively titled “Round Ireland With a Fridge”
Arthur Smith is also a funny guy. He’s a friend of Tony Hawks and has starred alongside him on the comedy circuit and on “Red Dwarf”. He’s also pretty fond of telling Tony he’s not very good at tennis, which upsets Tony because Tony thinks he’s actually rather good at the game. And so it is that one night, whilst watching England beat Moldova 4-0 and after quite a few drinks have been consumed, a bet is made. The bet is as so; that Tony can’t beat the entire Moldovan football team at tennis.
It’s an entirely new challenge to going to Ireland and wandering around with a fridge. For one thing, Tony isn’t even sure where Moldova is, much less what language they speak there. And for another, even getting to Moldova is quite a process and one that, in Tony’s case, involves going to Liverpool to meet a Beatles tribute band. Not quite how you’d expect a Moldovan odyssey to start, but that’s how things had to be done.
Once in Moldova, things don’t go a great deal better. It takes Tony a lot of time to even get the first game going, as the pace and quality of life in Moldova is such that even football players don’t just drop what they’re doing and enjoy a frivolous game of tennis. Indeed, it’s a place where there are no manhole covers, no street lighting and quite often not enough money to pay proper salaries to doctors and medical staff. Added to Tony’s woes are that very few people speak English at all, much less good English. And the ones that he can speak to and explain the nature of his visit to Moldova all think he’s insane.
So, to fill the time in trying to find Moldovan footballers and force them to play tennis against him, Tony sees some of the country. He visits some gypsies and presents their King, Arthur, with a somewhat predictable gift. He meets who he believes to be the Chief of Police and gets to know the Moldovan family he is staying with a little better, even if he does have to resort to some unfortunate miming to get an important point across.
Much like in “Round Ireland With a Fridge”, “Playing the Moldovans at Tennis” is more about the people he meets and how he goes about doing what he has to do, rather than the places he goes. Whilst this makes for an interesting read, it doesn’t make it a terribly good travel book, which is what it is technically defined as. However, his experiences of public transport in Moldova are fairly good, although all this leaves you with is a vague knowledge of how to get around the country, but without really knowing where you’d want to go or what you’d do when you get there.
A number of his potential opponents either weren’t available or no longer played their club football in Moldova. So Tony’s trip also ends up taking in Ireland and Israel as well as Moldova. Whilst the Irish section of the book involves little other than hanging around with the football squad, the section in Israel is perhaps on of the more illuminating in regards to this technically being a travel book. Unlike his time in Moldova and in “Round Ireland With a Fridge”, a lot of the people he meets aren’t part of his bet and aren’t helping him along. And, unlike in Moldova he’s got time on his hands with things being arranged and done a lot quicker, so he’s able to look around a little. There’s no real advice or directions, but there are more descriptions of places he’s seen, rather than people.
The general tone of the book is a lot slower and more downbeat than in “…Fridge”. This can’t be blamed on the author, but on the country he finds himself in. Whilst everything in his previous trip to Ireland worked out well and was a step towards completing his goal and took part in a country where he could feel at home, in “…Tennis”, virtually the opposite is true. There are days where nothing gets done and times are hard for everyone in the country. The harshness of life in Moldova is quite well reflected through the writing, which makes for a less fulfilling read, but overall a more moving experience. All in all, “…Tennis” is a better written book than “…Fridge” as it runs a gamut of emotions, rather than being all too easy.
Tony’s writing style is again very chatty and straightforward. Whilst not flowing quite as well as “…Fridge”, it’s still a very easy book to read, as it’s told in a relaxed, almost conversational, style and you can almost hear Tony’s voice in your head, relating the events to you. The funny moments are rarer than in “…Fridge”, but there’s some real laugh out loud moments, although even they seem to reflect the Moldovan way of life in that they appear more frequently both before and after he’s been to the country and less so whilst he’s there.
If you’ve enjoyed either of Tony Hawks’ other books, this is definitely one to read. Whilst not being “travel” in any real sense of the word, it’s certainly about a journey, and one worth following. If you like people who do silly things, it’s worth a look and if you’ve ever wondered how people in other cultures, particularly in Eastern Europe live their lives, then this is something that’s going to be of great interest. For those looking for barrels of laughs, then other books would be more to your tastes.
