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| Soccer in Sun and Shadow, New Edition | 
 enlarge | List Price: $17.00 (€13.43)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  (based on 33 reviews)
Sales Rank: 52561
Category: Book
Author: Eduardo Galeano
Publisher: Verso
Studio: Verso
Manufacturer: Verso
Label: Verso
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 256
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.5 x 0.8
ISBN: 1859844235
Dewey Decimal Number: 796
EAN: 9781859844236
ASIN: 1859844235
Publication Date: April 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Soccer: game, passion, art June 7, 2006
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This book by Eduardo Galeano wants to show much about the experience of soccer, an international phenomenon of the masses that is fabulous business and demanding sport, but above all, a game with the potential of poetry. In ancient times, 'poiesis' (Greek word) had some power over the ear and thus over the feeling and thought of peoples, back when the written word was in its infancy. 'Poiesis' was life therapy. Nowadays not all of us appreciate poetry, and we moderns certainly do not have that ancient sense of 'poiesis' as "creation"; for us poetry is more or less pretty words, written, barely experienced and poorly recited. Something like that happens with soccer. When Galeano writes in the Introduction, "a pretty move for the love of God," he encapsulates everything he tries to express in this book of the passion for soccer, and invites us to share this yearning reading the histories and legends he documents, in search of that playful, passionate art.
Enjoy!
Pure poetry April 8, 2006
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
Galeano's book remains the most lyrical and whimsical book ever written about soccer / football. He is one of the few writers who has managed to both embody and describe the spirit of the beautiful game at the same time. Wonderful to have such a talented writer and spirit give the game the treatment it deserves. A rare book...
An excellent read for fans of soccer and non-soccer fans December 19, 2005
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
Soccer in Sun and Shadow is Eduardo Galeano's lyrical portrayal of the magic, passion and spontaneity of the sport set in a historical context from soccer's beginnings to the arrival of Bralizian dominance and the subsequent mass marketing of the sport via television and various corporations. The book is comprised of many anecdotes relating the feats of some of soccer's mythic heroes such as Friedenreich, Garrincha, Di Stefano, Cruyff, and of course, the inimitable Pele. This format will probably appeal more to soccer neophytes than long-time fans, but nonetheless, it is still a good read.
I enjoyed reading stories about various aspects of the sports history and the personalities that formed it. I liked learning about the person who invented the bicycle kick and Di Stefano's incredible goal or how Zizinho scored a double goal against Yugoslavia during the 1950 World Cup. Throughout the book, Galeano imbues the narrative with a tone of passionate reverence for soccer, although he is critical of the big-money machine it has become in recent years.
This is a good book for both fans and non-fans of soccer.
The beautiful game made more beautiful... June 21, 2005
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Galeano writes a beautiful account of history and memories of futbol from his native Uruguay to the international fields of Europe and the world. I have been a half-hearted fan of the game since '78 and saw Cubillas and Kempes play on the half-color, half-black and white television that my uncle had just bought (most tv's at that time were B/W). His book takes me back to when I was just beginning to learn about the sport and has educated me even further with the accounts of so many greats that existed before Pele, Platini and Ronaldinho. Excellent read, very informational and very nostalgic. It makes you yearn for the game that saved and cursed Maradona. Corporations and money have destroyed it but there are still small enclaves where the influence of television and marketing have not muddled it to the point of being unrecognizable. Que Viva el Futbol!!
a people's game April 3, 2005
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This breathtaking collection of soccer vignettes would resonate only with those who had played the game in the streets, who can still remember the names of the neighborhood heros and legends. That bygone era had certainly produced the most imaginative and skillful players in the history of the game. And it is the poor neighborhoods and urban slums that still produce the best creative genius in terms of individual talent, not the resplendent multi-million dollar youth academies of the post-industrial world. The stories and observations in Galeano's book are vibrant with emotion, there is nostalgia, sadness and sorrow parlayed through the memory. One observation is particularly poignant, that of an empty soccer stadium after the game, the feeling of emptiness and mortality. Thank God, Uruguyan soccer is probably the only one true to its great tradition, and althouigh the country is ridden with endemic problems beseeching that part of the world, no other team in the world can weave a gossamer lace of short passes like they do. May be such old notions as dignity and integrity could be reinvigorated in our commodified world if people read such books. After finishing the book, it's a no-brainer to understand why the World Cup dwarfs any other sporting event in terms of TV audience by the billions!
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