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Friday Night Lights (25th Anniversary Edition)
A Town, a Team, and a Dream
Description
Named Sports Illustrated’s best football book of all time and a #1 NYT bestseller, this is the classic story of a high school football team whose win-loss record has a profound influence on the town around them.
Return once again to the timeless account of the Permian Panthers of Odessa — the winningest high-school football team in Texas history. Socially and racially divided, Odessa isn’t known to be a place big on dreams, but every Friday night from September to December, when the Panthers play football, dreams can come true.
With frankness and compassion, Pulitzer Prize winner H. G. Bissinger unforgettably captures a season in the life of Odessa and shows how single-minded devotion to the team shapes the community and inspires — and sometimes shatters — the teenagers who wear the Panthers’ uniforms.
The inspiration for the hit television program and film of the same name, this anniversary edition features a new afterword by the author.
Return once again to the timeless account of the Permian Panthers of Odessa — the winningest high-school football team in Texas history. Socially and racially divided, Odessa isn’t known to be a place big on dreams, but every Friday night from September to December, when the Panthers play football, dreams can come true.
With frankness and compassion, Pulitzer Prize winner H. G. Bissinger unforgettably captures a season in the life of Odessa and shows how single-minded devotion to the team shapes the community and inspires — and sometimes shatters — the teenagers who wear the Panthers’ uniforms.
The inspiration for the hit television program and film of the same name, this anniversary edition features a new afterword by the author.
Praise
“A classic of American sports writing.”
—New York Times
"[An] inspiring story about a small town and it's unbelievable football team. Starring unforgettable characters in a setting you'll never want to leave, this is a must-read for true fans."
—Bustle.com
"Groundbreaking."
—Austin American-Statesman
"About more than football. Buzz Bissinger's story about the 1988 Permian High School Panthers football team from Odessa, Texas, is a critical look at the impact of high school football on a football-crazed community. It's not but about 365 pages long...but sometimes, even in the fall and winter, you need a brisk read that's not too heavy."
—Arkansas Democrat Gazette
“The movie and TV show are good, but the book that inspired them is even better…[A] compelling look at how the high school dynasty shapes the pigskin-crazed small-town community of Odessa, Texas.”
—Men's Fitness
"Bissinger makes you feel the tensions of the kids, who are not just playing a game, but literally fighting for the honor of their town. He also accomplishes the more difficult feat of making the team's rabid fans sympathetic. His language...[echoes] the mythical proportions of the game and a season that will render the rest of the players' lives a dull denouement. Fascinating even for those, or maybe especially for those, with no interest in football."
—Library Journal