This review may also appear under my name at any or all of www.ciao.co.uk, www.thebookbag.co.uk, www.goodreads.com, www.amazon.co.uk and www.dooyoo.co.uk
Arthur Smith is also a funny guy. He’s a friend of Tony Hawks and has starred alongside him on the comedy circuit and on “Red Dwarf”. He’s also pretty fond of telling Tony he’s not very good at tennis, which upsets Tony because Tony thinks he’s actually rather good at the game. And so it is that one night, whilst watching England beat Moldova 4-0 and after quite a few drinks have been consumed, a bet is made. The bet is as so; that Tony can’t beat the entire Moldovan football team at tennis.
It’s an entirely new challenge to going to Ireland and wandering around with a fridge. For one thing, Tony isn’t even sure where Moldova is, much less what language they speak there. And for another, even getting to Moldova is quite a process and one that, in Tony’s case, involves going to Liverpool to meet a Beatles tribute band. Not quite how you’d expect a Moldovan odyssey to start, but that’s how things had to be done.
Once in Moldova, things don’t go a great deal better. It takes Tony a lot of time to even get the first game going, as the pace and quality of life in Moldova is such that even football players don’t just drop what they’re doing and enjoy a frivolous game of tennis. Indeed, it’s a place where there are no manhole covers, no street lighting and quite often not enough money to pay proper salaries to doctors and medical staff. Added to Tony’s woes are that very few people speak English at all, much less good English. And the ones that he can speak to and explain the nature of his visit to Moldova all think he’s insane.
So, to fill the time in trying to find Moldovan footballers and force them to play tennis against him, Tony sees some of the country. He visits some gypsies and presents their King, Arthur, with a somewhat predictable gift. He meets who he believes to be the Chief of Police and gets to know the Moldovan family he is staying with a little better, even if he does have to resort to some unfortunate miming to get an important point across.
Much like in “Round Ireland With a Fridge”, “Playing the Moldovans at Tennis” is more about the people he meets and how he goes about doing what he has to do, rather than the places he goes. Whilst this makes for an interesting read, it doesn’t make it a terribly good travel book, which is what it is technically defined as. However, his experiences of public transport in Moldova are fairly good, although all this leaves you with is a vague knowledge of how to get around the country, but without really knowing where you’d want to go or what you’d do when you get there.
A number of his potential opponents either weren’t available or no longer played their club football in Moldova. So Tony’s trip also ends up taking in Ireland and Israel as well as Moldova. Whilst the Irish section of the book involves little other than hanging around with the football squad, the section in Israel is perhaps on of the more illuminating in regards to this technically being a travel book. Unlike his time in Moldova and in “Round Ireland With a Fridge”, a lot of the people he meets aren’t part of his bet and aren’t helping him along. And, unlike in Moldova he’s got time on his hands with things being arranged and done a lot quicker, so he’s able to look around a little. There’s no real advice or directions, but there are more descriptions of places he’s seen, rather than people.
The general tone of the book is a lot slower and more downbeat than in “…Fridge”. This can’t be blamed on the author, but on the country he finds himself in. Whilst everything in his previous trip to Ireland worked out well and was a step towards completing his goal and took part in a country where he could feel at home, in “…Tennis”, virtually the opposite is true. There are days where nothing gets done and times are hard for everyone in the country. The harshness of life in Moldova is quite well reflected through the writing, which makes for a less fulfilling read, but overall a more moving experience. All in all, “…Tennis” is a better written book than “…Fridge” as it runs a gamut of emotions, rather than being all too easy.
Tony’s writing style is again very chatty and straightforward. Whilst not flowing quite as well as “…Fridge”, it’s still a very easy book to read, as it’s told in a relaxed, almost conversational, style and you can almost hear Tony’s voice in your head, relating the events to you. The funny moments are rarer than in “…Fridge”, but there’s some real laugh out loud moments, although even they seem to reflect the Moldovan way of life in that they appear more frequently both before and after he’s been to the country and less so whilst he’s there.
