Non-Fiction Text Review: Paper Lion
“Paper Lion” by George Plimpton is a true story about what it is like to be a professional football player. A writer for Sports Illustrated with the intention of writing a book about his experience, Plimpton convinces the staff of the Detroit Lions to bring him aboard so he can write about his experience for people who have always wondered what the life of a professional football player would be like. Pretending to be a rookie quarterback from Harvard, Plimpton takes part in the Lions’ training camp, and gets to know a lot of the players. When his number gets called during an exhibition game between the offense and the defense, Plimpton fumbles the ball on the first play from scrimmage and loses roughly 30 yards.
George Plimpton can be described as an innovator of journalism, writing about first hand experiences in a number of coveted careers, more specifically in professional sports. In addition to his short stint with the Detroit Lions in 1963, Plimpton tried his luck in professional baseball, pitching against 16 American and National league players including Willie Mays; as goaltender for the Boston Bruins; in boxing, being bloodied by renowned boxer Archie Moore; and golfing, losing badly with an 18 point handicap against Jack Nicklaus. Plimpton was one of the great writers of his time. He believed that it was better for a journalist to not just observe, but immerse themselves in what they were writing about to get a true understanding.
As a writer for Sports Illustrated, Plimpton took on the challenge to participate in training camp with the Detroit Lions so he could receive a first hand experience in the life of a professional football player. Plimpton believed in not just observing as a writer, but in participating. He understood that to truly understand everything about the life of a professional football player for his story, he had to become one. That was the only way to give the reader a better understanding of the finer details of being a professional football player.
Plimpton’s approach towards writing this book was a combination of a lot of observation and a dash of participation. He would bring a notebook out to the practice field to write down everything he saw from play formations and how the players carried themselves to the toothpicks Jake Greer chewed while running his routes. Plimpton would take notes during practice until his name was called to run a play with the offense.
Plimpton is mostly subjective in his book, but in a positive way. As the story progresses, Plimpton starts to build relationships with fellow teammates and acquires a slight, emotional involvement in the story. While he doesn’t actually say it in the story, it is clear that Plimpton sees a number of his teammates as friends near the end of the book. Plimpton is objective in some ways in the story, like while explaining the fundamentals of the game, for example, but for the most part his opinionated views are seen throughout.
“Paper Lion” was one of the best books about sports I have ever read. It definitely goes up there with John Madden’s autobiography, “Hey, Wait A Minute (I Wrote A Book)” and Brett Favre’s autobiography, “Brett Favre, For The Record,” my two favorites. Plimpton’s devotion to his craft is admirable. He doesn’t just observe, he participates. That’s not easy to do professionally or as an amateur. He sometimes puts his body on the line to get a full understanding of whatever his next story is about, including as goaltender for the Bruins when he caught a puck with his gloved hand and slicing it his flesh, and in a boxing match with Light Heavyweight Champion of the World, Archie Moore.