Once I started reading this book, I have much difficulty following it. There were parts that read like a typical sports biography, such as his upbringing, but when talking about the games, I had a hard time trying to figure out what was rugby and what was football, at least from the descriptions.. I am sure that the book overall is informative, but it didn't resonate with me and I stopped reading at 25%. I do thank you for providing a copy of the book for my review, but unfortunately it just didn't resonate with me.

The book is a very well-researched telling of the life of Walter Camp and the birth of American Football. It is a dascinating life worthy of a detailed biography. Camp played a major role in developing a sport which is dominant in American culture and slowly spreading around the globe. It is a much the story of the game as it is the story of the man.

Camp served as a player, coach and athletic director at Yale where the game emerged from rugby to become American football. He sat on the rules committee that shaped the game - in particular, in 1882 when the concept of downs was introduced.

As a non-American, I don;t know much about the college game so it was interesting to learn its origins. It completed well another title, The League, which covers the development of the professional game.

Overall it is a very enjoyable, if quite comprehensive biography of a forgotten figure whose legacy is the game enjoyed by millions today.

(I intend to post a fuller review to my blog - https://allsportsbooks.reviews in due course)

I have never really understood football. Didn't see the strategy. Just thought it was groups of men pushing against each other.

But reading this book really opened my eyes. As I watched the various rules being put into place, I began to appreciate the history and tactics behind this sport which has become so ingrained into American society.

I read this EARC courtesy of NetGalley and U of Illinois Press pub date 09/15/18