If you’ve enjoyed either of Tony Hawks’ other books, this is definitely one to read. Whilst not being “travel” in any real sense of the word, it’s certainly about a journey, and one worth following. If you like people who do silly things, it’s worth a look and if you’ve ever wondered how people in other cultures, particularly in Eastern Europe live their lives, then this is something that’s going to be of great interest. For those looking for barrels of laughs, then other books would be more to your tastes.
This review may also appear under my name at any or all of www.ciao.co.uk, www.thebookbag.co.uk, www.goodreads.com, www.amazon.co.uk and www.dooyoo.co.uk
December 31, 2018
Tony Hawks, un actor de comedie din Anglia şi un bărbat excentric ce adoră provocările neobişnuite, e legat de Moldova printr-un pariu. Misiunea sa bizară e să găsească membrii echipei naționale de fotbal şi să-i convingă să joace tenis cu el.
Cartea e presărată de umor, de adevăruri dureroase şi previziuni sumbre.
Cartea e presărată de umor, de adevăruri dureroase şi previziuni sumbre.
June 20, 2019
Another bet Tony Hawks has made with Arthur English, is that he cannot play the entire Maldovan football team at tennis. Tony Hawks is an excellent writer and the book is full of humour. He also describes life for families in Maldova, which obviously affected him a great deal.
April 13, 2017
Humour at it's best !!
February 12, 2021
Tony Hawks is basically the forerunner of all of those wacky comedians who go around doing weird challenges for bets. As someone who grew up with Dave Gorman’s Important Astrology Experiment, I’ve always found it interesting to read Hawks because I guess he must have been an influence on some of the people who influenced me.
In this book, he follows on from the adventure he wrote about in Round Ireland with a Fridge with a trip to Moldova in which he attempted to beat the entire Moldovan national football team at tennis. It’s kind of a pointless thing to do, especially for the £100 that Hawks stood to win, but it’s as good a reason to go on an adventure as any.
It’s a fun and an entertaining little read, as Hawks often is, although I don’t think it’s one that I’ll find myself thinking about too deeply in the months and years to come. With that said, reading him writing about Moldova, which was also occupied by the Soviet Union, reminded me of my trip to Latvia.
And of course, at a time when the world is in lockdown and it’s not exactly easy to travel from country to country, it was nice to get out of the house, so to speak. So if I’m honest, I’d have to recommend it to people just for that. It’s a little bit of sunshine when life is tough.
In this book, he follows on from the adventure he wrote about in Round Ireland with a Fridge with a trip to Moldova in which he attempted to beat the entire Moldovan national football team at tennis. It’s kind of a pointless thing to do, especially for the £100 that Hawks stood to win, but it’s as good a reason to go on an adventure as any.
It’s a fun and an entertaining little read, as Hawks often is, although I don’t think it’s one that I’ll find myself thinking about too deeply in the months and years to come. With that said, reading him writing about Moldova, which was also occupied by the Soviet Union, reminded me of my trip to Latvia.
And of course, at a time when the world is in lockdown and it’s not exactly easy to travel from country to country, it was nice to get out of the house, so to speak. So if I’m honest, I’d have to recommend it to people just for that. It’s a little bit of sunshine when life is tough.
April 30, 2014
A pretty funny account of a weird idea that arose from a bet – playing the entire Moldovan football team at tennis! I much preferred Round Ireland With a Fridge as I simply preferred the concept, but Hawks still writes with a dry humour and a naivety that takes you on his journey with wide eyes and an open mind.
He knows nothing about the cultures he is visiting but he relays his experiences in a funny first-hand way and you learn as you travel with him.
It gives you some interesting first hand views on Moldova – for instance when he is in the bar savouring a beer and the people are looking at him strangely as they down a vodka in seconds and leave – there is no social drinking just something to ease the pain.
A few good quotes...
“Well, under the old system everyone could afford a family holiday by the Black Sea, and if you saved hard you could buy a car after ten years. There was not much choice of goods though. Under the new system, everything is available but no one can afford it.”
Communism - “give them what they need not what they want.”
