Rome 1960: The Olympics That Changed the World @ richardeward.com

Rome 1960: The Olympics That Changed the World
by David Maraniss
from Simon & Schuster

Customer Reviews:

• Avg. Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0

• Overblown premis not supported by facts
  In reading this book I found myself torn in several different directions. But then again so did David Maraniss. He seems to want to tell the story of why the 1960 Olympics were so important but he can not find out what means he wants to use to do so. On the one hand he wants us to believe this is when the Olympics went from being amateur to more professional, but yet doesn't. He also speaks of these games as the first ones where drugs were used but then speaks of how they were used before and came to their... more info

• For the Ages
  Mr. Maraniss takes us back to the Rome Olympics in 1960. With loving detail he recreates that watershed moment when the Cold War first seriously collided with the sporting world. He reintroduces us to the sporting heroes of a bygone era. Greats like Wilma Rudolph, Ralph Bunch, Abebe Bikila and Rafer Johnson are recognized for their place in history. We meet the young Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali)in all his brash insecurity. This is the moment when drugs first creeps onto the Olympic stage and when amateurism... more info

• Entertaining and Fun. Plus You Can Learn a Thing Or Two
  Rafer Johnson was the first African American athlete to be the captain of a U.S. Olympic team. He carried the flag at the opening ceremony and won the gold medal for the decathlon. Wilma Rudolph was another African American Olympic contestant who overcame polio, poverty, and being a single mom to obtaining three gold medals and the admiration of the world. What do those two athletes ave in common? They both were participants in the Rome Olympics of 1960. New York Times bestseller and Pulitzer Prize winning... more info

• Maraniss on top of his game
  David Maraniss has written so many wonderful books that it isn't surprising to find "Rome 1960" to be such a great read. But it's still reassuring. Maraniss digs deep for his reporting, and writes with a clear eye and a genuine point of view. Good from beginning to end.

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