Painstakingly faithful to its title, Kenny Mayne's book is neither complete nor is it particularly accurate. Ostensibly an A-to-Z encyclopedia of all known sports, many sports are never mentioned. There's not a word about rugby, volleyball, roller derby, swimming, or (shockingly) Basque pelota or shinty. There is a chapter about sliding, but none about skiing. Competitive eating and rhythmic gymnastics will have to wait for another book. However, there are roughly eight chapters about tackle football—"the greatest sport in the world, and everyone knows it"—and a good four or five about horse racing, so quit complaining before you've even heard the book. There will be plenty of time for complaining after you've finished it. Those sports that are covered in the book are examined with exhaustive inattention to unretained detail. Many chapters have nothing to do with sports. For instance, the chapter on hunting is about hunting for a hassle-free, triple-tall Americano, light on the water. So, then, what exactly is An Incomplete and Inaccurate History of Sport? Part nostalgic memoir (like the summer Mark Sansaver hit 843 home runs in backyard Wiffle ball), part Dave Barry-esque riffs (like explaining bocce to non-Italians), part scholarly tract (it includes the origins of tackle football), and part metafiction (see "Time-outs"), it is what Kenny calls his anti-coffee-table book.
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"4 stars because it is so funny, and 4 stars because he is actually a rather good story teller. I learned nothing about sports from the book outside of his point of view and his personal stories. A quick read, and definately worth it for a laugh. " — Myke (4 out of 5 stars)
"4 stars because it is so funny, and 4 stars because he is actually a rather good story teller. I learned nothing about sports from the book outside of his point of view and his personal stories. A quick read, and definately worth it for a laugh. "
“The book’s best parts feature Mayne straying from his funnyman persona to reflect on his personal life. Glimpses of the man behind the mockery are far too infrequent within Mayne’s relentless, tiresome attempts at generating laughs.”
" surprisingly lighthearted fun read from the Dollar Tree "
" Don't have to be a sports buff to enjoy this book-love his sense of humor. "
" You will like this book if you like Kenny Mayne and his type of humor. But even then it gets a little old after 30 or so pages. I enjoyed reading it in spurts. "
" Not the most well-written book I've ever read, but it made me laugh. Kenny did a reading at Amazon, so I had heard a few of the stories straight from the horse's mouth. Worth taking a day or two to read. "
" If you like dry wit, Kenny Mayne is hysterical. However, his schtick gets old 50 pages into the book. "
" This guy is a crack up. Pointless info, but he's funny "
" Funniest book EVER! Written in the exact same way Kenny does his sports stories, including wild tangents, mini-rants and absurdly random thoughts that have you wondering exactly what goes on in his head. "
" Currently reading this and i love it, Kenny Mayne had to deal with some great tragedies in his life, which i could relate with, well written "
" One of the funniest books I've ever read! "
Kenny Mayne is a sports journalist and comedian. He has been host of ESPN’s SportsCenter, announcer for major events such as the Kentucky Derby, and host of the weekly pre-game “Mayne Event” segment for ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown. He has also been on reality TV shows Dancing with the Stars and Fast Cars & Superstars and he has made appearances on The Martha Stewart Show and Jimmy Kimmel Live!. An Incomplete and Inaccurate History of Sport is his first book.
David Drummond has made his living as an actor for over twenty-five years, appearing on stages large and small throughout the country and in Seattle, Washington, his hometown. He has narrated over thirty audiobooks, in genres ranging from current political commentary to historical nonfiction, fantasy, military, thrillers, and humor. He received an AudioFile Earphones Award for his first audiobook, Love ’Em or Lose ’Em: Getting Good People to Stay. When not narrating, he keeps busy writing plays and stories for children.
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