Book Notes: Open

Open by Andre Agassi

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


AUDIOBOOK VERSION: This was one LONG listen, 18 hours. I'm not a tennis nut, so I didn't relish some of the play by play which I felt like made the book unnecessarily long. (I definitely review audiobooks differently than books I read because it's harder to skip over the parts I'm not so interested in.) Overall though, I think it gave a thorough glimpse at Andre Agassi's personality and life. The book naturally starts with his childhood, and how he was sent to boarding school as an early teen. He hated every bit of it, and was able to drop out of high school to pursue tennis. Throughout the book he makes clear that he never liked tennis but felt like it was all he could do with his life. Therefore it became his life, despite himself. Sounds pretty miserable but to balance the book, there is a heavy focus on Andre's personal relationships which are touching. Although he painted a not so favorable view of Brooke Shields (his first wife), it was fun to hear about his courtship with Stephanie Graf. It's hard to tell really what kind of husband he is, but overall, he sounds like a good guy that had some pent up anger over an unfair childhood. The book's closing focused on the school he started in Las Vegas (his hometown) that sounds pretty bad-ass. The author (I won't say Agassi) is quick to point out parallels and irony in his life which is a bit cheesy at times but also shows his introvert, reflective nature. I recommend this book for anyone that thinks they know Agassi, or anyone that likes to make assumptions about people based on their public persona.



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