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Availability:
Only 1 left in stock, order soon!
Arrives
Friday, Nov 6
At a glance
- Condition
- New
- Format
- Paperback
- Dimensions
- 4.96 x 0.87 x 7.8 in
- Weight
- 10.5 oz
- Publisher
- Faber & Faber
- Publication date
- April 5, 2007
- Edition
- Main
Description
The hugely acclaimed novel of '70s football and the turmoil of the game's most charismatic and controversial manager, from the bestselling author of GB84 and Red or Dead. In 1974 the brilliant and controversial Brian Clough made perhaps his most eccentric decision: he accepted the position of Leeds United manager. A successor to Don Revie, his bitter adversary, Clough was to last just 44 days. In one of the most acclaimed British novels of recent years - subsequently made into a film starring Michael Sheen - David Peace takes us into the mind and thoughts of Ol' Big 'Ead himself, and brings vividly to life one of football's most complex and fascinating characters. Read more
Specs 9
| Publisher | Faber & Faber |
|---|---|
| Publication date | April 5, 2007 |
| Edition | Main |
| Language | English |
| Print length | 368 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 0571224334 |
| ISBN-13 | 33 |
| Item Weight | 10.5 ounces |
| Dimensions | 4.96 x 0.87 x 7.8 inches |
No specs match.
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Top Amazon Reviews
Classic Tragedy
Format: Kindle
As a writer I am interested in the problematic genre of the non-fiction novel. Peace has done a fine job of constructing the contradictory genius of Brian Clough. It is a tragic tale of hubris, power and disaster, worthy of a Greek tragedy. And yes, if you think that's over the top, consider how those archetypal stories play out in modern life. Our knowledge of the glories that await Clough adds poignancy to the story. In addition, the more recent fall of Leeds United into near-oblivion adds that thrill of schadenfreude. Superb characterization, particularly the villains, as well as the main protagonist and the novel's thematic richness, lifts this way above a mere sports story.
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Reviewed in the United States on January 12, 2015 by Lynette McClenaghan
Fear and doubt - a football manager's life
Format: Kindle
Brilliant novel about the ups and downs of a football manager. Conveys the constant pressures on and off the pitch faced by a manager. The dialogue is so well written I could almost hear Brian Clough saying the words. The only negative is that there are apparently some discrepancies with what actually happened, although to be fair the book is stated to be a novel.
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Reviewed in the United States on October 29, 2014 by Stewart Wilson
Don't let facts get in the way of a great story
Format: Kindle
A slightly discredited book (author was sued), but still a great read. It's a novel not a documentary and it brings to life Clough and the people in his orbit (most of whom he's trying to shoot down). If the facts aren't all believable, the context is.
Reviewed in the United States on April 4, 2017 by The Big F
"Damned" Fascinating
Format: Kindle
I'm an American who loves football (yes, both the world version.... and the American version) and had this book recommended by a colleague in London. My knowledge of Brian Clough or English football during the 70's was limited to say the least. My lack of depth on the players clearly inhibits my ability to appreciate this book to its fullest --- or pass judgement of how faithful Peace is to actual events. With those caveats, I found this book a riveting character study of a coach and leader, especially someone trying to fill the shoes of another legend. The turbulent 44 day coaching reign of Brian Clough after replacing the legendary and highly successful manager of Leeds, Don Revie, reveal a tortured personality, struggling to assert himself after inheriting a championship team. Clough believes he has inherited a team just after their peak and is looking to put his own personal mark on the club, a form and style dramatically different from Revie's. As each day passes, Clough loses control, of both himself and his players, the fans and ultimately the board. Clough's time at Leeds was three decades before the internet fueled 24/7 news cycle so it is interesting to think how these circumstance would play out in today's era and the pressures on modern managers operating in increasingly scrutinized times with ever more pampered and highly paid athletes. Clough would eventually go on to even greater coaching heights after his ill-fated stint at Leeds. I'm interested to read about the triumphs he ultimately had and how he was able to overcome this monumentally quick failure.
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Reviewed in the United States on February 11, 2011 by William Capodanno
Top marks for originality but the execution disappoints
Format: Paperback
The Damned Utd is one of the most original modern British novels. The author David Peace deserves credit for conceiving of such an idea - a fictional recreation of Brian Clough's doomed 44 days in charge of his nemesis club, Leeds Utd. The execution fails to live up to the conceit. Unless you are a football anorak, or a particular affecionado of a pseudo-James Ellroy style you might struggle with this book. It is all pared down prose and repetitive phrasing. Lots of flat descriptions of rain and Yorkshire: 'Yorkshire rain, Yorkshire skies'. Clearly trying to emulate the boiler plated American hard man style which is something British novelists in my opinion have never really got to grips with. reading this novel is akin in many places to chomping through a bowl of iron filings. The book is structured on a twin narrative - Clough's perspective on his ill fated time at Leeds as he alienates players and boadroom whilst failing to win matches, spliced with reflections from his time as manager of rivals Derby County, which explains his almost Shakespearean paranoia and tortuous obsession with Leeds, managed by his great rival Don Revie who in Clough's mind only won things by playing dirty. But the prose narrative only intermittently generates the oily energy required to pull off the feat of lifting a plausible effect of the late Brian Clough's consciousness off the page. I do recommend the recent film of this novel, with Michael Sheen doing a brilliang job in the Clough role. The film mixes comedy, football and grimy 1970s social realism in a quirky and fascinating way that the book, for all its promise, really fails to do.
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Reviewed in the United States on April 3, 2009 by Sirin
Audiobook as performance piece
Format: Audio CD
An audio book is as much a performance as a feat of writing. John Simm's reading makes this a tour de force. For a book that moves back and forth in time, it can a little hard to follow, especially since the clues are based on which soccer team we're talking about (and how many American's have any idea who played for Leeds United in the 1970s?) But Simm's portrayal of football manager Bryan Clough is intense, dark, compelling and sometimes very funny.
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Reviewed in the United States on September 26, 2014 by M. T. Lawrence
CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THE MOVIE
Format: Paperback
Fascinating story about a bygone era. From a distance of 3,000 miles, Brian Clough always struck me as a brilliant but flawed man, and this novel certainly portrayed both his genius and his myriad failings. Gifted but stubborn; charming but angry; sentimental but insensitive; rigid but rogueish - he was all these and more, and the novel - based on his catastrophic 44-day reign at Leeds United - presents it all. Highly recommended.
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Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2009 by Whippany Reader
Brian Clough takes on Leeds (the damned) United as coach in this awesome story
Format: Kindle
Brian Clough takes on Leeds (the damned) United as coach, with flash backs to his rise and fall at Derby. Well written, fascinating story - and from a Nottingham Forest fan, a great insight into the greatest coach of the club.
Reviewed in the United States on July 17, 2016 by Duncansdad