Eli Manning: The Making of a Quarterback

Bought as a gift for a HS footballer.

Love the behind the scene look at football recruiting, what goes into a team and insight into Elis trials and triumphs.

What sticks out above everything else in this very well-researched account of Eli Manning, is Vacchianos startling ability to draw the reader in emotionally. In particular - Vacchianos gripping account of that famous final drive in the Super Bowl against the undefeated New England Patriots. Having watched - glued to the screen, waiting for Manning to implode, and yet he didnt - that gut-scrambling final 2-plus minutes, I can say it was some of the very best drama football has produced. What is remarkable is that Vacchiano, through his writing, matches the virtuoso moment. The fact that readers were already well aware of the outcome, makes this an even more astonishing feat of writing. I ripped through those last 40 pages, even though I knew what the end result was... The tendency in books like this is for the writer to gush over the subject...accolade after accolade. Vacchiano steers away from the expected. At times, its a harsh, clinical evaluation of the subject. Vacchiano, as every reporter writing a book should do (but few accomplish), taps on a wealth of resources. Former Giants Ernie Accorsi writes the forward and is quoted throughout...but there are also dozens of others involved. This is not only a must-but for Giants fans, but for fans of solid writing (ahh, that drama!) as well. A stirring achievement by one of the best football beat writers in America.

While Ralph clearly did enormous amounts of research and interviews, as a whole the book falls flat. The writing is scattered and jumps around quite a bit. It doesnt read like a book at all - instead it reads like cliche ridden three page sports articles mashed together. If you like Eli Manning and the Giants you will enjoy this book. However, if youre looking for an engaging sports story skip this book.

I enjoyed the book very much. It kept my interest for the entire time it took to finish it. A great book for the sports fan.

This is a must read book. Unlike the usual dry sports book, this book embraced the drama and passion of Elis story like a classical novel. It exposed the depth and weight of the pressure he endured so vividly and thoroughly that you can feel his burden, his pain and his frustration. It has brought to light the truth of Elis proffessional journey and the arduous and overwhelming odds thrown at him. It will make you reevaluate this amazing young man and realize he is rightfully deserving of our respect and admiration and it will also give you a deeper appreciation and understanding of the demands put on a Quarterback and his foundational role on the team. It is a book that gives the reader a story of courage, hope and perseverance that extends not only to the sports fan but to anyone that delights in stories of the triumph of the heart and spirit of a hero.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book. It gave many insights into his personality and the development of this Super Bowl MVP quarterback. There were many exciting moments like what took place in the draft room leading up to the trade of Eli to the Giants. The relationship of Eli to his family was very interesting. It explains a lot of what he is all about. Learned to admire Accorsis conviction. Roethlisberger was my choice but Vacchiano makes it clear that in the end Eli is the guy. The stage was set for the drafting of Eli with the ineptitude of Danny Cannel, Dave Brown, and Kent Graham. Then came Collins who looked for a while like the answer. Never knew exactly why Kerry Collins left until I read the book. A great read for a football fan. A must read for a Giant fan. A wonderful book. William R. Gillen

Ive read about half the book and just think its awesome. Being the little sister I certainly understand how Eli was always looking for approval and being competitive. Great reading.

Even though the reviews on here were positive, I had a feeling that this book would be disappointing. But since it was only .99 on kindle, I took the risk. And sure enough, most of this book is filler, its repetitive, the storyline jumps around (as another reviewer noted), and overall, there isnt much substance. If you already read up on the Giants and Eli in papers, mags, and online, this book will not reveal anything new. What particularly irked me was there seemed to be more passages about other people, than about Eli himself. For example, there are several long passages about Accorsi and HIS experience scouting Eli. Theres stuff on various other quarterbacks, usually just to make a point of comparison, but to me it was just filler. There was some interesting tidbits like the time when the staff seemed to have to talk to Eli through Hasselback to get him to make changes. But such revealing anecdotes from other players/media people/family, etc., were relatively scarce. The other thing that struck me was how many times the author repeated himself. Id think I accidentally went back a few pages, only to realize that he is saying the same thing over SEVERAL times. If you are reading this as a person mostly unfamiliar with how Eli came to be the QB and if youre a new fan of the Giants, maybe youll get something out of it. If not, skip it.

Let me start off by saying that while Im a huge Giants fan, I dont believe that a great playoff run automatically makes Eli an elite quarterback. Luckily, Ralph Vacchiano doesnt try to convince the reader that he is. His fair and honest account of Elis emotional and professional development made me a big fan of this book. He not only details Elis first camp throught his Superbowl MVP performance but provides the reader with and inside look into Payton and Elis relationship as well as Elis relationship with his NY Giants teammates. In addition, he does a fantastic job highlighting the complicated and emotionally charged series of events that brought Eli and eventually a Superbowl championship to NY. This book was hard to put down and is a must read not only for Giants fans but for football fans in general. You wont be disappointed.