Of every wrestling book that has been released, I've looked forward to none as much as CROSS RHODES. Dustin Rhodes grew up the son of a wrestling legend, quickly became a star, and transformed into one of wrestling's greatest characters during the WWF Attitude era; I thought he would have an amazing story to tell.
I ordered the Kindle version today (release day, 12-14-2010) and read the whole thing in about three hours. It wasn't because the content was so captivating that I zipped through it--this book was very, very short. If the print version is 240 pages then it must be large-print or filled with photos.
Mick Foley's HAVE A NICE DAY: A TALE OF BLOOD AND SWEATSOCKS is the measuring stick in the pro-wrestling genre. His book was successful because it was honest, entertaining, and it made readers feel an intimate connection to the author after reading his story. What we got with CROSS RHODES was a brief overview of his career, a whole lot about his personal demons, and very little reading pleasure. There was so much omitted--Barry Windham and Ricky Steamboat were barely mentioned, Ric Flair's name appeared just once, he never mentions Terri's run in WCW as Alexandra York, etc.
I'm giving CROSS RHODES three stars because I'd recommend it to anyone battling addiction. The book is simply not what a reader thinks he's getting when he buys a wrestler's memoir.
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