The Live Albom

Mitch Albom is easily the best sportswriter I have ever read, and is among the best comtemporary writers. Live Albom is a collection of his early writings for the Detroit Free Press. Even if you know little about Detroit sports teams and care less, Albom's columns will captivate you. Most sportswriters write only about the action on the field, and Albom generally leaves that to them. His columns are really about people, not sports. Many will inspire, some will tug at heartstrings, and many will make you laugh hysterically. Few, if any, will bore you.

Being that I'm not much of a sports fan unless it's hockey, I wondered if I would be bored by this book. Quite the contrary! Mitch has the uncanny knack of drawing his readers in and making them feel as if they are part of the story. I laughed out loud on more than one occasion and wanted to cry after reading some selections. I found myself deeply interested in columns about sports I detest. Mitch is truly the most talented sports writer in the country, and possibly the best overall writer as well.