Bought this from the secondhand bookstore in Garland TX and read while on recruiting duty. Really enjoyed learning more about Larry Bird and his childhood in French Lick, IN and how driven he was to conquer basketball. It was especially cool to read this and remember the time we went to French Lick together as a family when I was a kid. Recommend to others who are big NBA fans and want to learn more about Larry Legend.

Interesting read, particularly things about his dad and family life. ( )

Larry Bird didn’t have anything handed to him. He had to work to get to the top. In Drive, Bird gives a detailed account of the dedication and heart it took for him to be the best. He was influenced by players, coaches, and many others through his journey to the top of the NBA. Whether he was up at 6:00 a.m. shooting free throws with coach Jim Jones as an adolescent, or celebrating a big win with Celtics teammate Dennis Johnson, basketball had played a large part in Bird’s life ever since that one day when he had demolished a team of older guys in a game of pick-up streetball. Drive explains the enormous effort it took for Larry Bird to become one of the best players ever to play the game of basketball.

Drive is not just a recap of Larry Bird’s electrifying basketball career. It also gives an enlightening insight into the mental aspects of the will and push it takes to be the best you can be. Bird breaks down the anatomy of the game and analyzes each individual stat, rule, and stadium, as well as identifying and deciphering the strengths and weaknesses of each player and coach. The novel is incredibly detailed and lets the reader enjoy the entire experience of what its like in a day in the life of Larry Bird. While Bird, being an amateur author, has a somewhat generic writing style, he redeems himself by delivering thought-provoking ideas and his opinions on the game that he has experienced first-hand for multiple years.

This book is an entire world of basketball fit between two covers. You are really there with Larry through every step of the way. Bird's story is similar to the Boston Globe’s Driven: The Patriot’s Ride to a Third Title, a book the celebrates the New England Patriots’ 2004 championship season, in the way that it shows the will and dedication that it takes to be the best, and in its general sports subjects and writing style. The details are descriptive and plentiful. They help to fully satisfy the reader’s hunger for information. I would award this rich autobiography 4 out of 5 stars. Bird has finally revealed some of the mysteries of his career, and he has done it in spectacular fashion.

"Drive" by Larry Bird is a good book in that Larry recants many highlights of his past and examines his present and future. The book has a lot of grammatical errors, but other than that, it is a good book if you follow Larry Bird or the Boston Celtics. As a Larry Bird fan, I enjoyed the insights to the many highlights of his career. Whether it was his struggles as a child to find his own identity or the grueling 1984 NBA Finals between the Los Angeles Laker and Boston Celtics, Larry provides insight through his own eyes. It is what he saw, what he felt. If there is one thing Larry will not get accused of in this book, it's his honesty. His reaction to Len Bias' death from a cocaine overdose is brutal, yet honest.

Overall, this book is inspirational in that Larry was a long shot to ever be an NBA player, let alone a Hall-of-Famer. He struggled with his own identity. Growing up poor in Indiana, he felt awkward, only finding comfort on the basketball court. From his struggles to fit in at Indiana University to his rivalry with Magic Johnson, this book is sure to take you back to all the wonderful memories of one of the greatest basketball players to ever live.