One Giant Leap - Hardcover

After his sterling performance in 1991's football classic, New York Giants quarterback Hostetler doesn't have to win another Super Bowl right away--and he doesn't need to write another book for a while either, because this autobiography packs more punch than one might expect. Hostetler's tale is one of a very long uphill fight, of frequent bad luck, and of a certain kind of plain faith that is so manifestly positive and workable that cynicism dies on the vine. It's not about football, really; it's about a family not giving up. Chicken-farming in Appalachia afforded Hostetler a uniquely funky start in life, and with it came a rural hell of misfortune for his family--loss of crucial land to an intrusive highway and of a barn to fire, along with his father's sudden, inexplicable loss of strength in midlife and his mother's serious illnesses. The bad luck continued for Hostetler: after he left Penn State as ``a passed-over quarterback,'' he spent seven long years on the Giants' bench, sent into oblivion by the grindingly effective traditional football-style of coach Bill Parcells and the sparkling talents of consummate quarterback Phil Simms. Meanwhile, Hostetler fathered a son with a near-fatal cardiopulmonary birth defect. And even after the 1991 Super Bowl, a few knocks came: not until the next day did Parcells allow that it had been a ``nice game,'' and when Hostetler's mother died shortly thereafter, Parcells said nothing. Hostetler's life echoes a vintage America where you go to church, don't drink, work real hard, and mind your parents--and, at least in his inspiring case, eventually attain the golden ring. (Eight pages of b&w photographs--not seen.) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Many have commented that it is a little presumptuous for Hostetler to be writing an autobiography at this point in his career. He was the winning quarterback in Super Bowl XV--a position he gained after the Giants' then-regular quarterback Phil Simms was injured. When the book was written Hostetler did not know if he would be the starting quarterback in the 1991 season (he is). The book recounts what seems to be every game Hostetler played since high school. Complaining constantly about unfair treatment by former coaches (most notably Penn State coach Joe Paterno and ex-Giant coach Bill Parcells), Hostetler laments the six years he served as backup quarterback for the Giants. He praises himself through quotes, offering inflated praise from family, friends, and various other sycophants. It is not accurate to call this book an autobiography, since it more closely resembles the long-winded resume of a man who seems to consider himself an avatar. If the Giants scrape together a winning season with Hostetler at the helm there may be some regional demand for this book; others can skip it.
- John V. Turner, New York
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.