The English Sombrero: The Little White Ball by Doug Goddard and Anthony Randall

It's been a while since I've read the fist book in the series; Nothing to do but run. But it certainly was a book that stayed on my mind and I wanted to go back to. Second books are always difficult, the writing in the follow up was good and the dialogue funny, but I found myself a bit less engaged with the story. Maybe because I'm not a mad football fan and used to run myself. Maybe it was a dislike for people throwing money about. Anyhoo a 4 star plus.

I loved the first book in the English Sombrero series, where we met the brash but lovable character of Don Simmons. There he set himself the seemingly unattainable task of running the marathon. Here he buys, after a rather large windfall, a struggling non-league football club. Armed with a squad of semi-professional no hopers he sets out to win the FA cup; the highest price in English football. You have to love and admire Don as he sets about building a winning squad, deals with the press and the football authorities. Don is a self-made man who does things in his own way, which wins him as many friends as enemies. I still found this book hugely entertaining and some of the problem solving inspired. Where it lost me a little was that it was just a bit too beyond the realms of possibilities and that a lot of the problems were solved by just throwing huge amounts of money at it. Would I read the third book if it was released? I probably would and if the writer is in the process, I’d say to make it more about personal struggle and less about the money. Well written and great fun, especially if you like English football.

The English Sombrero: Nothing to do but run by Doug Goddard and Anthony Randall

Unfortunately my running days are behind me. My Achilles tendons start to protest after a mere 5 min. Like the main character in this book I struggled with my weight (But nothing like the main character Don Simmonds!) What started out as a chore to lose weight became an enjoyable pass time and I found some determination and will power I didn't know I had. It led to a number of 10k, Half-Marathons and even a full marathon. I found this book hugely entertaining and it brought back a few fond and not so fond memories. Well writen in an easy conversational style; I give it 5 stars.

The English Sombrero:Nothing to do but run on Amazon.com

Don Simmonds is a man you’d love to hate. A brash, arrogant used car sales man who overindulges at every opportunity. At 26 stone he can barely walk from the carpark to the pub. One Sunday after getting held up in traffic by a half marathon and therefore missing out on a car deal, Don vents his anger in the pub. Surrounded by his regular drinking buddies he thinks nothing of insulting the runners; calling them a “bunch of wankers.”

An old gentleman confronts him and demands an apology on behalf of his marathon running grandson. Bolstered by alcohol and the knowledge that few people have his kind of money; he makes the gentleman a bet of quarter of a million pounds that he will run the half marathon in a year’s time in under an hour and a half. He is more than a little surprised when he gets taken up on his bet.

This is a great story that has the feel of an old style Ealing comedy about it. Mind you the actor who would play Don would have an impossible task as he has to go from 26 stone to a sensible running weight. An inspirational tale of one mans will and determination.

I liked the book from the first chapter and enjoyed going on the journey with Don. I loved experiencing new things with him and meeting some great Spanish characters along the way. The book is written with a lot of love for Catalonia and its people. We see the character of Don grow throughout the book and he becomes a genuinely nice bloke you end up cheering for. Having run a few half marathons myself I thought the book was spot on, but going from 26stone to running anything is quite a challenge! I could have done without the subplot of the Russian gangsters, but it did show yet another facet to Dons character.

Enjoyable and inspirational read, I recommend it.