Pistol: The Life of Pete Maravich by Mark Kriegel, Lloyd James (Read by)

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"Pistol" Pete Maravich (1947-88) sported floppy socks and a bushy head of hair, but on a basketball court he could defy the laws of physics. Even before he reached college, his feats were legend. Long before the 3-point rule, he scored 3,667 points in his three varsity years at Southeastern Louisiana College, setting one of many NCAA records that he still holds. "Pistol" wasn't just a shooting phenom; his dribbling and passing skills were also unexcelled. In the NBA, he was a five-time All-Star, but his virtuosity grated against team-oriented systems. Off the court, Maravich was an eccentric, often reclusive outsider. After injury forced his retirement in 1980, he sank into alcoholism and depression. He had just settled peacefully into his conversion to evangelical Christianity when a heart attack struck him down while he was playing in a church pickup game. Mark Kriegel's biography places Maravich's bumpy journey and astonishing accomplishments in bold relief.

From the Publisher

Pistol is more than the biography of a ballplayer. It's the stuff of classic novels: the story of a boy transformed by his father's dream -- and the cost of that dream. Even as Pete Maravich became Pistol Pete -- a basketball icon for baby boomers -- all the Maraviches paid a price. Now acclaimed author Mark Kriegel has brilliantly captured the saga of an American family: its rise, its apparent ruin, and, finally, its redemption.
Almost four decades have passed since Maravich entered the national consciousness as basketball's boy wizard. No one had ever played the game like the kid with the floppy socks and shaggy hair. And all these years later, no one else ever has. The idea of Pistol Pete continues to resonate with young people today just as powerfully as it did with their fathers.
In averaging 44.2 points a game at Louisiana State University, he established records that will never be broken. But even more enduring than the numbers was the sense of ecstasy and artistry with which he played. With the ball in his hands, Maravich had a singular power to inspire awe, inflict embarrassment, or even tell a joke.
But he wasn't merely a mesmerizing showman. He was basketball's answer to Elvis, a white Southerner who sold Middle America on a black man's game. Like Elvis, he paid a terrible price, becoming a prisoner of his own fame.
Set largely in the South, Kriegel's Pistol, a tale of obsession and basketball, fathers and sons, merges several archetypal characters. Maravich was a child prodigy, a prodigal son, his father's ransom in a Faustian bargain, and a Great White Hope. But he was also a creature of contradictions: always the outsider but avirtuoso in a team sport, an exuberant showman who wouldn't look you in the eye, a vegetarian boozer, an athlete who lived like a rock star, a suicidal genius saved by Jesus Christ.
A renowned biographer -- People magazine called him "a master" -- Kriegel renders his subject with a style that is, by turns, heartbreaking, lyrical, and electric.
The narrative begins in 1929, the year a missionary gave Pete's father a basketball. Press Maravich had been a neglected child trapped in a hellish industrial town, but the game enabled him to blossom. It also caused him to confuse basketball with salvation. The intensity of Press's obsession initiates a journey across three generations of Maraviches. Pistol Pete, a ballplayer unlike any other, was a product of his father's vanity and vision. But that dream continues to exact a price on Pete's own sons. Now in their twenties -- and fatherless for most of their lives -- they have waged their own struggles with the game and its ghosts.
Pistol is an unforgettable biography. By telling one family's history, Kriegel has traced the history of the game and a large slice of the American narrative.

Publishers Weekly

As he did for another larger-than-life sports star whose achievements in his game were always shadowed by his demons outside of it, Kriegel (Namath) offers a rounded, insightful look at one of basketball's enigmatic icons. Kriegel presents Pete Maravich (1947–1988) as a "child prodigy, prodigal son, his father's ransom in a Faustian bargain." His father, Press Maravich, was the poor son of Serbian immigrants to Pennsylvania, a man obsessed with basketball as a means of personal and financial redemption. His rise as a coach loomed over Pete, who described himself as a boy as "a basketball android." A veteran sportswriter, Kriegel is more than up to the task of eliciting Pete's on-court greatness and describing basketball action in a fluid, dramatic fashion (Pete's deadeye shot earned him the nickname "Pistol"). But the book is more notable for how Kriegel evokes Press's support turning into suffocation, and the effect of the impossible expectations on Pete (he played for Louisiana State, then later for the New Orleans Jazz). In the end, Kriegel's portrait is a sad celebration of a gifted player whose collegiate legend never quite blossomed into professional greatness as he battled alcoholism, sought solace in religion and left a troubled legacy that's still felt by his children and those who knew him. (Feb.)

Tim Delaney - Library Journal

This reviewer was a young child when "Pistol" Pete Maravich (1947–88) was performing his awe-inspiring exploits on the college hardwood. Reading Pistolwill surely bring back memories among his fans and, for younger readers who know too little of this man who predated rampant TV sports programming, this is also an essential read. His amazing 44.2 points per game—before the three-point era—at Louisiana State University is still an NCAA record. His nickname was owing to his unerring aim at the basket as well as in passing. Maravich's professional career (1970–80) with the Hawks, Jazz, and Celtics included five All-Star appearances and was followed by induction into the NBA Hall of Fame in 1987. Kriegel (former sports columnist, New York Daily News; Namath) not only provides a wonderful evocation of the basketball life of Maravich, but he also gives readers a delightfully written biography. Included are important stories about Maravich's relationship with his driven father, "Press" Maravich, a Serbian immigrant to the United States who lived to coach basketball (including his son at LSU), and the sad story of the athlete's decline. Readers of all ages, sports fans or not, will thoroughly appreciate this book. Highly recommended for all libraries.

By Daniel Lombardo, formerly with Jones Lib., Amherst, MA

Kirkus Reviews

The bittersweet tale of Pistol Pete, one of basketball's most talented and tragic legends. Pete Maravich, born in 1947, was groomed from birth to be the best basketball player of all time. His father, Press, was his coach and taskmaster; the pair functioned as extensions of each other. Kriegel (Namath, 2004) begins by expounding at length on Press's hardscrabble youth, when basketball became his salvation and his life. Press imbued his son with every ounce of his ambition. It didn't take long for Pete, fanatical about perfecting every drill he was taught, to display an almost preternatural affinity for basketball. Pistol Pete integrated flawless fundamentals with showy moves. As his legend grew and he became the "great white hope" of the NBA, the weight of expectations crushed his free spirit, which was further battered by his mother's 1974 suicide. His thin frame began to break down, and old-school coaches who didn't appreciate Pete's talent lessened his competitive fire. He sought comfort in everything from alcohol to belief in extraterrestrials. Despite spurts of brilliance and a reputation as one of the most talented players of all time, he walked away from the NBA in 1980, after ten seasons, with no championship ring. He would find happiness in Jesus and his family until a heart attack during a pickup match ended his life at the age of 40. Kriegel occasionally lingers too long on Press, but his son emerges in this compelling, nuanced account as a man both talented and complex. Sure to send readers in search of the highlight reel.

Product Details

• ISBN: 1400154863
  
• ISBN-13: 9781400154869
• Format: Other Format
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc.
• Pub. Date: July 2007
• Edition Description: Unabridged
• Sales Rank: 758,156

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