Every four years, soccer fanatics across the world unite for the World Cup. With 2014 World Cup kicking off June 12th, we’ve selected some must-read books for the sports fans at your library. Here’s to a summer of soccer and reading!
The explosive, critically-acclaimed, and internationally bestselling memoir, I AM ZLATAN, by Zlatan Ibrahimovic—one of the world’s most gifted and controversial soccer players (the brashness of Ali, the physical dominance of Lebron James, and the skills of Roger Federer) and winner of the 2013 FIFA Goal of the Year.
This is the story of how a Swedish outsider rose from poverty to become a soccer genius. Zlatan recalls every struggle, every goal, and every training ground bust-up on his journey to dominate the world’s top clubs. Moving, funny and totally frank, I Am Zlatan is a remarkable story of genuine hardship and unimaginable success, and a redemptive tale for underdogs everywhere.
Request an eGalley of I Am Zlatan.
From David Peace THE DAMNED UTD and The Red Riding Quartet—comes RED OR DEAD—a major new literary novel about Bill Shankly, England’s greatest football coach.
Liverpool, England in the 1960s was struggling amid industrial blight and a bad economy. The port town’s shipping industry was going bust and there was widespread unemployment.
Into these hard times walked Bill Shankly, a former Scottish coal miner who took over the city’s perpetually last-place soccer team. Soon he would have entire stadiums singing along and tens of thousands of people all dressed in the team color red … as Liverpool began to win.
Praise from the UK for Read or Dead:
“An epic that has more in common with Beowulf or The Iliad than with the conventional sports novel.”—The Times
Request an eGalley of Red or Dead.
Request an eGalley of The Damned Utd.
For those fans who are planning to attend the games, the new Fodor’s Brazil 2014—includes a special 2014 Soccer World Cup section. An 8-page color insert includes detailed coverage of the Brazilian cities that will host World Cup games, tips on planning your trip during the tournament, and general information on the importance of soccer in Brazilian culture.