Type of bind: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN num: 9780871133847
ISBN number: 0871133849
Label: Atlantic Monthly Pr
Manufacturer: Atlantic Monthly Pr
Page Count: 336
Printing Date: 1990-09
Publishing house: Atlantic Monthly Pr
Sale Popularity Level: 1196364
Studio: Atlantic Monthly Pr
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Rated by buyers 
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Truly the Old Man is one of the great fictional sports figures. We see a guy clinging to his image with all fingernails. What other film shows a man delighted to get cancer for it will force his enemies to retreat? I'd place the Old Man up there with Elmer Gantry and Andy Griffith in A Face In the Crowd as great Southern figures. The book never backs off and pays off royally.
Rated by buyers -
It would have been simple for the author to take the easy, obvious route here, telling a straight-ahead story about a washed-up football coach on his last legs who wins the big game at the end and everything ends happily ever after. Instead, he turned it into a funny, insightful tale that works on so many levels and rings totally true. It is NOT a football book! It's a story with fascinating characters (go deeper than what might appear to be stereotypes at very first read) and so much local colour it almost reads like a movie script. I've enjoyed Bradley's work in Esquire and SI and I'm glad I found this book.
Rated by buyers -
The BEST find in recent years. I found this book at a discount store which sold over-runs. The title caught my interest, and the dust jacket synopsis sold me. I covered the 336 pages in only 2 days.
John Ed Bradley has done a fantastic job of bringing very complex and interesting characters to life. His writing is so fresh and visual. Mr. Bradley's style is very unique and wonderful to read.
This is a "must read" for any football fan. But it's more than a football story. Actually, very little occurs on the field. John Ed provides a very human look into a man who is larger than life and seems willed to self-destruction. It is an excellent character study with elements of drama and comedy which manages to hold your attention and fascination.
The Southern tones and dialogue add a rich texture to Coach's story. It is very a bittersweet story that you will not forget for some time.
Rated by buyers 
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When I was an underclassmen at LSU, I loved watching John Ed Bradley and the rest of his teammates play football on Saturday Nights in Tiger Stadium. Bradley, a second-team All-SEC Center excelled in classroom as well as on the football field. When I heard he was a published author, I was anxious to read one of his books.
THE BEST THERE EVER WAS is a bittersweet story of Harold (Hardhead) Gravely, an aging head football coach from a major college (that happens to be located in South Louisiana)who is on the verge of being fired. His teams have seen better days and despite winning a National Championship eons ago, the college game has passed him by. While rumors of his dismissal begin to surface, Harold learns he has cancer, and he decides to use it to his advantage and go out a winner. Unfortunately for Harold, he goes out a loser and so does this book.
LSU Fans will like this book because of the familiarity of the characters and the setting. John Ed Bradley is a good writer, but subsequent time I hope he writes about something a little more upbeat.
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