Playing for Pizza by John Grisham Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Playing for Pizza
Book Review: one small pizza to go, hold the plot
Summary: 2 Stars
John Grisham's body of work often has a hero, or antihero, who does the right thing at considerable cost and danger. These legal thrillers enjoy a nobility of hope that rises above the seediness of their supporting characters. Even his non-legal thrillers, The Painted House, The Testament and Bleachers, tell good stories of good people.
Playing for Pizza is different for Grisham. He ably describes Rick Dockery's fall from 3rd string NFL grace to play US football with the Parma Panthers in Italy. As usual, the characters are engaging, and Grisham's ability to describe US football plays and strategies is impressive. His love for all things Italian (food, wine, beautiful women and cultural tidbits) helps things along.
Yet overall Playing for Pizza is the weakest novel of his that I've read.
Playing for Pizza suffers as the creative idea of presenting Italy's NFL to the world loses stream in a plot that doesn't go too far. This is no strong arc, no worthwhile character redemption, and outside of the games there is nothing to really root for. Dockery, a 3rd string player, stays faithful to a 5th string team and learns to eat and drive like a good Italian. His side adventures with a reporter and his bantering with his agent Arnie are page turning, but aren't enough to sustain him as a character to deeply care about.
Too, Dockery's sexual adventures with the US college student Livy are misguided. Grisham's desire for justice, combined with characters that follow a sexual morality without being prudish created in other novels an elevation of personal character that was noble. After reading so many of his books it's hard not to compare Grisham with himself. Now, Grisham can write any way he wants and I'll most likely read what he writes, hence my review of this book. Yet Dockery is decidedly un-Grisham-esque whereas his other books have characters whose personal character combine with a story that leaves one satisfied. This is lacking in Playing for Pizza. Other than mutual companionship during a transitional time Rick and Livy have little going for them. I'm not looking for saints but rather a story line and protagonist that lead me somewhere further than first and ten on the field and a home run between the sheets.
Grisham's previous novel Bleachers was light reading yet dealt with the moving theme of a high school football coach's impact over generations of players. Playing for Pizza is not just light reading, it is very light reading. The plot fumbles and, well, reminds me of Dockery's NFL career....
Book Review: strong start, gives up in 2nd half
Summary: 2 Stars
It starts out interesting with tantalizing details of Italian food and culture and a flirtation with an exotic opera singer. But when Rick picks up an American girlfriend, the book comes to an abrupt end. After that we get dry listings of the couple's tours and sexcapades. It seems Grisham lost interest at this point (like the reader) and just finished out the predictable sports story.
Book Review: waste of time
Summary: 1 Stars
What a disappointment -- poor character development -- predictable plot -- writing that is certainly not up to Grisham's standard. Also, why is every woman in the book gorgeous and seemingly grateful to any man who will take her to bed? Does Grisham think he has to resort to this to sell a book or is this his way of handling his own male menopause?Book Review: wonderful, wel written comedy
Summary: 5 Stars
I enjoyed reading this book so much! It was great. Very entertaining. I admired the craft and writing from a literary/artistic standpoint -- a superb comprehensible writing style. The romantic relationships in the book had unexpected outcomes and had nice substance to them. Great comedy is hard to find, and this book is a rare example of really good comedy. Highly recommend it to anyone who appreciates great writing and who also likes football.