alex matheson

Football is a favourite subject of mine and so I’ve been looking forward to reading this book since I heard about it late last year. FC Barcelona are a team I have always taken note of in a European context but have paid a lot more attention to following the matches they’ve played in recent years against Celtic FC, who I support. I’ve also been looking forward to this book as I know the author and have enjoyed and been impressed by his reporting of Spanish footballing matters over the years.

So, expectations high, I settled down to read.

Things got off to a very good start as I was completely engrossed in this book by the time I had read 30 pages or so. No doubt this was is in part because of my interest in football but I also attribute it to the author’s tone which I’d describe as conversational and friendly. It feels as if you’re being chatted with rather than spoken at – as can sometimes be the case with factual accounts.

As the pages turned my captivation grew as matters moved beyond football and into the lives of the key players in the rejuvenation of Barca. I have to confess that I am guilty of often just thinking of players in terms of their on-field ability and behaviour, and of forgetting that these guys have lives beyond the pitch. Having spent many years living and working in Spain and so getting to know many of the footballers there, the author manages to give them more definition as individuals – as people rather than just players. Xavi, Iniesta, Puyol, Pique, Valdes, Messi, Pep Guardiola and all the others involved in returning Barca to greatness gain new stature as a result of Graham Hunter’s work. Making it not only a well written but also a highly informative volume.

The book focuses on Pep Guardiola’s period in charge of Barca and how he moulded the team into a dominant footballing force. It also examines the importance of Johan Cruyff to Barca’s history and the significance of his legacy at the club. The author also explains why a couple of football’s biggest stars, Ronaldinho and Deco, had to move on in order to safeguard the future of one Lionel Messi. We also gain insight into Jose Mourinho’s rather chequered Barca history and how the Special One’s tenure at Real Madrid has made El Clasico a classic all over again.

Those who already have an interest in football must read this book – it reveals so much about what it takes to foster a winning mentality and a very special team. Those with no more than a passing interest in the game should also consider reading it as there is as much human interest on display as there is football.

Well worth the price of admission.

Barca: The Making Of The Greatest Team In The World by Graham Hunter is published by BackPage Press.

A dozen pairs of gleaming eyes reflected the beam of my torch as I swept around the cellar. Their feral brightness startled me and the hairs on my neck bristled.

“Rats!”

“So what if we are?” a high pitched voice squealed in challenge.

I inhaled sharply. “Rats can’t talk,” I muttered as I peered along the beam. “Who’s there?”

“They can too talk,” a second voice squeaked back.

I gasped again and paused and re-evaluated my earlier statement. My long held beliefs on the nature of things had just been dramatically shaken and I could recall nothing from the training manual that would have prepared me for this.

“Okay,” I stammered eventually,” where did you learn to talk?”

“Hmmph! Where do you think?” was the indignant reply. Obviously I was going to receive no cooperation here.

“How the hell should I know?” My temper was fraying rapidly – I was not handling this well at all.

“Ooooh. Touchy, touchy!” several high-pitched voices piped in chorus.

“FUCK OFF!” I flung the torch at the speakers.

Suddenly a voice rumbled and the floor shook. “Oi, you vicious bastard! Leave my friends alone!”

“What…?” It was my turn to squeak in the two seconds it took for me to lose consciousness.

That can happen to a guy when the floor speaks…

I stood at the top of the gentle incline and studied the grazing herd. I had been tracking them for several days and was now tired and very hungry. My furs were damp and muddy, leaving me feeling cold and uncomfortable.

“Well, here goes nothing.” I raised my club above my head. Then I screamed as loudly as I could and launched myself down the slope. The club began to whistle as I whirled it through the air.

Several of the beasts looked up but, showing supreme disinterest, returned to their feeding. I was outraged that they could ignore me so.

“Swine!” I bellowed at them and forced myself to charge faster.

One of the animals, standing on the periphery of the herd, lifted its horned head and snorted in my direction. It tossed its head then turned in towards its companions.

“It’s all right,” I clearly heard it say. “It’s just that damn fool caveman again.”

The assembled beasts began to laugh.

I looked down from my tree and saw a large, furry animal feeding upon the remains of a smaller but equally furry animal. At first I felt sickened but quickly mastered the urge.

“Nature must run it’s course,” I declared.

“Cobblers!” the green and red parakeet I shared my perch with exclaimed.

Silence enveloped us once more and we watched the red sun sink slowly beyond the distant horizon.

“Night,” said I, once twilight had come and gone. “At last.” Perhaps, I thought on, it will get cooler now.

“Cobblers!” the parakeet decried, flapping its wings loftily.

“Of course it’s night!” I told it, somewhat testily.

“Cobblers!” the parakeet insisted.

