When the Game Was Ours Kindle Edition

Jackie MacMullan has been a likable and well-respected sportswriter for many years, and considering her unique closeness to the NBA (and Boston sports in particular), I anticipated that this would be a definitive work on the often-celebrated Bird/Magic dynamic - a magnum opus if you will. Instead, I found it a fairly disorganized and pedestrian rehash of the same information that we already knew. I mean, it wasn't bad...it was very readable, but I can't think of anything that really distinguished it from the other basketball books I've read. At the end of the day, I don't think it's that the information or research was bad, it's really the lack of an elegant or entertaining writing style that limited this book. In contrast, Dan Shaughnessy's brand of cynical humor and storytelling is what made his first "Curse of the Bambino" such an entertaining read (as opposed to his follow-up "Reversing the Curse", in my opinion. The writing style is what makes the sports book - not the information. Perhaps that is why writing this type of book must be a great challenge for somebody like MacMullan - her likability is part of her identity (and brand), and that can be constraining when writing about people who engage you on that basis. Shaughnessy obviously does not operate within those constraints...

Plowed brought this book in a weekend. So many memories, passages to highlight, instances where I could remember exactly where I was. The book essentially covers 1979-2009. My life 1976-current day. So pretty fascinating to relive, and unique to me, the Pacers years w Bird the coach and executive. While the players rivalry in the 80s will highlight any Celtics or Laker fan experience, for this Pacer fan 1997-2005 were some of the best years of my life.Chapter 9 is incredibly moving covering Magic’s HIV announcement in 1991. As a 15 year old that didn’t like the Lakers, I really didn’t get the magnitude. The author captures this period vividly,in amazing detail, with remarkable behind the scenes accounts. Golly, I read that Chapter while walking on a treadmill at the gym, and had the damnedest time fighting back the tears.

Book definitely not an airball. Delivers and is not just an outsiders view. It's straight from the mouths of two of the greatest ever and the men who played against them. I don't know of any two other athletes that brought out the best in each other like Magic and Bird did. And it should be a blueprint on how the great ones should respect and treat each other: try to beat each other's brains out on the court, respect and emulate character off the court.

Really I had only modest expectations when I purchased this book as one of the Kindle daily deals. I've read many sports books on topics that are forced. Bird and Magic together? I really had no idea that they were so close. I learned through this book that their bond is legitimate and that made for a great book. The author was excellent and kept the story going. If you are like me and remember the NCAA championship battle between the two and the ensuing NBA finals meetings then I guarantee you will enjoy this book.

Good read going back to when Bird and Magic were in highschool till there lives after retiring .... Focuses on the main meetings between them in the 80's, a trip down memory lane... Reading this I could close my eyes and see the two of them playing on my tv back in my childhood home.in manhattan, a keloid Knicks fan, watching geatness

"When The Game Was Ours" provides an intimate look into the evolution of the relationship between Larry Bird and Earvin "Magic" Johnson. The book does a great job telling the story of how two men became bitter rivals and eventually close friends. I was relatively young when both men began their careers and wasn't privy to the impact they had on the NBA as a whole, so I especially enjoyed learning about the history of the NBA and how these two men changed it forever. The book is a very easy read and manages to balance the historical aspect with additional insights into both Bird and Magic's relationships with their teammates as well. Unfortunately the latter gets a bit too gossip column for me, and detracts from the overall quality of the book. My only other complaint would be the amount of missing time the book has, for example, while the book does go into detail about Magic's Hall of Fame induction ceremony, it leaves out Larry's entirely. All in all I really enjoyed the book and recommend it for fans of either man, their teams, or the NBA in general.

Fun read. I would suggest this book to anyone that is a fan of the NBA and its history, a fan of either of the title superstars, or anyone that enjoys biogrpahies.The stories and careers are woven together seamlessly and are entertaining. The Boston author does a fair job of representing each athlete equally and there is no detectable "East Coast Bias"Fun book that explores the careers of each athlete and offers insights into how they helped grow the game and how their legends' grew along side one another- how they were rivals and friends at the same time.

The fun part of this book is when Larry and Magic discuss in detail certain championship games or even certain key plays in the championship games so you have a very good idea of what was going on inside their minds and how the plays transpired. After reading these I went to YouTube to watch the actual game or play and it was just mine boggling to have that different perspective.

Magic and Larry are very honest throughout this book, and their memories are skilfully stitched together by co-author Jackie McMullan. Each chapter starts with a climax, then goes back in time and sketches in the detail. This can be frustrating in one or two places, but generally works well. If you're a basketball fanatic you'd want more on the Magic/Isiaah Thomas rift, but Thomas clearly didn't want to contribute. Magic's infidelity is skipped over too, but he admits to it at least, and takes responsibility for contracting HIV, rather than blaming it on other people. Overall this is a fast, entertaining read, well worth the few quid for anyone interested in basketball, Bird or Magic.

I came to this book via the HBO documentary; A Courtship of Rivals, which I absolutely loved and as a result turned me into a NBA fan (I am from the UK so football was my 1st love). The book is a wonderful accompaniment to that documentary, but offers so much more insight and detail. A particular delight, was the backstory behind the Converse commercial and how their friendship developed from there. This book is a must for any sport historian fan and it is highly recommended

Bought this as a gift for my Boston-Celtics obsessed husband. He was really happy with it and said it had been on his wish list to read.

I nearly always have a book on the go but tend to read them at a pretty slow rate, wanting to absorb the information rather than rush through the text. This book however was so gripping, so larger than life and so inspiring that it kept me hooked page after page with as much detail as you could ask for about two amazing athletes and their incredible rivalry that's more magical than any fiction could hope to emulate. Like all great sports books, When the Game was Ours is a fascinating historical document of what a sport used to be like and the two players who helped to make it the mega-industry that it is today. Even though I knew all the results I still found myself immersed in the play-off storylines and totally inspired by the unrelenting work ethic and unselfish nature which made these two men and their teams such a brilliant success. Probably one of the top ten sports book I've read and I've read quite a lot.

My husband started to read his new pressie and basically could not put it down. He played professionally in UK and for GB in the 80's. Perfect read.