Scooter

Mick Foley's Autobiographies are awesome, but he kinda gets M.NightShammalans Disease when it comes to fiction. He'll throw in a twist when you kinda don't want one.

Oh, Mick Foley. I like you, I really do. And I really like you as an author, maybe even more so than I liked you as a professional wrestler who used to do ridiculously over-the-top stunts (Hell in the Cell, anyone?) just to shock your audience. When I read your first novel, Tietam Brown, I praised it everywhere I could and commended you on your impressive ability to put a little sweet cherry on the heartbreaking beats that populated your coming-of-age story set in the 80s. I was so impressed that you could take these outlandishly tragic elements and tether them to such real emotions to make what should seem like attempts at pure shock seem so much more poignant and sincere. And then you wrote "Scooter," and for the first 50 or so pages you had me. But then you had to go back to your old bag of tricks, which now appear much more stale than they did the first time you used them, mainly because they lost all that genuine emotion that grounded them in the first place, leaving "Scooter" as just a hollow list of stunts in order to shock the reader and nothing more.Although, maybe that first paragraph is being a bit harsh on Mick Foley's second foray into adult fiction. As I mentioned, "Scooter" starts off nicely. The story focuses on the growing years of a boy named Scooter (after the nickname of the legendary Yankee Phil Razzuto) as he matures through the l970s while living in the deteriorating Bronx. The son and grandson of two men wholly in love with baseball, Scooter grows up relating everything to the sport, including the tragedies that come his way. And boy, are there tragedies. Lots of `em, in fact. So much so to the point that the reader is wondering if Foley was actually trying to write a novel or just out do himself in coming up with a list of the crappiest things that can happen in a person's life. And there in lies the main tragedy of this book--it starts off wonderfully flawed enough as is. The characters come off so real and ruined from the beginning that they are already quite interesting. Scooter's father is a hard-working cop with a drinking problem trying to be the best man he can while providing for his selfish, shopaholic wife and their two kids. Scooter's grandfather is a deformed old man trying to repent for his sins from decades past. And Scooter himself provides some real genuine drama as a boy trying to understand the world around him as the only neighborhood he has even known sinks into poverty and crime. Despite all these problems, Scooter and his family preserver and it makes for a damn entertaining and emotional read. But then, as if he ran out of motivation for the story, Foley starts putting this family through the ringer in the most over-the-top ways possible. It's not that the events (which I wont spoil) that happen aren't realistic, but they are not "organic." They're outlandish in regards to the story and the direction it's going. Some of the trials and tragedy endured by this family--and Scooter, in particular--made me shake my head and spit a defiant "Seriously?" in the pages. It was almost as if Foley was sitting there saying, "You think that's bad? That's nuttin'! Wait until THIS happens, hahah! Pretty messed up, huh? But not as messed up as THIS!"To make matters worse, when it appears that Foley can't carry the story on shock value alone anymore, he begins to write Scooter into one of the most annoying and insufferable characters imaginable--something that feels very accidental, seeing as Foley is clearly (and quite desperately) trying to get you to root for his protagonist. Unfortunately, towards the last third of the book Scooter's internal monologue turns into a text-book display of underdog syndrome--that unbearable "you think you're better than me?!" kind of attitude that really makes it hard to lend any sympathy since the character is too busy trying to prove how much better he is than you via a "Pity Me" contest.This isn't to say the book is without any saving merits. There are a lot of scenes between Scooter and his grandfather or Scooter and his family where we get a feel for the great novel that could have been. And to be fair, as I mentioned earlier, the characters as they were introduced were so flawed and interesting that it would have been more fun to see them develop normally instead of simply "cope" with ridiculously over-the-top tragedy. Also, the dialog is strong and fresh, particularly in the beginning. Plus, as a baseball fan, a warm, glowing smile splashed across my face when I saw Scooter and his paternal figures getting the same child-like thrill out of the Great American Pastime as I did growing up.Overall, though it wasn't unbearable, I can't recommend this book. Not only does it try too hard (and fail) to have its desired dramatic impact, but it also makes Foley's last book look worse. "Scooter," despite its good parts, devalues Foley as a writer and makes him look more like the shock artist his wrestling fans are more familiar with.Michael P. FerrariAuthor of Training the Problem: Stories and a Novella

Real quick- A great book. I enjoyed both of Foleys novels and hope he has plans to publish a third soon. Can we expect one Mick? Dennis78382@yahoo.com

This book is a warm, relatively light read, but heavily references baseball throughout. If you aren't into baseball, which some find the most boring sport on earth, this tends to get in the way of the rest of the story.

Having read (and loved) Foley's 'Tietam Brown', I had no idea what to expect, but I couldn't wait to read this book. Foley accomplished a lot with 'Scooter', maybe even too much.Like 'Tietam Brown', 'Scooter' is the story of a boy and his family. However, this isn't a 'Happy Days' family. This family has a load of problems and unfortunately, poor Scooter bears the brunt of the load. Wherever Scooter turns in his family, he finds problems and pain.Still Scooter grows up and we follow him through more pain. He does have his share of successes along the way, but the torment seems to be there all of the time.It is a gripping story, but somehow I was a bit disappointed. Maybe I expected too much or maybe Foley attempted too much. After a while, some of the events in Scooter's life seem to make this tale too unrealistic, even as fiction. Scooter is the type of character which can easily be revisited in another book, which is maybe where some of the parts of 'Scooter' should have been placed.If you can suspend your belief just a bit, you will totally enjoy this book.

I got this book mainly because Mick Foley wrote it and I have a great deal of respect for him due to his wrestling career. At the point I got the book I didn't read alot, and when I did I almost never finished the book. I picked up Scooter and everything changed!It conatins the story of a kid growing up in the South Bronx at the point right before and during its downfall. It told me alot about New York City and some interesting Yankees information. This book really makes you root for the hero and at times it makes you want to jump into that story and help Scooter out!It is very real as well. It deals with how life really is, at first it seems like the story shouldn't be done and after a whiel you realize that life is really like how it is in the book (you really need to know the end to understand what I mean).This is a very good read and also very addicting. I suggest you take a day of two off of work to read it so you can truly focus on it. Scooter is well worth the 20 bucks to buy it, and if you can't afford it, get it from the library!

I had a friend who really liked Mick Foley, so I read "Have a Nice Day". I thought for what it was it was well written. It was filled with a lot of referential humor that it took a little Googleing to understand but it was a sweet well written journey into the world of wrestling. After that I kept up reading his books, (but not the children's books) and of course read Tietam Brown. I thought Tietam was a good first effort at fiction, so that lead me to pick up Scooter.. Bang Bang as his wrestling fans say. This is a really well written book. It took me on a roller coaster ride. 1/2 way through I though "oh no, here's where it happens" where the book takes you a place you don't want to go. But that is part of his skill as a writer. As jaded as you might be he is able to throw you for a loop. The book has a lot of Baseball references. Mostly of the turbulent 70's Yankees and the "Burning of the Bronx". But don't let that turn you off. This highly cynical, reader, non baseball fan truly enjoyed this book.I really like Mick the more I get to know him. If I ever see him at a signing though, I might just only want to "shake his hand".