Losers

Praise

“Packed with insight; each essay brings a new and different perspective to the idea of losing. . . . Losers is a sports book, but it is also more than that. These essays offer a way to engage with the human condition; there’s a real empathy inspired by these pieces, whether we’re talking about Olympic gymnasts or heavyweight boxers or aging bullfighters. . . . This time, history is written by the losers.”—The Main Edge
 
“If sports do in fact show us the best of the human spirit, that revelation lies not in championships and victory but in the cold morning of defeat. This book chronicles how human beings respond to failure, how they rise and try again, because that’s what living is. It is essential reading — and the self-examination it prompts is essential, too.”—Wright Thompson, author of The Cost of These Dreams
 
“Without the threat of loss, there is no meaning in sport. This new and thrillingly varied collection is as essential as the turf beneath your cleats.”—Ben McGrath, staff writer for The New Yorker

“Pilon and Thomas explore the significance losing and defeat has on the lives of athletes and fans in this thoughtful anthology. . . . A stirring tribute to losing, one of life’s greatest teachers.” —Publishers Weekly

“A few of the bylines [in Losers] are well known, especially Gay Talese and Arthur Conan Doyle. Refreshingly, though, most of the contributors are less well known to general readers, and their subjects range from obscure to famous. . . . As a collection, the book holds together well even for non–sports fans. . . . In the introduction, the editors write, ‘this book is for the losers—which is to say, for all of us.’ They deliver.” —Kirkus