Another Season: A Coach's Story of Raising an Exceptional Son

I received this book unexpectedly after making a donation to my alma mater, from which Coach Stallings' daughters also graduated. Until then, I didn't even know the story had been written. The book fascinated me from many angles -- as a teacher, as the sister of someone born with a congenital handicap (whose parents were likewise advised to put him in an institution), as a reader of this genre of literature, and most of all, as someone who as a kid knew and adored John Mark Stallings. Many have commented on the way the author plainly tells his early disappointments, fears, and frustrations at having his only son be born with such apparent limitations. I, too, initially felt uncomfortable. However, I came to admire Mr. Stallings' willingness to expose to scorn the ideas that he had back in the 1960s and 70s, ideas that over the course of the book he does slowly show to have been mistaken. By the end of the book it is clear he realizes that people born with Down syndrome are far more capable and have a more meaningful life than was dreamed of at the time John Mark was born. The narrative also puts into perspective the origins of those ideas. The end result is an honest portrait by an unfailingly honest man, and the book shows the strong and loving relationship between Johnny and his father today. -- Andrea

This is an autobiography by a person who has had a highly successful career in college and pro football but knows the world does not start and end with sports. The raising of the Stallings' son Johnny, who has Down syndrome, is the real focus here. The two stories, football and family, are intertwined, as the authors never lose sight of the family even while describing the high and low points of Gene Stallings' coaching career. Indeed, Johnny as he grows shares in his father's work. The book gives insight into both the game and the people in it and in the Coach's family. These people are brought alive for the reader. It is the best book `about' football I have read.

As a parent of a young boy with Down Syndrome I very much enjoyed this book and recomend it to any new parent. It made me laugh, it made me cry and it opened my eyes to see how far the world has come with accepting people with disabilities. And just to know that there are parents before me who struggled with their child just as I struggle with mine and they too learned to live in a whole new world. And celebrated every little accomplishment just as we do with our son.

This is simply a must read for any fan of college sports. This book helps remind us that there are a few coaches that care about there players lives and futures. This was a touching story that shares how a scrawny, hard-working kid became a good football player for a great coach (Bear Bryant). He then shares how Bear helped mold his life as a coach and person and how it helped him raise a son with Down Syndrome and coach Alabama to a national title.

Gene Stallings is a man's man. A father's father. He was, and still is, a great coach, husband, and teacher. Yet he has a tender compassion not always seen in men of his calling. He owes much of that part of him to his son and he knows it. He has taken the sorrow and pain his family bore and turned it into an story of amazing hard work, courage, and love. This book should be one of the first things read by a couple faced with the reality of a Down Syndrome baby. Coach Stallings shows us there is life after DS, and it can be very good, indeed,it can be wonderful.