Yes! My Improbable Journey To The Main Event of Wrestlemania
Daniel Bryan and Craig Tello
St. Martin's Press, 2015
Hardcover, Paperback, Ebook, Audiobook
Daniel Bryan's Yes My Improbable Journey To The Main Event of Wrestlemania is an auto-biographical chronicle of the the career of WWE Superstar Daniel Bryan. The book, released in July of 2015, tells the story of Daniel Bryan (Byran Danielson) from his birth up to the point of his main eventing Wrestlemania XXX. Despite having a stellar independent career wherein he had developed a strong following due to his in ring skills and unrivalled ability to connect with audiences, Bryan struggled to be taken seriously as a top star in the WWE. The issue for Bryan was not if fans or even many of his co-workers would accept him as a top star, but rather whether or not the higher ups in the WWE would allow him to have the chance. The book is co-written by Craig Tello (Diary of a Heartbreak Kid, WWE: 100 Greatest Matches,)
This book is very well written. Bryan's humorous, humble and self-deprecating manner is not lost in the writing style, however he displays no (false) modesty regarding his own ability in the ring and as it relates to some of the business aspect of professional wrestling. His passion for the wrestling business is very apparent as is his love and loyalty to his family and friends. Bryan discusses his early years (i.e. wrestling in front of 15 people or in a parking lot) with the same degree of detail and pride as he does when writing about his experiences since joining the WWE and is, more often than not, very complimentary of the people and organizations with whom he was worked. He is also somewhat critical (though it is subtle at times) of the way the WWE has used him and/or the manner in which the company operates. Though there are no instances of character assassination, he tells a few stories that show some of WWE's key players in a negative light. All of this is not common in a WWE published book, however, they help in the enjoyment and overall credibility of the book.
The book features chapter intros that detail Bryan's actions on the weekend of Wrestlemania XXX. These are written in third person (likely by co-author Tello) and do not mesh well with Bryan's writing style. Whereas Bryan presents himself as a humble and down-to-earth athlete, the intros are written in a flourished and pretentious style that attempts to show Bryan as "a huge star who is just like us." The tone of the intros are reminiscent of the narration from Life Styles of the Rich and Famous or a Barbara Walters Special. While the content of the intros is nice, a less grandiose writing style would have been more suitable and far less jarring.
There are a number of stylistic inconsistencies in the book. While some chapters detail a wide time range and/or detail a number of significant events, others focus on short spans of time and detail very little. Also, some of the chapter intros are thematically linked to the chapter that follows and others are not. While probably not a huge deal to most readers, these unbalances do affect the overall flow of the book. There was an indication that a relatively long period of time (at least 8 months) had passed between the writing of the book and its publication. While the publishing process does not happen over night, a minor revision or cut would have made this less apparent.
Overall, Yes! My Improbable Journey To The Main Event of Wrestlemania is a strong entry to the world of wrestling books. It is an honest and informative look at the contemporary world of pro wrestling.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
No comments:
Post a Comment