The Blind Side

Evolution of a Game

By: Michael Lewis

Narrated by: Stephen Hoye

Length: 11 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

In football, as in life, the value we place on people changes with the rules of the games they play.

When we first meet the young man at the center of this extraordinary and moving story, he is one of 13 children by a mother addicted to crack; he does not know his real name, his father, his birthday, or any of the things a child might learn in school. And he has no serious experience playing organized football.

What changes? He takes up football, and school, after a rich, Evangelical, Republican family plucks him from the mean streets.

Their love is the first great force that alters the world’s perception of the boy, whom they adopt. The second force is the evolution of professional football itself.

In The Blind Side, Lewis shows us a largely unanalyzed but inexorable trend in football working its way down from the pros to the high school game, where it collides with the life of a single young man to produce a narrative of great and surprising power.

©2006 Michael Lewis (P)2006 Books on Tape

Critic reviews

“[Lewis] is advancing a new genre of journalism.” (George F. Will, New York Times Book Review)

“...works on three levels. First as a shrewd analysis of the NFL; second, as an exposé of the insanity of big-time college football recruiting; and, third, as a moving portrait of the positive effect that love, family, and education can have in reversing the path of a life that was destined to be lived unhappily and, most likely, end badly.” (Wes Lukowsky, Booklist)

"As he did so memorably for baseball in Moneyball, Lewis takes a statistical X-ray of the hidden substructure of football, outlining the invisible doings of unsung players that determine the outcome more than the showy exploits of point scorers.... Lewis probes the fascinating question of whether football is a matter of brute force or subtle intellect." (Publishers Weekly)

Enjoyed it

I am not a fan of football so all the history about it was a bunch of blah blah blah to me but I understood it's necessity. The narrator was excellent and I really enjoyed this book. If you loved the movie then you will love the book and if your a football fan you will love it even more.

one of the best books I ever read .

this is probably the best story I have ever read . amazing im so proud of hiz accomplishments bit more than that the family who adopted him . this book is really well read and a all around feel good story. really good

So much more than the movie!

What made the experience of listening to The Blind Side the most enjoyable?

For those of you who have seen the movie - be prepared for so much more. Michael Lewis is a great storyteller, and he does an amazing job of weaving together the story of an underprivileged kid from Memphis with the history of (believe it or not) the left-tackle position in pro football. As for Stephen Hoye's narration, it is nothing less than pitch perfect. I remember driving home from work with tears streaming down my face as I listened to the part where Michael Oher's childhood is described. Nothing against the movie, an easy, feel-good film, but I'm glad I read the book first. Another winner for Michael Lewis.

The audiobook...better than the movie

The movie leaves out a lot of the facets of this multi-faceted story. Including much of the football history, Memphis background, and Michael oher's personal history before and after he met the Tuohy's that Lewis carefully weaves into the story. There's a lot more here than meets the moviegoer's eye.

The Blindside with Lots of Football Stats

Seen the movie, read the Touhy's and Michael Oher's books first. This book is an interesting version with lots of insight into football facts along the story lines. Worth reading.

Not My Best Read

This book is very much about playing football. If you like football. Interesting but not what I thought it might be.

a very human sports story

this book can alter the way you watch a football game. You WILL notice the line play and the constant pressure of rusher to get to the QB. Beneath all that is a another, very different story of a quiet young man of unique physical gifts and of abject neglect and poverty. The football teams want him for what he can become: an all pro left tackle. He is used to a solitary, impoverished life of fending for himself; he distrusts those who can help him with food clothing and shelter. Point and counter-point, Lewis writes a true story that is compelling to hear. A tale very very well told.

This author is wonderful!

I can’t believe he makes nonfiction so entertaining and engaging.

Several times I didn’t want to stop reading. Several times I was laughing out loud. Part of his talent is “finding” a good subject to write about. I can see why they made this into a movie. Although I was disappointed that the movie had a scene that was not in the book. But that’s a minor point and relates to the movie, not the book. The story of Michael Oher is such a feel good story. However, the end of the book is sad when showing the details about his early childhood.

The book was published five years ago. I wish there was something bringing us up to date with what happened to Michael since then. When I finished the book I found myself online doing searches to learn more about what happened to him.

I am not a sports fan and don’t watch football, but I really enjoyed this book. Actually I am now a little more interested in the sport. When I saw a football game on TV recently, my first question was who is playing left tackle, and I wanted to watch him.

STORY BRIEF:
The book starts out with some history about the passing game and Lawrence Taylor’s skill at sacking quarterbacks. That created the need for a left tackle to protect the quarterback’s blind side. The first player who could stop Lawrence was a guy who wrestled steers on a cattle ranch. He was big yet light-footed fast. Most of this book is the story about Michael Oher. He was homeless for most of his childhood, but through a stroke of luck ended up at a private Christian high school. Within two years, Sean and Leigh Ann Tuohy invited him to live with them. He needed a full time tutor to survive class work which they provided. They later adopted him. Michael had the perfect body and skills for the left tackle position. Some additional history about high school, college, and pro football is provided during and after the Michael story.

NARRATOR: Stephen Hoye was excellent.

GENRE: football nonfiction.

Excellent book

This was a great book for sport fans. For those who saw the movie this book is much more than just the story of Michael Orr. Mr. Lewis goes deeper into the changes in strategy in the NFL. The game does not stand still and those who are willing to change will win.

Love it!!!

I saw the movie and enjoyed it a great deal so I purchased the book to see where the story came from. Loved the book and the detail. It was so well written and I am buying the hard copy for my son for Christmas, Wish I had bought it earlier!