Football Life

What do you do when your world changes in an instant? For Jon Harvey, after the sudden death of his brother, it meant turning to the thing that had given him support, joy and a lifetime of memories: sport, in all its myriad sublime and ridiculous forms. A kaleidoscopic twelve months took him from London Olympia to ancient Olympia, from rugby balls to Rubik's Cubes, Wimbledon tennis to Wimbledon greyhounds, Twickenham to Frimley Green, Roger Federer to Martin 'Wolfie' Adams, and much, much more. It's a celebration, of a life shaped by sport, and the ultimate season ticket.

When Maria's family moves to a new town, her parents sign her up for the summer soccer team to help her meet new friends. But Maria has never tried soccer before. She would rather be back on her old swim team. Maria is afraid that she'll be the worst player and that no one will like her. Coach Tony and Coach Lauren remind Maria that everything is new at first. Maria will have to give soccer a try to see if she likes it.

My type had been well-established. There might as well have been a giant sign on my heart that said, 'Good Guys Need Not Apply'. Which is exactly why I had to friendzone Ken Easton. The man was a former football star, smelled like fresh laundry instead of stale cigarettes, and had more ties in his closet than tattoos on his knuckles. Pssh. BOR-ING. But the more I got to know my hunky study buddy, the more questions I came away with.

In 1999, BB Easton met her Prince Charming. He was the tall, tattooed, wickedly handsome bass player for the up-and-coming rock band Phantom Limb. But, more importantly, he was hers. She knew it the moment he flashed her that shy dimpled smile. And he knew it too. Hansel 'Hans' Oppenheimer wore his heart on his sleeve and poured his soul into every lyric he wrote about BB.