“Deny this then!” I said softly, calmly shooting the bird with my revolver.

Once the cloud of feathers that action provoked had settled, I lay back and slept. But my sleep was uneasy, for the branch I lay upon was far from soft and smooth.

I’ve been meaning to read Kim Stanley Robinson’s Mars Trilogy for a long time. A very long time. So, as I fancied reading a science fiction book this time round, I decided now was the time to set that ball rolling by reading Red Mars.

Red Mars tells of the colonization of Mars starting with the arrival in 2026 of “the First Hundred” aboard the space-ship Ares. They set about establishing the first settlement on the surface of Mars as well as an outpost inside the moon Phobos. From these bases they prepare the way for future colonists and begin the lengthy process of terraforming the red planet.

The story then develops into something of a political thriller as various factions begin to compete for control of Mars and the resources found there. Things are not going well back home on planet Earth as ecological pressures increase as a result of overpopulation, spiralling debt and shortages of pretty much everything. More and more people want to leave for Mars but those already there are facing difficulties of their own. And so the revolution begins.

I found that I got into reading this story very quickly and was easily able to call vivid images of Mars to mind from Robinson’s descriptions. There is some quite complex interaction between the various characters and factions and these raise some very thought-provoking ideas regarding the impact humanity is having on its surroundings and that there will come a time when it is too late for us to redress the balance.

As you can imagine, technology plays an important role in this story and the author manages to convey advanced ideas simply and clearly. I was particularly impressed with the passages concerning the space-elevator built to ease the transport of people and resources between Mars and Earth. To my mind, this clarity makes Red Mars accessible to more than just the sci-fi fans out there.

Over all impression? Red Mars is an excellent, well-paced read and I’m looking forward to the sequels Green Mars and Blue Mars.

As well as the stuff about books I’ve been posting here, you can find my views on the following on A View From The West:

• Agent To The Stars And Other Stories - featuring Agent To The Stars, Old Man’s War and The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi.
• The Rats - classic 70s horror by James Herbert and a much read favourite of mine.
• George Best At Hibs - a quick look at When George Came To Edinburgh by John Neil Munro.
• Riders Of The Purple Sage - Zane Grey’s very enjoyable western.
• Anthem - Ayn Rand’s short story.
• The Mysterious Affair At Styles - ye olde whodunnite from Agatha Christie.
• The Road - Cormac McCarthy’s troubling vision of a ruined world.
• Nineteen Eighty-Four - Orwell’s dystopian masterpiece.

And a handful of others which can be found in my Books & Writing category.

Please pop over, have a read of some of these and leave a comment or three should you be so inclined.

Cheers!

The last few books I’ve written about on this site were read on my Kindle and I have to say I love the convenience of being able to carry an entire library of books in my pocket. I also find the Kindle is great as a reading medium. However I still love getting my hands on a good old-fashioned paper-based book. Which is just as well, as I received a copy of The Blackhouse by Peter May as a present recently.

Having now read the book, I have mixed feelings about it. Although its a good read, I found myself distracted as I tried to match May’s descriptions with actual places. You see, the book is set on my home island of Lewis so each description of a location caused me to pause if I didn’t recognise it straight away – except for those that had been fictionalised (if that’s the word). Fortunately I became less inclined to do this as the book went on and I got into the swing of things but this has still coloured my overall impression.

Anyhoo … The Blackhouse is the first of the Lewis Trilogy and tells the tale of how policeman Fin Macleod returns to the island of his birth to investigate a rather gruesome murder, which matches the modus operandi of a case in Edinburgh. Much of the story is concerned with Fin’s experiences as he grew up on the island and these are at times funny, at others touching, and sometimes tragic. There are also events which seem very similar to those I heard of or took part in as a boy in Stornoway, making the story all the more real to me. Something which adds to the realism of the piece.

Throughout the book, the threads dealing with Fin’s younger days and his investigation of the murder twist around each other before merging as the denouement is reached. If you pay attention as things develop the outcome can be predicted – the clues are there – but you do need to pay attention. The characters involved are very well realised (though I felt the characterisation of one police officer was a bit over the top) and as a result you connect with them emotionally. You also grow to understand how their background and upbringing has made them what they are, especially with regard to the role religion, the guga, and remoteness have played in the lives of the islanders. Clearly, Mr. May has done his research well.

Overall this is a pretty good read though at times the tone is rather dark and bleak – a consequence of the subject matter rather than Peter May’s style. So, despite my early struggle matching descriptive passages with reality, I recommend The Blackhouse as a worthwhile read. I’ll also be pressing on with the remainder of the trilogy as I’ve also been given a hardback copy of the next book in the sequence, The Lewis Man.