There is a senior left tackle at the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) by the name of Michael Oher (pronounced oar, like for a boat). He is, by all accounts, a top prospect for the first round of the NFL draft next year. But his career was not always as sure or his life as stable as it is now.
Michael Lewis’ book, The Blind Side, tells his story. Michael Oher basically had no family, lived on the street, could not read or write by the time he was a sophomore in high school, and was destined to live a life of trouble. He did have one thing going for him: he was a gifted athlete. He didn’t end up on the streets because, by a very surprising turn of events, he is able to attend a private Christian school on the east side of Memphis, Tennessee and is “adopted” into the rich white household of Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy. The Tuohy’s treat Michael as one of their own and help turn his life around.
This book is about two things: 1) Michael Oher’s remarkable story and 2) the evolution of football to make the offensive left tackle the second highest paid position on the field. The left tackle is in charge of guarding the right-handed quarterback’s “blind side” and thus attempts to save the quarterback from mind-numbing blows he never saw coming.
But above the great story of Michael Oher, and the history lesson of the NFL dispersed within the book, the main thing that makes this book great is the author. Lewis is a magnificent story teller and his prose is captivating and intriguing. I simply loved the book. I found myself laughing out loud constantly, not because the story itself was overtly funny, but because Lewis has a way of telling the story which makes you laugh.
A significant part of the storyline involves the separation of white, Evangelical Memphis from its black, inner city neighbors. I feel that Lewis did an especially nice job of staying objective in the religious aspects and was able to present Evangelicalism in a neutral light (as it might have been easy to present it negatively). He is even able to pick at Evangelicalism in a non-threatening (and amusing) way. The only problem with the book is the occasional language issue which seems to stem more from Lewis’ use of quotations than his own disposition. However, the book overall is a great read for any football fan and still gets an “A+.”
P.S. If you like baseball, I also highly recommend Michael Lewis’ book Moneyball.
