Luca Caioli
Paperback | Pages: 256 pages Rating: 4.12 | 1090 Users | 104 Reviews
Declare Books In Favor Of Messi: The Inside Story of the Boy Who Became a Legend
| Original Title: | Messi: The Inside story of the Boy Who Became a Legend |
| ISBN: | 1906850119 (ISBN13: 9781906850111) |
| Edition Language: | English |
Representaion During Books Messi: The Inside Story of the Boy Who Became a Legend
"And he hasn’t changed?""No, to me he’s the same as always, shy and quiet. He’s the same Leo I grew up with. The only difference is that before when he used to come here he would grab his bike and come through town; now he takes the car because people don’t leave him in peace. He can’t believe the madness he generates. The same people from his neighbourhood now take photos of him, the girls wait outside his front door to say hello to him. The boys want to be like him. It surprises and amazes me when I hear what they scream in Spain or when he plays with the national team. So when someone asks me about him, I usually prefer to keep quiet. I don’t want them to think I’m gossiping or trying to get myself noticed. No, for me Leo is a humble, lifelong friend, who still has no idea that he is so famous."
On 24th June 1987, a little boy, weighing 3 kilos, pink and healthy, was born to a modest couple in a not-so modest town of Rosario, Argentina.
This is his story.
Little Lionel Messi, oblivious to the politico-economic crisis around him, would find himself always enchanted by round objects; the fascination would begin with marbles and would then turn to football, a fascination from which he will never recover.
Despite the squalor and the misery, the poverty and the despair that wars and indifferent governing officials yield, the people of Argentina would still find the pleasures of life in the smallest things. These are the simple pleasures that are so profound at times—to watch the boys play in the street, the intimacies of large families and the warmth of tradition. The simplest things, sometimes, and the simplest of people have the most sublime stories to tell. This is one of the reasons why Leo’s story moves me, why he as a person moves me. His is not a story of epochal significance; he did not conquer nor reform, he did not liberate nor enslave; his name will neither be in history books nor between pages of poetry. His is simply a fairytale, one you come across so often—the little boy who had a big dream. That is all. And therein lies all the grandeur.
This little boy loves to play football. That is his story. He wouldn’t grow as a child and was diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency but oblivious to it all, he simply remains in love with the ball. From junior Argentinian academies, he is scouted by FC Barcelona, one of the most successful and biggest football clubs across the Atlantic, which agreed to pay for his treatment, something which the native clubs refused to do. So, he leaves with his father and goes on to make footballing history.
From a technical point of view, this book has several problems. Firstly, writing a biography of an athlete who still has many years left to his career might seem a bit too ambitious. But in all fairness, Caioli’s endeavor is to tell the story of Messi’s beginnings, and the book is not intended to be a "life story" of sorts. Objectively, this is fine, but those who have followed Messi’s career might get impatient with the lack of many important events that fail to find a place in this book. After all, this is not a biography in its most literal sense, and should simply be read as a prefatory piece, if not as a “First Part” to a more complete biography that might be written in the future.
Secondly, the third-person narrative that is basically used for biographies is interspersed with several conversations and dialogues that are written in a question-answer fashion. Some of these conversations are particularly fascinating, like the one Caioli has with Celia, Messi’s mother, but many simply feel redundant and pointless. Another thing to get impatient with.
Thirdly, and this is a big problem, in many of these conversations, Caioli draws a comparison between Messi and Maradona, asking his guest to choose. Again, in all fairness, parallels between the two footballers do exist and it is a question that has come up again and again, but dude! Like in every other conversation? And the answers that many people give are almost always the same. This particular emphasis of Caioli on the Messi-Maradona parallel gets really annoying at times, if not outright frustrating.
And, lastly, this book which was supposed to have been read as an “inside story” seldom reaches the bar. Especially in the last few chapters, this book loses the poetics of the story and reads like an archive. Reading biographies, for this reason, is highly tedious for many as they lack the beauty of language that fictional literature possesses. Caioli begins well but loses his voice midst the numerous flat, redundant conversations and the barrage of facts. And the conversation with Messi at the end of the book doesn't help either. He remains painfully reticent as ever and tightly wrapped in mystery. There are many anecdotes and reminiscences that do tell us more about Leo, the person behind the footballer, but I wish there were more of these than the barren facts.
So, why the 4 stars? Well, for a Messi fan, this book still feels good. All the problems that I mentioned above might hamper the reading of the objective and unbiased reader, but for the fan, they are only slightly discomfiting. So the recommendation is heartiest for the fan, but for those indifferent to football or to the name of Lionel Messi, I will suggest them to wait till the athlete has retired or has (ultimately) passed away. One gets one’s due better when one’s dead—the unspoken rule of the world. Biographies written posthumously, I believe, must have more life to them, even if not the intimacy of the memoir.
The last that we read of Messi’s footballing is Argentina’s defeat in the 2010 World Cup. And how cruelly has history repeated itself! I believe that this book must be read by those who have grown cold about the athlete or who think that he has “burnt out”. This book will be enough to remind them of what the little man has achieved and how spectacularly at that. For many in this world, Lionel Messi remains one of the greatest players of the game, and for some, he remains one of the most overhyped. Whichever side you’re on, one thing is for sure that it is an absolute joy to watch him play, and an absolute joy to realize the potential of the human being to achieve. These are the fairytales that always move me, no matter how insignificant they might be. These are the little stories of little men that remind you that dreams do come true even on this side of the rainbow.
List Regarding Books Messi: The Inside Story of the Boy Who Became a Legend
| Title | : | Messi: The Inside Story of the Boy Who Became a Legend |
| Author | : | Luca Caioli |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Anniversary Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 256 pages |
| Published | : | June 15th 2006 by Icon Books |
| Categories | : | Biography. Sports. Football. Soccer. Nonfiction |
Rating Regarding Books Messi: The Inside Story of the Boy Who Became a Legend
Ratings: 4.12 From 1090 Users | 104 ReviewsWrite-Up Regarding Books Messi: The Inside Story of the Boy Who Became a Legend
I really enjoyed reading this book Alhamdulillah.This book is a must read for any Messi or Barcelona fan. An excellent piece of sporting literature. A very comprehensive look at Messi's life . The book describes Messi's time growing up in Argentina, the struggles he had to face during the family's emigration to Spain, and his explosion thereafter. I liked how the match descriptions and reports are published without any opinions offered. If I had to make a complaint, though, it would be with the poor quality of narrative when matches are
"Don't write about him, don't try to describe him. Just watch him." - Pep Guardiola (Caioli#74) The informative book Messi the boy who became a Legend was written by Luca Caioli. Lionel Andres Cuccittini Messi was born on the 24 June 1987 in Rosario, Argentina to parents Jorge Horacio Messi and Celia Maria Cuccittini .Messi has developed interest in soccer at the age of 5 and started to play with the team his father coached. Later on, he joined Newell Old Boys a club in his native city which he
A messiah of football
Luca Caioli is an ardent fan of Messi. That's for sure.
This book is the story of the boy who changed football in thee modern era, Lionel Messi has every won every individual and team award available on the planet from the UEFA Champions League to the Ballon D'Or. This book is now an outdated version, it ends at the 2013/14 season, the season after which FC Barcelona signed Neymar Da Silva Santos Junior and went on to win the treble next season under Luis Enrique. This book provides an acute description of Messi's journey from a star at Newell's to
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