Travel World guide

After reading this book, I was amazed at the things that went on between Al Davis and Marcus. How Marcus stayed in Los Angeles that long amazes me. This book covers Marcus’ life before football, during high school, at USC and the heisman, and being drafted by the Raiders and then ending up at Kansas City. Marcus talks about the O.J. fiasco and how it changed his life. This book is excellent for any football fan and shines light on the dark side of being a Raider.

Bo Jackson is the greatest American Athlete since Jim Thorpe. For some reason, people don’t recognize this fact enough. Most people would give that title to Ali, and to be sure Ali was superb. But no one that I can think of played three sports at world class level (football, baseball, and track and field) the way Bo did. You have to think about how incredibly difficult that is. He was such a natural at everything he tried that he could afford to devout only partial attention to a given sport at anyone time. In terms of pure natural gifts, Bo Jackson surpasses everyone else. But what is most remarkable in this story is how close he came to throwing that immense talent away. Sports was his salvation, that and his hard-driving mother. This book shows how sports can be a great positive outlet in a person’s life. They provide an arena for focused action that serves to improve the individual through lessons of hard-work, team-work, and discipline. Even the very talented have to work for it, and Bo shows that in this blunt accounting of his life

I really enjoyed this well written summary of Marcus Allen’s life and his extraordinary career in football. If you are at all interested in football, this book would be a great choice. He starts from the beginning telling us about his family and his hometown. He then describes his life as a high school football player. He goes on to talk about the transitions he had to make on the field from defensive back to quarterback and then to running back later on in his career. Marcus really goes in to depth when he describes his years at U.S.C and the heisman trophy. He emphasizes his dedication towards his health and the team. Marcus says in the book that playing backup to Charles White helped him more because he got to see greatness right before his eyes in Charles. Charles describes the felling of being drafted to the Oakland Raiders. Marcus shows his dislike towards the teams manager Al Davis and describes conflicts between the two. Marcus goes into great detail of the games and the situations that occur off the field on both the Oakland Raiders and the Kansas City Chiefs. It is very interesting to see the relationship between Marcus Allen and Mr. and Mrs.OJ Simpson. He talks about the OJ trial and how he handled it.

Bo definitely was an over-achiever and seemed to enjoy all phases of sports and life. He had a very intesting childhood and had problems dealing with his anger. As he matured and his accomplishments grew he recognized his anger problem and learned how to deal with it. It was interesting to have him tell about all the people he played with and against in baseball and football. Even though this book was written ten years ago, I enjoyed his comments on Dion Sander and Mark McGuire who are still playing today.

actually a pretty good read. i didnt realize Bo’s tough upbringing. didnt know that willie gault consistently beat him in races.

its a good short read

The book was very interesting, it is about 200 of greatness. It talks about his childhood when he faces racial adversity and his greatness in sports and his fami;ly., andh is traghic injury. This is an excellent book!

The book the inspired me

The book that I read is called Bo Knows Bo. It is an autobiography that tells a story through Bo Jacksons life. The setting for the book was in Mississippi. He was in a house that was real beat up. There was about 9 people living in there. He grew up and was always playing sports with the other kids in the house. The characters were Bo Jackson, mom, aunt, dad, brothers, and sisters. His school was about 2 miles away, he had to walk. With his brothers and sisters though. There was one way there and one way back. He had encountered a lot of problems over the years. There were kids older than him that picked on them all the time. All of his friends and family were only about 8 to 9. He had been with them since they were born. Then it tells how he made it to the big leagues Kansas Royals. This the book that inspired me.

This book was cool and fun to read because Bo Jackson led an interesting life and by reading it you get a new look into the world of sports. I thought it was a great read and is for any sports fan.

If success was measured in potential Bo Jackson would go down in history as the most successful athlete of all time. Sadly, due to a hip replacement in his prime we never got to see just how high Bo Jackson could reach. Yet anyone that saw his short career in either the NFL or MLB knows that Bo was potential Hall of Fame caliber in each, something that puts him in an incredibly elite category. In Bo Knows Bo, he describes his upbringing, the choices and circumstances that he believes made him into the man we all know, and provides a great overview of his his football and baseball careers up to a time just shy of his hip problems.

The book begins with several accolades from Hall of Famers such as George Brett and Howie Long who played with Bo, and even comments from Michael Jordan assessing what made Bo so extraordinary. For those who didn’t get to see him play, the comments from many baseball and football stars alone will give you ample understanding of just how big an impact he made in the 1980s.

