Love-Love

Open: An Autobiography by Andre Agassi

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I cried watching Andre Agassi's final speech from Arthur Ashe Stadium in the fall of 2006. Here was a man who had one of the most incredible tennis careers in the history of the game - a man who had fallen in love with tennis royalty (the leggy wonder Steffi Graf) and had two beautiful children - a man who had used his fame and wealth to build a school that might inspire hope in the hopeless - and the thing that had given him all those opportunities was ending. It was awe-inspiring and to me, an incredible culminating moment. And yet Agassi grew up hating tennis. In a lonely game where Love can mean nothing, Agassi felt completely lost.

"Open" is a brilliant narrative of Agassi's road to self-discovery all set, of course, through an endless series of matches against many of tennis' greatest players. Agassi is unflinchingly honest. His self-destructive behavior throughout much of his life and career is shocking, but surprisingly understandable. The images he paints of the games played in jean shorts with long hair (a weave or a wig most of the time) or his then-wife Brooke Shields putting his now-wife Steffi Graf on the fridge for weight-loss inspiration are classic. That said, this is not a book for everyone. You need love to tennis or at least have an interest in the game. You need to be prepared for the rollercoaster that is Agassi's life, because it's not pretty much of the time. It's frustrating, agonizing, and amazing. Agassi does show though that the pain and the loveless days have all been worth it. That's a message we could all stand to hear a bit more - tennis lovers or not.

Happy Reading~