Overview
What is it really like living in the shadow of the NFL? Contending with marital issues in a media spotlight? Raising kids whose father is idolized for his bone-crushing work on national TV? Trying to pursue friendships and career while constantly on the move? Reporting from the home field, Shannon O’Toole offers an intimate perspective on the culture of the NFL based on her interviews with dozens of wives and girlfriends of NFL players and coaches.Bringing to bear a background in sociology and a firsthand understanding of being married to the NFL, O'Toole is uniquely qualified to report from behind pro football’s doors. Part insider tell-all, part sociological study, her book is packed with candid on-the-spot accounts of NFL life, providing a rare glimpse into the often hidden world behind the game.
Women—already 43 percent of the NFL’s fan base—make up the sport’s fastest growing group of fans: this book is certain to appeal to them and to anyone who wonders about the hidden realities of America’s favorite game.
Synopsis
What is it really like living in the shadow of the NFL? Contending with marital issues in a media spotlight? Raising kids whose father is idolized for his bone-crushing work on national TV? Trying to pursue friendships and career while constantly on the move? Reporting from the home field, Shannon O’Toole offers an intimate perspective on the culture of the NFL based on her interviews with dozens of wives and girlfriends of NFL players and coaches.
Bringing to bear a background in sociology and a firsthand understanding of being married to the NFL, O'Toole is uniquely qualified to report from behind pro football’s doors. Part insider tell-all, part sociological study, her book is packed with candid on-the-spot accounts of NFL life, providing a rare glimpse into the often hidden world behind the game.
Women—already 43 percent of the NFL’s fan base—make up the sport’s fastest growing group of fans: this book is certain to appeal to them and to anyone who wonders about the hidden realities of America’s favorite game.
The Washington Post - Jonathan Yardley
In other words, it's not an easy life. There's much more about it -- the incredible hours that coaches are expected to work, the pain of being cut or fired, the endless uprooting of children as players and coaches move from team to team, the "anger and resentment" that many women feel -- in this intelligent, thoughtful book. All of which makes it quite remarkable that these women are proud of their husbands, proud that they've made it to the NFL, thrilled when their teams get into the playoffs and ecstatic if they make the Super Bowl. They're fans, too.
Editorials
The Washington Post
"Wedded to the Game [is] a book that comes as a real eye-opener. . . . [This] is not a book about John Morton and Shannon O'Toole. Where their experience is illustrative O'Toole mentions it, but there's no breast-beating about unfair treatment or bad breaks or anything else. She's really more interested in what's happened to other players' wives, and some of them prove interesting indeed. . . . There's much more about it . . . in this intelligent, thoughtful book."—Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post
— Jonathan Yardley
FemmeFan.Com
"Shannon O'Toole blends her education in sociology with her real life experience as an 'insider,' a woman living the NFL life. Shannon's insight and perspective provides the average fan a brief glimpse into the emotions and struggles, yes struggles, of these women."—FemmeFan.Com
— Ivette Ricco
Andrea Kremer
"Shannon O'Toole pens a compelling and realistic portrayal of life in the NFL through the eyes, hearts, and voices of players' and coaches' wives and girlfriends. . . . Whether you're a casual fan or a gridiron devotee, you'll enjoy O'Toole's perspective on the NFL."
—Andrea Kremer, ESPN national correspondent
Charean Williams
"In Wedded to the Game, Shannon O'Toole, the wife of an ex-NFL player and coach, offers a side of the NFL that doesn't show up in newspaper summaries. It should be a hit with NFL fans."
—Charean Williams, NFL writer and columnist for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Larry Kennan
"This book is a very realistic, factual, well-documented account of the trials and tribulations of coaches' and players' wives, and will make for very interesting reading. It is not an exposé, but is a realistic look at a different side of the NFL."
—Larry Kennan, executive director of the National Football League Coaches Association
The Washington Post
"Wedded to the Game [is] a book that comes as a real eye-opener. . . . [This] is not a book about John Morton and Shannon O'Toole. Where their experience is illustrative O'Toole mentions it, but there's no breast-beating about unfair treatment or bad breaks or anything else. She's really more interested in what's happened to other players' wives, and some of them prove interesting indeed. . . . There's much more about it . . . in this intelligent, thoughtful book."—Jonathan Yardley, The Washington PostFemmeFan.Com
"Shannon O'Toole blends her education in sociology with her real life experience as an 'insider,' a woman living the NFL life. Shannon's insight and perspective provides the average fan a brief glimpse into the emotions and struggles, yes struggles, of these women."—FemmeFan.ComAndrea Kremer
"Shannon O'Toole pens a compelling and realistic portrayal of life in the NFL through the eyes, hearts, and voices of players' and coaches' wives and girlfriends. . . . Whether you're a casual fan or a gridiron devotee, you'll enjoy O'Toole's perspective on the NFL."—Andrea Kremer, ESPN national correspondentCharean Williams
"In Wedded to the Game, Shannon O'Toole, the wife of an ex-NFL player and coach, offers a side of the NFL that doesn't show up in newspaper summaries. It should be a hit with NFL fans."—Charean Williams, NFL writer and columnist for the Fort Worth Star-TelegramLarry Kennan
"This book is a very realistic, factual, well-documented account of the trials and tribulations of coaches' and players' wives, and will make for very interesting reading. It is not an exposé, but is a realistic look at a different side of the NFL."—Larry Kennan, executive director of the National Football League Coaches AssociationJonathan Yardley
In other words, it's not an easy life. There's much more about it -- the incredible hours that coaches are expected to work, the pain of being cut or fired, the endless uprooting of children as players and coaches move from team to team, the "anger and resentment" that many women feel -- in this intelligent, thoughtful book. All of which makes it quite remarkable that these women are proud of their husbands, proud that they've made it to the NFL, thrilled when their teams get into the playoffs and ecstatic if they make the Super Bowl. They're fans, too.— The Washington Post