Written in a casual manner, the book flows easily as though Bo was merely giving an account of his life to a friend. Bo is definitely not shy about talking about his achievements nor accentuating their greatness, yet somehow he never comes across as arrogant. Bo seems to have maintained an intriguing combination of confidence, humility and a good sense of humor. Bo is also prone to the odd exaggeration from time to time, but this doesn’t detract from his story. Added to all this are plenty of his amusing anecdotes, the result of which is a book any sports fan will enjoy.

The fact that this project was done in collaboration with Dick Schaap gives it a lot of credibility. While most sports biographies are just a celebration of statistics and athletic achievments, this book went beyond that and was very earnest in all aspect of sports and management. I gained a lot of respect for Vincent (BO) as a person not just an athlete. I was very impressed with all his charity work, his humility, and the fact that he got a degree in something that truly can make a difference in this world. An epitomy of being a team player who just wants to win, I gained a great admiration for Bo Jackson. The only reason why I gave this book 4 stars is because I feel that this book should have been written after his storied but painfully short career ended. It would have added a lot of strong chapters on his & families feelings regarding his career. The again, I would understand if that is something Bo would like to keep private. The world is a better off with Bo Jackson inspiring youngsters to achieve not just in athletics but in life. Thank you Bo.

I REALLY ENJOYED READING THIS. MARCUS DOES A GOOD JOB DESCRIBING HIS CAREER WITH THE RAIDERS AND CHIEFS. HIS CRITICISM OF AL DAVIS AND RAIDER ORGANIZATION IS EXTREMELY INTRIGUING. ALSO INTERESTING IS HIS DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE OJ MURDER TRIAL AND HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH OJ AND HIS WIFE. THIS IS WELL WORTH YOUR TIME.
A MUST READ.

This is the only book I ever remember reading for pleasure as a kid. I thought that a man w/such a troubleing childhood could have need done so many things. It is just sad to see that such a talented man get hurt. I am also sad to see that all of his sport cards are not worth anything. He is the main reason that I collected cards as a kid. I will aways keep those cards. I had a copy of this book until I let my little sister borrow it and she left it at school, I wanted to kill her. I hope some day that I can replace the book for a reasonable price. So I can read it for the sixth time.

I couldn’t stop myself for reviewing this book when I was searching around on Amazon. Bo Jackson was my favorite athlete along with Michael Jordan growing up and I was so obsessed with him that I name my cat Bo (my mother wouldn’t go for “air” after Michael Jordan). The book, although interesting in that it chronicles his life and many trials and tribulations, is perhaps most special because of how good of athlete Bo Jackson was and how quick his career ended later. He is without a doubt one of the best athletes of all time and an all star in both baseball and football. He was truly a special talent who if he had not been plagued by injury might have shattered all kinds of records in both leagues. There has not been an athlete like him in the last 20 years so we can only hope another talent like him will come along.

I remember in 1991 sitting in the airport waiting for my flight back to Seattle. I went into the bookstore and saw Bo Jackson’s book. Not having anything else to read, I bought the book and immediately began reading it. I read during my flight home and finished it at Sea-Tac Airport.

It was a very engrossing book. It told of Bo Jackson’s early years as a child then as a teenager then adult. Then Jackson told of the forever tragedy that would end his sports career: a hip-injury during a 1990 playoff game.

I remember growing up watching Bo Jackson dominate baseball then football. He became someone I looked up to as a teenager. Then as I became an adult, my own injury put me in Bo Jackson’s own shoes. We each had difficult bouts of walking “normally” again. Although Bo Jackson never played football again, he returned to baseball with less than average results. But he kept his head up high and moved on from sports.

Bo Jackson’s autobiography gives the reader that sense of accomplishment; that sense of overcoming obstacles when the odds are against you. I view Bo Jackson’s book as a preview of his will to overcome his hip injury and become the man he is today.

In my opinion, one of the greatest athletes to come along post-1970s (that generation had Ali, Wilt, Alcindor, Hank Aaron, Jenner, Hamill, Franco Harris, Evelyn Ashford, Archie Griffin, Bjorn Borg, George McGinnis … some of the biggest names in sport!).

Fast. Big. Strong. (Did I mention Fast? Big? and Strong?)

This dude had all the physical gifts and the “can do” mentality of a super hero come to life!!!

Never seen anyone like him and probably will never again.

It’s ironic that this two-sport All-Star, seeminly indestructible had his career hobbled to a stutter that fateful Jan. 1991 day on a football field.

This book gives you the inside on how a young Bo Jackson (aggressive and physically awesome even as a young kid) came all the way from Bessemer, Alabama, rose through elite football and baseball ranks to become the late-1980s megastud on the same dais of Michael Jordan and Wayne Gretzky before his injury.

