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The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game Audiobook
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(4.00) - 21,902 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
In football, as in life, the value we place on people changes with the rules of the games they play. When we first meet the young man at the center of this extraordinary and moving story, he is one of thirteen children by a mother addicted to crack; he does not know his real name, his father, his birthday, or any of the things a child might learn in school. And he has no serious experience playing organized football. What changes? He takes up football, and school, after a rich, Evangelical, Republican family plucks him from the mean streets. Their love is the first great force that alters the world’s perception of the boy, whom they adopt. The second force is the evolution of professional football itself. In THE BLIND SIDE, Lewis shows us a largely unanalyzed but inexorable trend in football working its way down from the pros to the high school game, where it collides with the life of a single young man to produce a narrative of great and surprising power.
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"This is not a novel. I know,I know... it's non-fiction. But it's not a biography either. This is a book about football- quite a lot of football actually. And it happens to also describe the intersection between the changes in the game and one young man's life, and the remarkable circumstances that provided him with the opportunity to play in the NFL. Prior to reading The Blind Side, I wanted to know more about Michael Oher's story, but, I have to say, I learned an awful lot about football, and I liked it! Of course, the social implications of the personal story are both shocking (even to a long term social worker) and astounding. The difference that one family made in this young man's life was truly amazing. What a different world we would live in if every child growing up in circumstances which conspire to impede success, instead had champions to nurture, teach, and cultivate success."
— Em (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“Its dialogue is sharp and its anecdotes well chosen. Its aim for both the heartstrings and the funny bone is right on the mark.”
— New York Times -
“The Blind Side, perhaps the best book written about a college football player since Willie Morris’s The Courting of Marcus Dupree, grabs hold of you in several ways. On one hand, you’ll be appalled by the tactics used to advance academically unqualified high school and college football players. At the same time, you’ll be furiously…rooting for Michael Oher to succeed.”
— Washington Post -
“Lewis has made a habit of writing about sport recently, but sport is really only a subtext for a much more meaningful examination of class and race. I wept at the end, something I have not done at the end of a work of nonfiction for a very long time.”
— Observer (London) -
“The book works on three levels. First as a shrewd analysis of the NFL; second, as an expose of the insanity of big-time college football recruiting; and, third, as a moving portrait of the positive effect that love, family, and education can have in reversing the path of a life that was destined to be lived unhappily and, most likely, end badly.”
— Booklist (starred review)
Awards
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One of the 2006 New York Times Book Review 100 Notable Books for Nonfiction
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Winner of a 2007 YALSA Alex Award
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A New York Times bestseller
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Winner of an AudioFile Earphones Award
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Winner of Alex Award, 2007
The Blind Side Listener Reviews
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" All though the movie is my very favorite, this book has way to much filler info to muddle through to get to the story. "
— Sami, 2/6/2014 -
" I would have given it a 5, but occasionally I felt like Lewis went a little too off topic. "
— Mags, 2/2/2014 -
" Beautifully written book; I'm not a football fan and I found it fascinating. I'm not in a hurry to see the movie adaptation however, mainly because I didn't really think Leigh Anne Touhy (played by Sandra Bullock in the film) was a very interesting character. The sections on Bill Walsh and Steve Wallace were excellent. They should be anthologized as examples of how to write nonfiction. "
— Bill, 2/2/2014 -
" I wanted to read since I was so intrigued by the movie. Lots of background on football and the 49er's (which was interesting since Steve is a huge SF 49er fan) which I did not expect. It's still a good story & example of how we can change lives. "
— Jennifer, 1/24/2014 -
" Wonderful just from the strength of the story "
— Jan, 1/18/2014 -
" I think that the blind Side movie is a very good movie I have not yet read the book I want to though. "
— Nicholas, 1/1/2014 -
" This has two stories intertwined - the story of Michael Oher and how he succeeded with the help of his 'foster' family and the story of the 'blind side' of quarterbacks. I really enjoyed the story of Michael and would have liked to learn more about him. I don't think having that story intertwined with the story of football really helped. "
— Marcia, 12/5/2013 -
" I'm not much of a football person, and I prefer fiction to non-fiction, yet this was a hard-to-put-down read. The movie of the same name covered just one aspect of the book. Thanks to Aimee for the rec! "
— Ellen, 11/29/2013 -