“There’s a fine line between accepting your fate and losing your spirit.”
He knows nothing about the cultures he is visiting but he relays his experiences in a funny first-hand way and you learn as you travel with him.
It gives you some interesting first hand views on Moldova – for instance when he is in the bar savouring a beer and the people are looking at him strangely as they down a vodka in seconds and leave – there is no social drinking just something to ease the pain.
A few good quotes...
“Well, under the old system everyone could afford a family holiday by the Black Sea, and if you saved hard you could buy a car after ten years. There was not much choice of goods though. Under the new system, everything is available but no one can afford it.”
Communism - “give them what they need not what they want.”
“There’s a fine line between accepting your fate and losing your spirit.”
November 20, 2022
Reading this book proved quite an adventure for me. I originally bought it as a gift for my daughter about eight years ago knowing I would eventually get to read it. As planned, she did not read it right away, so I started it about seven years ago. Despite it being highly entertaining, I did not finish it until this year. I really enjoyed learning about Moldovan culture and met people from there recently. My daughter still has not read it!
July 1, 2013
I'd never heard of Tony Hawks before reading it on my brothers recommendation. An obscure drunken bet seen through to the end, it's funny with a few wonderfully pragmatic experiences of Moldova thrown in. A must read in your next trip to Moldova - or when you need a need a little more smiling in your life!
March 12, 2025
Written by Tony Hawks (not to be confused with the more famous skateboard player Tony Hawk), Tony, who had some tennis experience in his childhood, took a bet with his friend, Arthur, after watching Moldovan National Football got thrashed by England National three-nil, to beat eleven Moldovan players in Tennis matches. If he lost even one of them, he had to sing Moldovan national anthem naked in the street. Thus, we followed Tony's journey to Moldova, a country that most people around the world didn't know its existence, armed with rudimentary fluency in Romanian (daily language of Moldovans other than Russian), and a plastic table as a gift for the King of the Gypsies (a tradition established from his early travel).
In Moldova, Tony met a bunch of nonchalant people, got squished in a public bus, got (technically) kidnapped in the separatist part of the country, and other shenanigans. I found Tony's interactions with the family where he stayed to be the most heartwarming part of the story, how the initially apathetic and gloomy son of the family became gradually warming up to him, and the family became his Moldovan best friends. Overall, I found Tony's adventure to be most interesting although (spoiler!) I tend to ignore the Israel part. So what do you think? Did Tony sang Moldovan National Anthem naked? Read it by yourself.
In Moldova, Tony met a bunch of nonchalant people, got squished in a public bus, got (technically) kidnapped in the separatist part of the country, and other shenanigans. I found Tony's interactions with the family where he stayed to be the most heartwarming part of the story, how the initially apathetic and gloomy son of the family became gradually warming up to him, and the family became his Moldovan best friends. Overall, I found Tony's adventure to be most interesting although (spoiler!) I tend to ignore the Israel part. So what do you think? Did Tony sang Moldovan National Anthem naked? Read it by yourself.
November 25, 2022
The book took a bit of time to get going but was incredibly entertaining by the end. It centres on a zany bet: to play and beat the Moldovan football team (well, a particular starting XI against England in the late 1990s) at tennis. I'm not entirely sure that I ever figured out why.
And so we are taken to Moldova around the turn of the millennium, and spend most of the book immersed in precisely how grim the 90s were in the former Soviet Union as it transitioned to a proper market economy. From these descriptions to the final scene outside a Woolworths, the book feels dated now, but in a way that's quite charming and has given me an unexpected wish to go and see what Chisinau is like 20+ years later.
Then the end of the book is a bit of a blur, as the author somehow ends up going to Coleraine and then to Nazareth. It's probably a good idea to not try our patience and cut to the chase there though, and then the setup at the end adds a perfect bit of drama, should anyone fancy making this into a film!
And so we are taken to Moldova around the turn of the millennium, and spend most of the book immersed in precisely how grim the 90s were in the former Soviet Union as it transitioned to a proper market economy. From these descriptions to the final scene outside a Woolworths, the book feels dated now, but in a way that's quite charming and has given me an unexpected wish to go and see what Chisinau is like 20+ years later.
