In 1997, Bloom took a cross-country coaching job at a small Catholic high school on the Jersey Shore. Although he'd covered running internationally for publications like Runner's World
and the New York Times
, he hadn't coached before and expended Herculean effort to transform ragtag athletes into committed, passionate champions. In this memoir, employing a conversational writing style (and a jarring use of the present tense even when describing past events), Bloom candidly portrays the ups and downs of building his team. Some of the book's most heartwarming moments come through its interfaith elements, as Bloom, a Reform Jew, learns to understand and encourage his students' Catholic faith while simultaneously appreciating his own religion: "I figure that since Christian kids are taught that suffering with Jesus on the cross is a sanctifying duty, when you combine my nurturing energy with boys who should welcome pain you've got the makings of one fine cross-country team." Readers can easily imagine the Hollywood film that should emerge from this story, a hybrid of Mr. Holland's Opus
and Dead Poets Society
with underdog sports flicks like Rudy
and Miracle,
particularly in the inspirational final moments when the team triumphs at the 2000 state championships despite having an injured athlete. (Nov.)
