Weekend Warriors: Men of the National Lacrosse League

Was hoping that it would be a little more indepth about how these guys manage to balance playing/training with work but a good read all the same.

The book was very cheap and it was exactly as described--would have been a 5 star transaction, but it took over 3 weeks to arrive. The book was only like a dollar cheaper than other stores after shipping, so it would have been worth the extra dollar to have received the book in a timely manner.If time isn't an issue with your order, these guys are fine--just keep in mind that it can take a while for your book to get there.

This book is filled with stories of professional lacrosse players. The players are atypical from other professional sports players, who are often filled with self-admiration and greed. Yet, they are not exactly everyday people either. The players do have full time jobs and families, but many of them are in noble fields such as teaching, law enforcement, the armed forces, fire fighting... Of course, it takes a noble character to be devoted to such an underpaid and under-appreciated sport. The players sacrifice their bodies, time, and some family commitments for the love of their sport. The writing is clever, and the author gives good insight about the players' individuality, achievements, reminiscences, and dedication.

This is one unusual book.And not just because we received a review copy at the office two years after publication.And not just because the price on the back says $15.95, while the price at Amazon.com was $9.95.And not just because Wayne Gretzky's name is misspelled ... twice ... within a few lines, which proves the book wasn't printed in Canada.The world of indoor lacrosse has shown some growth in recent years, even though that growth admittedly has been spotty. Some cities in the National Lacrosse League are packing them in for games, while some franchises have folded in recent years.Publicity is a problem for the league, so it would be reasonable to assume that a book could be written introducing the various stars of the game. Short profiles of 20 NLL stars would come together quite easily.Maybe that book has been written at some point; I didn't see it. "Weekend Warriors" is not that book. The premise of Jack McDermott's effort is that most NLL players work "normal" jobs during the week, and rearrange their schedules in order to show up for practice and games. The author profiles 15 of those players here, and few have ever been big stars in the league.There are some interesting jobs represented here. Dan Ladouceur is a policeman, Regy Thorpe works in an insurance office, Kasey Beirnes works in a town recreation department, Del Halladay owns a winery, etc. Extra credit goes to Pat Jones, who guards a nuclear facility in Ontario and can't even say what he does there.McDermott puts the stories together in a professional manner, even if almost by definition there are similarities among all of them. At 5 inches by 7 inches and 140 pages, it's easy to get through this in less than an evening. In hindsight, it might have been tempting to be sure to hit all of the teams in order to broaden the marketing reach, but McDermott certainly may have tried to do that.I appreciate the author's efforts to publicize "Weekend Warriors," even thought the two years after publication has left some information dated. The stories certainly would be good enough to appear in a typical team yearbook or program. If you are a big fan of the NLL and want to read about some profiles of the players, this might work for that select audience.

I wasn't sure what to expect, but was pleasantly surprised. The book not only featured 15 interesting biographies of players in the NLL, but also explored why they play it, how they started with lacrosse, and what its like to balance a "real" job with a pro career. The players were interesting and likeable, and the book was well-written, and professional presented. I hope to see more books like this in the future.

I really enjoyed this book as it finally featured likeable athletes. It seems like players in the other pro-leagues have feelings of self-entitlement (along with millions of dollars) that makes them seem like jerks. This book was refreshing as the 15 players in this book seemed to be interesting, passionate about their sport, and not playing for shoe contracts. It was very well written, and I would strongly recommend it.

This was a very professionally written account of the lives of 15 very diverse people who also happen to be professional lacrosse players. The book really makes you view these athletes as interested in their sport, valued members of their community, and very different from the multi-million dollar primma donnas who play other professional sports. I definitely recommend this book.

After the Duke Lacrosse scandal, it was refreshing to see an upbeat well-written book about lacrosse. These players truly honor their sport, and make the casual observer want to learn more. The stories were interesting, and it was a good overview of the NLL, and the players who make the league work. I really enjoyed it, and hope to see more books like it.