" If you saw the movie, you only got half of the book, which also gives a good history of how the left offensive tackle has become the second most important player in the NFL (behind the QB). "
— Jamey, 11/29/2013 -
" Ooo, this is a good one. I don't usually read nonfiction in my spare time (because half of my brain will be deconstructing it into a teachable moment for me), but I liked this one a lot. Also, it was funnier than I'd expected. "
— Alexandra, 11/28/2013 -
" Overall great book. "
— Alec, 11/23/2013 -
" it was really good but I was confused at some points of the story. "
— Andrewmd1237, 11/23/2013 -
" Didn't actually finish this one, but it was pretty interesting. I saw the movie part way through, and decided there was no point in reading the book, because the movie was way better. "
— Stephanee, 11/7/2013 -
" Want to know why the left tackle position is so important in the NFL? This is your book. "
— Kristen, 10/27/2013 -
" I enjoyed this book. It was different than the movie (more focus on football), but I really enjoyed the book. "
— Nathan, 10/27/2013 -
" excellent book. really great mix of football history and telling Michael's story. "
— Liz, 10/25/2013 -
" Very touching story though at some times it can get easy to be lost with all of the football talk. Yet, i would still recomend reading this book. "
— Vannah, 2/19/2013 -
" this is a very good movie and im pretty sure the book is good also. "
— 10-11, 1/7/2013 -
" If you are a sports fan, this is an interesting read. Michael Oher's story is well told, but the underlying history of the game of footbal was also fascinating. "
— Kathy, 8/13/2012 -
" I will never watch football the same again "
— Mechelle, 8/1/2012 -
" This a okay book. I liked the part that talked about Michael, but there was a lot of extra stuff about the NFL that was very boring. It also is not as good as the movie. And if you have seen the movie than I think you will be disappointed. "
— Jake, 7/8/2012 -
" I found it very boring. it wasn't the best book, but it was good "
— Carson, 6/7/2012 -
" Thoroughly loved this book. Interesting how different the chronology was in what actually happened in Michael Oher's life and how it was portrayed in the movie. "
— Paula, 4/23/2012 -
" This book is so heart warming. This football player turned out to be successful and improved so much as a character. I love this book and wouldn't mind reading it again . "
— Kiara, 4/1/2012 -
" Not as good as the movie, but still interesting. "
— Darcy, 2/25/2012 -
" I loved this book and the author's attention to detail with a variety of subjects. It is definitely more than a recount of certain aspects of football and Michael Oher. Revelatory about surprisingly intertwined material. "
— Karen, 1/21/2012 -
" The Blind Side is a rich human story which also details a paradigm shift in professional football. "
— Drew, 12/26/2011 -
" This book was really good! It's not just about the inspirational story of Michael Oher, but also about football trends and strategy, the market of football, the power of networking, and Southern culture. Very interesting and eye opening. "
— Jin, 12/11/2011 -
" Liked book better than the movie. "
— P.e.lolo, 7/24/2011 -
" Different from the movie. More football. Loved it! (QFFL'ers - You won't like it. Don't even bother.) "
— Stella, 6/3/2011 -
" The movie only really covered a chapter or two of this book and left out some of the best stuff, especially a lot of cool NFL football history. "
— Jamie, 5/22/2011 -
" Excellent, even if it brings back horrible memories of that hit on Theisman. "
— Kristopher, 5/20/2011 -
" This was actually a great book but it was a lot more about football than Michael Oher so if you are looking forsomething about him there are better books out there. "
— Colleen, 5/19/2011 -
" This book had moments of greatness but it was much more about the sport of football than the story of Michael Oher. So if you are looking for a great book about football this is a nice read, but if you are looking for more about Michael Oher there are better books:) "
— Colleen, 5/19/2011 -
" I really enjoyed this book----even the football parts. I found it really interesting and now I can appear a little more knowledgeable when watching football with the guys "
— Amy, 5/19/2011 -
" The movie was better. The book was too much about the details and technicalities of football. Wonderful story, better to watch. "
— Erin, 5/16/2011 -
" I actually enjoyed the movie better. The book was a bit boring, because it focused more on the recruitment process than on Oher as a person. "
— Kyle, 5/15/2011 -
" It was an awesome book but it was also kinda sad it almost made me wanna cry! "
— Zimmerman8493, 5/15/2011 -
" Interesting history of football. Very abrupt ending. "
— Jenna, 5/10/2011 -
" Wonderful just from the strength of the story "
— Jan, 5/4/2011
About Michael Lewis
Michael Lewis is the New York Times bestselling author of several books. His global bestselling books lift the lid on the biggest stories of our time. They include Flash Boys, an exposé of high-speed scamming; The Big Short, which was made into a Oscar-winning film; Liar’s Poker, the book that defined the excesses of the 1980s; The Fifth Risk, revealing what happens when democracy unravels, and The Premonition, one of the first books to take account of the coronavirus pandemic. He was educated at Princeton University and the London School of Economics.
About Stephen Hoye
Stephen Hoye has worked as a professional actor in London and Los Angeles for more than thirty years. Trained at Boston University and the Guildhall in London, he has acted in television series and six feature films and has appeared in London’s West End. His audiobook narration has won him fifteen AudioFile Earphones Awards.