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Hometown Victory: A Coach's Story of Football, Fate, and Coming Home by Justin Spizman, Keanon Lowe
rellimreads's review
3.0
I grabbed this book as part of a challenge to read/listen to a book by an athlete.
CW as the book & my review will discuss these topics:
poverty, racism, violence, fatal drug overdose, alcoholism, attempted suicide by a youth
This memoir by Keanon Lowe mostly covers a two-year span of his career as a high school football coach for one of the most struggling teams in Oregon during the 2018 & 2019 seasons. Mixing in - sometimes at odd moments - his family life growing up and his own personal high school and college ball career. While I found it to be overly repetitive and filled with too many "cat poster" motivational phrases, I did appreciate his ability to connect with his players beyond just football. His own experiences with financial and family strife growing up helped him empathize with the often difficult backgrounds of Parkrose students.
While their story may not be quite the fairy tale the blurb makes it out to be (sorry, but this is neither Blindside nor Friday Night Lights in terms of gripping drama or Cinderella-esque game stats) - it is an enjoyable look at how a team and individual student's lives can be positively impacted by caring adults. I appreciated how Lowe shared that he was not in this alone and that many other people held his respect and admiration for all that he achieved. They all worked together to help students find motivation when their personal lives and team are constantly bombarded by poverty, lack of support, and racism.
I didn't realize when I chose this that Lowe is the school security guard who stopped a student from killing himself by embracing them in a hug. This makes up a small but powerful part of the book toward the end and exemplifies the unwavering love and dedication he has for youth - whether they are on his team or not.
Narration:
I enjoyed Landon Woodson's narration. I'd love to listen to more by him.
CW as the book & my review will discuss these topics:
poverty, racism, violence, fatal drug overdose, alcoholism, attempted suicide by a youth
This memoir by Keanon Lowe mostly covers a two-year span of his career as a high school football coach for one of the most struggling teams in Oregon during the 2018 & 2019 seasons. Mixing in - sometimes at odd moments - his family life growing up and his own personal high school and college ball career. While I found it to be overly repetitive and filled with too many "cat poster" motivational phrases, I did appreciate his ability to connect with his players beyond just football. His own experiences with financial and family strife growing up helped him empathize with the often difficult backgrounds of Parkrose students.
While their story may not be quite the fairy tale the blurb makes it out to be (sorry, but this is neither Blindside nor Friday Night Lights in terms of gripping drama or Cinderella-esque game stats) - it is an enjoyable look at how a team and individual student's lives can be positively impacted by caring adults. I appreciated how Lowe shared that he was not in this alone and that many other people held his respect and admiration for all that he achieved. They all worked together to help students find motivation when their personal lives and team are constantly bombarded by poverty, lack of support, and racism.
I didn't realize when I chose this that Lowe is the school security guard who stopped a student from killing himself by embracing them in a hug. This makes up a small but powerful part of the book toward the end and exemplifies the unwavering love and dedication he has for youth - whether they are on his team or not.
Narration:
I enjoyed Landon Woodson's narration. I'd love to listen to more by him.
c8_19's review
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
Classic underdog story. A bit cheesy. You can tell where this narrative is going after you finish reading the synopsis, yet that didn't keep me from enjoying it.
sglaser's review
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mass/school shootings
resslesa's review
5.0
Wow -a great (and relatively short) nonfiction book about coaching high school football front the perspective of a college athlete turned pro coach who went back to his hometown. Definitely recommending this to my football players and coaches and others who love an underdog story!
mattmatt3409's review
4.0
Loved this book. The reason I loved it so much was that it was about a coach and a local high school I'm familiar with. It also could've been that I am an Oregon Ducks fan and remember Keanon Lowe on those teams battling for a National Championship. I also have a personal connection with his assistant coach Brian Jackson as he is a former OTF coach and I took his classes. The book gave me chills.
megabooks's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
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