Then the end of the book is a bit of a blur, as the author somehow ends up going to Coleraine and then to Nazareth. It's probably a good idea to not try our patience and cut to the chase there though, and then the setup at the end adds a perfect bit of drama, should anyone fancy making this into a film!
July 31, 2025
Having visited Moldova twice, I can definitely relate to some of Tony’s experiences, even if 20 years on from when he visited. A very wholesome ending which shows just how far a bet can go. Great read and can’t wait to read more of Tony Hawks’ work.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 4, 2017
Funny, interesting and made me learn more about people than I would have thought
July 6, 2022
So I was actually given this book by my boyfriend who is, funnily enough, Corina’s son! (The baby mentioned in the novel) she is one of the loveliest people you’ll ever meet and I’m glad this comes forward in the book! I loved this book and it will be happily passed through my family.
January 27, 2025
You have to get the new version with the extra chapter !!
This alone made me give the book 4 stars instead of 3.5.
This alone made me give the book 4 stars instead of 3.5.
September 18, 2011
As a die-harder on CIS traveling, I do my best in ready every travelouge written on the former Soviet republics - some works, some do not work and some are great. Tony Hawks book is - against all odds - in the 2nd category.
The reason why Hawks has the odds against him for writing a travelouge that works (and under no circumstances is capable of writing a great travelouge) is that is simply doesn't have a clue about Moldova. As anyone that succeeds with making a living out of something he doesn't have a clue about, he does not try to behave like he is an expert, he chooses a subject most other people don't have a clue about either and of course it does not hurt that he has a great humor and a lot of good spirit.
As a consequence of his approach though, the book is probably more interesting AFTER you have visited Moldova (or as entertainment for you that have no intention what so ever to go there - a marketsegment I suspect to be much bigger) than as preperation before you go.
2 other CIS travelogues come to my mind after reading Playing the Moldovans at tennis. Hennighan's Lost Province and Bissel's Chasing the Sea. Hennighan does not work, Bissel has written a great travelouge. The reason why Hennighan's book does not work is that as he as Hawks does not have a clue about Moldova nad the CIS, totally lacks the humour and - more important - the self irony and conciousness about his own ignorance that it takes to write a good travelogue from this startingpoint. It should be stated that if you can live with the anoyments this creates, Hennighans book is quite worthwhile as the period of time he spends in Moldova, the fact that he speaks the language and the fact that he works there, give insights that Hawk's book can not provide. The reason why his travelouge is not great as Bissel's, is exactly because he does not even try to get a clue about the subject before he started writing. One can very well argue though that Hawk never intended to write a travelouge in this traditional sense.
Funny book - good observations!
The reason why Hawks has the odds against him for writing a travelouge that works (and under no circumstances is capable of writing a great travelouge) is that is simply doesn't have a clue about Moldova. As anyone that succeeds with making a living out of something he doesn't have a clue about, he does not try to behave like he is an expert, he chooses a subject most other people don't have a clue about either and of course it does not hurt that he has a great humor and a lot of good spirit.
As a consequence of his approach though, the book is probably more interesting AFTER you have visited Moldova (or as entertainment for you that have no intention what so ever to go there - a marketsegment I suspect to be much bigger) than as preperation before you go.
2 other CIS travelogues come to my mind after reading Playing the Moldovans at tennis. Hennighan's Lost Province and Bissel's Chasing the Sea. Hennighan does not work, Bissel has written a great travelouge. The reason why Hennighan's book does not work is that as he as Hawks does not have a clue about Moldova nad the CIS, totally lacks the humour and - more important - the self irony and conciousness about his own ignorance that it takes to write a good travelogue from this startingpoint. It should be stated that if you can live with the anoyments this creates, Hennighans book is quite worthwhile as the period of time he spends in Moldova, the fact that he speaks the language and the fact that he works there, give insights that Hawk's book can not provide. The reason why his travelouge is not great as Bissel's, is exactly because he does not even try to get a clue about the subject before he started writing. One can very well argue though that Hawk never intended to write a travelouge in this traditional sense.
Funny book - good observations!
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