It’s an interesting tale with behind the scenes looks at how teammates and competitors in both the NFL and MLB interacted with him — or should I saw competed in awe — how Jackson came to hate Steinbrenner and how his family kept and continues to keep him grounded.

Here you had an athlete with …

Carl Lewis’ speed
Herschel Walker’s size
Reggie White/Ray Lewis strength
Jim Brown’s physical toughness
Barry Sanders’ explosiveness

… and a “No feat too great or too tall” mentality ALL HIS OWN.

Bo was a champion who’s athletic career was cut short too soon, leaving fans to always ponder “what if”.

This book celebrates memories and reflections on “What was.”

More than One Chance

I recently read the book Bo Knows Bo, Bo Jackson’s autobiography. Bo Jackson was a pretty bad child and his career almost never happened. As a child, Bo Jackson twice almost pulled the trigger of a gun and shot and shot someone. He wasn’t always a fan of practice and usually slept through team meetings. Bo got out of the ghetto when he got a scholarship to Auburn. While at Auburn, Bo played football, baseball, and did track for a year. A person he thought was a friend lied to Bo and cost Bo his eligibility his senior year for baseball when he worked out for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before the draft. He could’ve gone pro in either football or baseball but decided to go pro when he got drafted by the Kansa City Royals. After the baseball season, Bo would play the ten games or however many were left for the Oakland Raiders.
I like how this biography told about Bo’s childhood because some biographies don’t. I disliked how Bo was a problem child because he had so much talent. It is like Sports Century on ESPN Classic which is biographies of athletes on T.V.

He shows an amazing insight into what really goes on in the dirty world of american football. To the specifically vindictive nature of Al Davis towards Marcus, to the heartfelt news which so totally devasted him upon learning of the revelation of O.J.!! Written we a great deal of intelligence almost as if he was a best selling novelist. Definitely makes you support the Chiefs whenever they play the Raiders, even though i support the Seahawks. Maybe now Marcus has retired he will put pen to paper more often, I certaintly will purchase any of his material.

Bo Knows Bo is a good book. It’s about Bo Jackson’s life as a kid, and how he played professional baseball and football. It tells you about his childhood, and when he went to Auburn. It talks about his personal life, when he played baseball, and football, too. It has chapters when people like Howie Long write in the book.
I would recommend this book to sport fans or people how know Bo Jackson and want to know more about the real Bo Jackson’s life.
Spokane,WA Morch 17,2005 9 o’clock 32 minuts 21 secents

This piece is a look at the upbringing of Bo Jackson. He discusses his past and what brought him to his successes in life. It is watered down with numbers and flashbacks of games that not many remember. The saving graces in this book are the stories in regard to charitable works Bo has done, as well as Dick Schaap and his mid chapter-per chapter writings.
This book is good for the twitch speed generation of parents to own to let their children one day know what the words: ownership, accountability, and work ethic really mean. Success is sometimes an afterthought.
~Angelo Markantonakis

This is not your typical Professional Jock Worship book, primarily because (1) very little of the narrative is taken up with descriptions of individual games or plays, (2) Carlton Stowers is an excellent writer who portrays Marcus well, and (3) Marcus himself is an intelligent and thoughtful person who has had a fascinating life to date.

The real heroes of this book are Marcus’ parents, Harold (Red) and Gwen Allen, who put the necessary time and effort into providing their children with the integrity that has made Marcus successful.

This is a book of contrasts and conflicts, the first of which are with Al Davis, owner of the Oakland Raiders. Marcus despises Al and is candid in describing his reasons. Anyone who is not familiar with Al Davis might think Marcus is exaggerating, but those who are familiar with him will find the criticism reasonable, if not understated. Corroboration for his descriptions of Al’s eccentricities may be found in “Slick: The Silver and Black Life of Al Davis” by Mark Ribowsky [ISBN: 0-02-602500-0], a highly entertaining biography that is now out of print but may be available through a used-book service.

The other interesting contrast is that between Marcus and his friend O.J. Simpson. As Marcus described Nicole Simpson’s death and the subsequent murder trial, I kept asking how these two men, similar in so many ways, could have ended up so differently. As I said at the outset, the real heroes of the book are Marcus’ parents.

I think this book is very interesting. I like the fact that Bo didn’t hold anything back. He told everything like it is. I really respect BO. I also think that if he hadn’t had his career untimely cut short he would be the all-time leader in many categories in rushing with the nfl and power with the mlb. Bo Definetly Knows BO.

I thought the book was great and truly honest. I think Bo Jackson is a great role model for children.