Tiki by Tiki Barber was a particularly interesting book to me. The author of the book is a former superstar of my favorite football team, the New York Giants. Before reading the book, I viewed Tiki Barber as a great football player, but solely as that; I was unaware of his background or history before entering the NFL. That part of Tiki's story was the most inspiring, and ultimately my favorite part of his memoir. His early childhood is one right out of the story books. He lived in a rural town in Virginia with only his mother and brother to fall back on, but that was more than enough. He goes into great detail as to how his mother's personality played into who he is as a person, and how it contributed to his success as a person as well as a football player. He also goes into great depth about how his relationship with his brother made him a better, more competitive player. Before reading the book, I was aware that Tiki had a twin brother, and assumed that they were close. However, I was unaware of just how close they were. The two seem to be a perfect pair, one being more academic, and the other being more athletic. They both pushed the other to excel in the others forte. In doing so, they made each other more competitive while strengthening their bond. While I enjoyed the background that Tiki developed and put into the book, at times I disliked the way the book was written. Several times throughout the book, I found myself re-reading parts of paragraphs because the sentence structure confused me and abrupt punctuation stopped the flow of the text. Perhaps the book was written this way on purpose, but on more than a few occasions it bothered me. After taking all of this into consideration, I would recommend this book to any of my friends who happen to enjoy football as well as to anyone who wants to read a true story of a man (in all reality, two men) who overcame adversity.
Question:
1. How has reading this book change your opinion of a certain person or topic?
This book has changed my opinion about Tiki Barber. Before reading the book, I saw him not so much as a person, but as a football player distanced from society. After reading the book, I see him as more than just a player- I see him as a down-to-Earth person. Throughout most of the book, he maintains a relatively humble approach to writing it. At certain times, he does add an unnecessary shot at a defender or someone assigned to stop his rushes; he also has a controversial perspective on his former coach, Tom Coughlin. However, after reading the book, I view Tiki Barber as a more intellectual and profound person.
2. If the author is writing on a debatable issue, does he or she give proper consideration to all sides of the debate? Or does he/she seem to have a bias?
Tiki Barber does address a topic of controversy- his comments about his former coach, Tom Coughlin. He has said in the past that Coughlin pushed him and many of the other veteran players too hard, and that they should have been treated differently because not only are they more experienced, but because some play more contact-intensive roles, such as running back (in Tiki's situation). Although I disagree with Tiki's perspective, he does address the opposing side of the argument respectfully and defends his side effectively.
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