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Binding: PaperbackDewey Decimal Number: 363.32 EAN: 9780679745358 ISBN: 0679745351 Label: Vintage Manufacturer: Vintage Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 320 Publication Date: June 01, 1993 Publisher: Vintage Release Date: June 01, 1993 Studio: Vintage Editorial Review: Product Description: They have names like Barmy Bernie, Daft Donald, and Steamin' Sammy. They like lager (in huge quantities), the Queen, football clubs (especially Manchester United), and themselves. Their dislike encompasses the rest of the known universe, and England's soccer thugs express it in ways that range from mere vandalism to riots that terrorize entire cities. Now Bill Buford, editor of the prestigious journal Granta, enters this alternate society and records both its savageries and its sinister allure with the social imagination of a George Orwell and the raw personal engagement of a Hunter Thompson. Average Rating:
 Rating: - Don't Believe Pretentious TwitsThis is a fantastic book, and what's more, it has served as a model and inspiration for the many (many, many) football hooligan books that followed. I won't really comment on the absolute cliched tripe served up by one reviewer who gave this book one star, but I would point out that he might want to take some time out from an all-knowing banality spouting, error decrying, schedule, and consult a calendar. Among The Thugs - 1993. Most of the others? 1999 and later, including ... Read More Rating:  - Readable Yet Overwrought - Thought ProvkingBill Buford offers an engaging narrative about violent British soccer fans, yet one does begin to suspect some exaggeration and ornamentation. Saying that these fans behave the way they do because they lack a solid home base is reductionist and not helpful at all. Many millions around the world live in conditions that leave a great deal to be desired--indeed far worse than the living conditions of a violent soccer fan--yet they don't engage in what the British call "antisocial behavior." There ... Read More Rating:  - Weak and patronizing. Can't respect the author.There's a lot to hope for in this book, but it fails badly. The author never comes across as even remotely credible. His writing reflects his snobbish background and beliefs. He went to college at Berkeley, then elite Cambridge, and he clearly feels that he is above the subjects of the book in every way. The jacket says he edits a literary magazine, and now he thinks he can ingratiate himself with football thugs? Please. He may be American, but he's apparently been infected with that classic British class thing. ... Read More Rating: - Great book, Buford has done a fantastic job illustrating the world of the football hooligan.This is a great book, albiet the first one I have read on football hooligans. This is not limited to one single firm though, as some of the many ICF books are. Buford runs with the Man. United firm, has a run in with the National Front, and has the grand finale with English hooligans during the world cup. This is really an eye opener into a section of history and life I never knew about in England, and Buford does an excellent job sharing it. There were a few points where he starts to ramble about unrelated crowd ... Read More Rating: - Amoung the ThugsFantastic book and a page turner. Opened my eyes to hooliganism in the sport of football. This was probably common knowledge to most people outside the U.S. Great story from an unbiased source. |
