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Cowboys Have Always Been My Heroes: The Definitive Oral History of America's Team
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Cowboys Have Always Been My Heroes: The Definitive Oral History of America's Team
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by Peter Golenbock
Sales Rank : 1036105
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Hardcover: 838 pages
Publisher: Warner Books August 1997
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0446519502
ISBN-13: 978-0446519502
Product Dimensions:
9.5 x 6.5 x 2 inches
Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
From Library Journal
Here is a book that will appeal to all football fans and Dallas Cowboys fans in particular, since it recounts the glory of the team in considerable detail; Cowboys haters may enjoy it, too, because the author and those interviewed do not hesitate to discuss negative things about the team that have been made familiar through the media. The mystique about the Cowboys, embodied in the phrase "America's Team," is reflected by huge sales of team logo items around the country and multiple appearances on national television. Golenbock (Wild, High, and Tight, LJ 1/94) has been able to talk to many of the "movers and shakers" from the Cowboys but aparently was unable to interview Don Meredith and Jimmy Johnson, which leaves some gaps. The coverage is somewhat uneven, as the early years are relived in great detail, but more recent seasons are skimmed over lightly. In sum, though, this is a fascinating, highly readable look at pro football and the team you either love or hate. Recommended for public libraries.?William O. Scheeren, Hempfield Area H.S. Lib., Greensburg, Pa.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
The NFL's Dallas Cowboys, self-proclaimed America's team, has lost some of its luster recently--amid sex and drug scandals--but the franchise remains one of sports' greatest success stories. Best-selling sports author Golenbock presents the Cowboy saga in a massive oral history. In the words of key players such as Roger Staubach, Pete Gent, Lee Roy Jordan, and Mel Renfro, we hear behind-the-scenes reflections on both early struggles and later triumphs. The consistent themes are head coach Tom Landry's martinet style; general manager Tex Schramm's penurious approach to salaries; and the franchise's everyone's-replaceable attitude toward even its best players. Especially entertaining are Golen-bock's re-creations of the monumental clashes between the staunchly conservative, God-fearing Landry and many of his pot-smoking, hedonistic players. For all the great football stories related here, there remain some major gaps: too many key participants are ignored; the Landry interview is too brief and very superficial; current NFL coaches Mike Ditka and Dan Reeves, who both played and coached for Landry, are not interviewed; and, finally, the history of the team since Jerry Jones took over in 1988 is related via third-person sources. Without access to current players or coaches, Golenbock should have ended the book with Landry's dismissal. Like the Cowboys themselves, though, the book may be flawed, but it will still draw a crowd. Wes Lukowsky
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