LeBron

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I would describe this book as “surface level.” The writer did not interview James or those he wrote about, which I found strange considering they are all still alive. Understandably, it’s not as simple as calling him up and sitting down for a couple hours, but maybe people who had that access should be the ones writing these books. The only time I want to read biographies written with heavy reliance on others’ accounts is when the subject died. The takeaway from this book is that James is “good” in basically every facet, on and off the court, and I think it may have been a bit more grounded in the player’s humanity had it not relied on past interviews and statements in the context of overwhelming positivity towards James. For instance, it’s clear the writer liberally quoted More than a Game—produced by James—for his childhood and high school career. Taking everything at face value, the writer accepted the version of James’ history crafted by a team of curators on his marketing team…which, to his credit, was written about in the text. Reporter: Out of the milestones you’ve reached and trophies collected, what do you consider your greatest achievement so far, and why? But Jeff Benedict shows a side of James that I don't think many fans see. There's the insecurities of being the best, his openness to ideas, his devotion to family and friends and his ability to rise above just basketball and become a corporate entity himself.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Return of the King comes the story of LeBron James's incredible transformation from basketball star to sports and business mogul. LeBron James: I feel as though I am continuously surrounded with people that are loving, caring, trustworthy, and hard working. These people are my family, teammates, coaches, staff, and friends. They are the ones that make my life better than it already is by just being who they are. I am only around positivity which is always a warm feeling to have and one that I love. How would you handle being born to a single mother in Akron bouncing from apartment to apartment and then bursting onto the sports scene as one of the best basketball players in sports history? LeBron James: We all have our strengths and weaknesses Kyle and I am sure you have some as well, but I would consider myself to be good at basketball, cooking, and being a parent to my children. With hard work and dedication I have managed to jursically develop in these categories, obviously, it did not just happen overnight. I would not say I am bad at anything rather I am subpar at some things including free throws, three point shooting, and golf. Even though they are my weaknesses right now with loads of practice and work eventually they could turn into my strengths. LeBron James and Buzz Bissinger’s “ Shooting Stars” is not just another athlete memoir. James, who appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated when he was just seventeen (tagline: “The Chosen One”), had his high-school games nationally televised on ESPN, and was drafted number one out of high school in 2003 by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Bissinger is a Pulitzer Prize winner whose book “Friday Night Lights” has sold almost two million copies, and has since been made into a film and a TV series.LeBron's rise from poverty to stardom may not surprise many, but it IS surprisingly nuanced when it comes to politics, social media and contract negotiations. With eight straight trips to the NBA Finals, LeBron James has proven himself one of the greatest basketball players of all time. And like Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan before him, LeBron has also become a global brand and businessman who has altered the way professional athletes think about their value, maximize their leverage, and use their voice.

I give this book 3/5 stars because it barely scratches the surface of many of the facets of LeBron's empire. What is ironic is that for all of his mega-stardum, LeBron is fairly private. Windhorst is a friend and a former beat writer in Cleveland, so it isn't surprising that the stories in this book are almost entirely positive, with mere lip service paid to some of the failures. Hopefully there will be a book with more depth written about LeBron one day, and I'll be interested to read it. Lebron James as presented in this biography is a kid from a troubled family situation who was blessed not only with exceptional athletic talent but also a series of key mentors and a mother who sacrificed an incredible amount personally for him to have the best opportunities. He then built on these opportunities every chance he got not only to meet his goals as a player but his goals as a husband as a dad to provide for his family. An ambitious 360-degree portrait of golf’s most scrutinized figure . . . The book features fresh reporting on almost every significant element of Woods’ story. . . . It is a book brimming with revealing details.” They were excited. Of course, they’d been written about before, but everything had been LeBron-centric. Part of the reason he wanted to do this book was to pay homage to the people who made him who he was, and these kids were an integral part of it. So they were excited to get their due. They weren’t braggarts—there was a humility to them—but they also wanted to say, “hey, we were pretty good ourselves.” There was an innate maturity to him. It exhibited itself, according to LeBron, very early in his life. He moved constantly. Many kids would hate that, and would protest. You also have a kid who didn’t have a father. But his attitude was: this is life and you roll with the punches. I think he had a very mature perspective very early in his life and career, and that gives him the ability to put things into a narrative perspective.There are some ironic limitations in the format of the book centered on how to look at such a storied and lengthy career that isn't even finished. There is a missing element of hindsight due to the fact that we don't even know how his professional career will end and what other great things he will accomplish. This feels like a half biography at this point - extremely impressive especially with all he has already done - but it doesn't do his story justice as readers get cut off at his current age of 38 (unavoidable since they wanted to publish now but leaves a feeling that this will need to be updated if it ever wants to be considered a "complete" story of LeBron later on).

An epic business story . . . The Dynasty goes deeper than anyone has before on the Beatles-esque collaboration among an owner, a coach, and a star player.” However, this is no clip job. Benedict writes scenes that make clear the extent of his primary reporting, putting the reader, to paraphrase a popular Broadway musical, in the room where it happens. You can practically see the goop in Miami Heat president Pat Riley’s hair as he seethes in resentment when James announces his departure from South Beach to return to Cleveland. “LeBron” isn’t just great sportswriting, it’s also vivid narrative journalism.A book I have below average feelings for and it would not come with a recommendation from me but I would mention it in conversation if related to the book topic at issue. By no means was I a LeBron fan. I thought he was a turd after The Decision and based a lot of my opinion on Scott Raab's brilliant book "The Whore of Akron." I’ll preface this by saying this is completely my opinion. I’ve asked him what he’s going to do, and he smiles at me and tells me to go screw myself in a very kind way, because I don’t think he knows.

In short, there’s no shortage of material for a biographer to chronicle the current Los Angeles Laker, and Jeff Benedict’s comprehensive new “LeBron” does a masterful job of shaping that material into a cohesive and propulsive whole. This is a fast break of a book, slicing into the many mini-narratives that James has lived and artfully tying them together to create a portrait of a man who has, by his own design, remained an enigma except to those he decides to trust. Benedict has constructed a sort of sports opera fueled by the drama and emotion surrounding his subject, but never sensationalistic or unfair. Benedict clearly likes James, but he’s been around long enough — among the subjects of his 17 books are Tiger Woods and the New England Patriots — to steer far clear of hagiography. LeBron James: If I were in desperate need of help I would turn to my wonderful wife who is constantly supportive and talks me through my problems. She has always been there for me since day one standing beside me when I am at my highs and lows. Savannah plays a massive role in my life and is all I could ask for in a wife. I didn’t realize that LeBron has a very small circle of business minded folks he trusts, and he has been with them for a while. After reading this book, my opinion of him has changed. LeBron shown here is a recognized and prudent person in making an initial investment decision, and what is important, he has been like this since that summer when his career in the NBA was written for him. This book made me feel good because of his love for basketball and it was very worth my time reading this book because I love basketball. Like I say with all of the other books by Geoffreys, he did go a little too far into the career part of Lebron and He should go that deep into the childhood, but still a great book. I can make a few connections to this book, like he he wore 23 like Michael Jordan, kevin durant is a snake and left his home team like lebron did.This is an extraordinary book. The narrative is comprehensive, intimate, and original. I’ve watched and written about the entire Patriots dynasty, and yet this epic story provides new insights and startling details that I didn’t know. I can assure you that there’s not another Patriots book like it.” Benedict has a proven record of excellent research for unauthorized biographies. His take on Tiger Woods was excellent and his history of the New England Patriots was great as well.