Tonight I’ll be Reading: Fever Pitch
(Nick Hornby) Mikey Isitt
By pure chance, little Nick Hornby’s father takes him to an Arsenal game, and a lifelong obsession is born. Fever Pitch is the memoir of Hornby’s life set alongside Arsenal football club, chronicling his ups and downs ‘game-by-game.’ The author finds meaning in unconditionally loving his (mostly disappointing) team, and has important things to say about sport culture, hooliganism, and middle-class life in general. Fever Pitch is like a nice chat with a mate. It’s an easy-to-read exploration of a sport fan’s mind. Why are we so invested in something we have no control over? Why do we let these games have a say in our emotions, our thoughts, and our social lives? Why do we idolise athletes who’re just getting a pay check? These are questions every fanatic with two brain cells asks themselves at some point. As an Arsenal fan, I enjoyed relating to the disappointment, the pain, the depression ‘the Gunners’ have caused over the years. It’s like they said in the movie Two Hands: when a writer describes the exact same shit you’re going through, it’s a nice feeling. Hornby says towards the end “I have begun to relish
the misery that football provides,” because it makes the good times that much sweeter. Although Hornby’s constant self-deprecating style is tiresome at points, he gives sobering reflections about hooliganism and England’s similar drinking culture to Australia. He recalls times he’s tried to act tough; a time he got jumped after a game; and a time he looked at the TV in shame during a disaster in Belgium, in which English hooligans caused the deaths of thirty-eight people. Escapism, one of the key benefits of sports, is a central theme of the book. Escapism is normally something I’m wary of. We need to focus on the real world, the things that really matter, but indulging in a little bit of fantasy is fair enough. If I had to live in England, I’d need a distraction too. Fever Pitch is required reading for any sport fanatic, and non-sport lovers – who might have a partner who can’t shut up about the cricket, or a family who shout at the telly – should find it educational.
Everyone is always having a minute’s silence on third floor Reid
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