Overview

An exploration of what it is about the peculiar game of cricket that so takes hold of the imagination, from the writer of the popular blog The Old Batsman Cricket is a strange game. It is a team sport that is almost entirely dependent on individual performance. Its combination of time, opportunity and the constant threat of disaster can drive its participants to despair. To survive a single delivery propelled at almost 100 miles an hour takes the body and brain to the edges of their capabilities, yet its abiding image is of the gentle village green, and the glorious absurdities of the amateur game. In The Meaning of Cricket, Jon Hotten attempts to understand this fascinating, frustrating and complex sport. Blending legendary players, from Vivian Richards to Mark Ramprakash, Kevin Pietersen to Ricky Ponting, with his own cricketing story, he explores the funny, moving and melancholic impact the game can have on an individual life.

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9780224100199

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Reviews

Memory and meditation twirled into a lovesong: Jon Hotten hits it out of the park -- William Fiennes Hotten is not just good, he is one of the best... He has the eye for a beautifully judged phrase -- Richard Whitehead Cricketer An eccentric mix of anecdote, personal memoir, historical observation, technical analysis and psychological insight. -- Matthew Syed The Times Simultaneously playful and packed with insight ... All cricketing life is here... Hotten's writing is accessible and often moving -- Ben East Observer A beautifully written meditation on the joys of summer and the tricks played by memory on the ageing sportsman. Humane and dryly humorous. -- Tom Holland Evening Standard, Book of the Year [It] is accessible, fun and elegantly written. -- Hilary Mantel New Statesman, Book of the Year A collection of Jon Hotten's writing that is lively with insight and anecdote, and informed by the persona of the knowledgeable and fascinated practitioner... On amateur cricket Jon is alternately hilarious and poignant, but it's when he's in his almost-a-pro-yet-somehow-not-quite vein that he truly breaks out. He considers cricket's capacity for revealing us to ourselves. -- Gideon Haigh Cric Info

A beautifully written meditation on the joys of summer -- Tom Holland Evening Standard, Book of the Year Hotten is not just good, he is one of the best... He has the eye for a beautifully judged phrase -- Richard Whitehead Cricketer Hotten has emerged as a worthy addition to the lineage of writers who adhere to C L R James's aphorism: What do they know of cricket who only cricket know? ... This will be a worthy addition to any cricketing bookshelf -- Tim Wigmore New Statesman For those dreaming of summer, The Meaning of Cricket is accessible, fun and elegantly written. -- Hilary Mantel New Statesman, Book of the Year Simultaneously playful and packed with insight ... All cricketing life is here... Hotten's writing is accessible and often moving -- Ben East Observer Memory and meditation twirled into a lovesong: Jon Hotten hits it out of the park -- William Fiennes A collection of Jon Hotten's writing that is lively with insight and anecdote, and informed by the persona of the knowledgeable and fascinated practitioner... On amateur cricket Jon is alternately hilarious and poignant, but it's when he's in his almost-a-pro-yet-somehow-not-quite vein that he truly breaks out. He considers cricket's capacity for revealing us to ourselves. -- Gideon Haigh Cric Info

Engrossing book... Hotten explores what it is about cricket that so takes hold of the imagination... Reveal[s] the funny, moving and transformative impact the game can have on life. Bookseller Memory and meditation twirled into a lovesong: Jon Hotten hits it out of the park -- William Fiennes Hotten is among the best in the business, as this vivid love letter to the sport proves. Sport Hotten is not just good, he is one of the best... He has the eye for a beautifully judged phrase... Expect him to feature prominently on awards' shortlists this year. -- Richard Whitehead Cricketer Simultaneously playful and packed with insight ... All cricketing life is here... Hotten's writing is accessible and often moving... It deserves a wider readership. -- Ben East Observer

Author Information

Jon Hotten is the author of four books, including Muscle and The Years of the Locust, and writes the popular cricket blog The Old Batsman. He co-wrote the award-winning documentary Death of a Gentleman, and his collaboration with the former England bowler Simon Jones, The Test, won the Wisden Almanack's Book of the Year award in 2016.

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