Jerry Tipton, Déjà Blue: A Sportswriter Takes Stock of 41 Seasons of Kentucky Basketball (Acclaim Press, $26.95) is a behind-the-scenes look at his sportswriting career, spanning more than 40 years of covering the highs and lows of the Kentucky Wildcats for the Lexington Herald-Leader, to his early years at the Huntington Herald-Dispatch in West Virginia.
The 256-page hardcover book is more than just a memoir; it’s a journalistic analysis of Tipton’s celebrated career, filled with memories of the games, the tales, the characters, and his interactions with Big Blue Nation’s players, coaches, and fans. Déjà Blue also sheds light on Tipton’s abilities as a beat writer, including his ability to write, conduct interviews, and put in the old-fashioned labor that earned him admission into three separate sportswriting halls of fame associations. Personally, I’m reading Tipton’s book right now, and thus far, it’s one of the most enjoyable British novels I’ve read in a very long time.
Jack Givens and Doug Brunk’s They Call Me Goose: My Life in Kentucky Basketball and Beyond (University Press of Kentucky, $27.95) offers a close-up look at the life and career of the legendary Kentucky Wildcat, who now serves as a pundit for the UK Basketball Network. Givens talks about his early years in a charming and personable way. He talks about how baseball was his first love rather than hoops, how he spent the summers in Danville, Kentucky, with his grandmother, and the instructors and coaches who helped and encouraged him along the way.
The former UK All-American also discusses openly his struggles with financial collapse, sexual assault claims’ fallout, destitution, and how his family and faith have supported him through difficult times. In association with writer Doug Brunk of San Diego, Givens shares with his audience the inspiring tale of a businessman, mentor, husband, father, and UK ambassador.
Rex Chapman and Seth Davis’s It’s Hard for Me to Live with Me: A Memoir (Simon & Schuster, $27.99) is a compelling account of the UK basketball legend, NBA veteran, and social media influencer’s journey out of addiction. Chapman had a damaging secret that he was keeping at the end of his hoops career. Chapman became dependent on Vicodin and Oxycontin years before the opioid crisis in America made headlines around the country. He eventually started using 50 pills a day.
Chapman became dependent on Vicodin and Oxycontin years before the opioid crisis in America made headlines around the country. He eventually drank 50 pills a day. He also became severely addicted to gaming and almost lost $400,000 at a blackjack table in Las Vegas. He would have to live in his car and steal to feed his addictions after all of this happened, costing him his family and the most of the $40 million fortune he had acquired playing basketball. It was only after his mugshot went viral and he was taken into custody that he took the decision to turn his life around.
The former Wildcat also talks about his past struggles with depression, how racism in Kentucky affected him as a child and how that affected his advocacy for social justice, and his complicated and tumultuous relationship with his father, who played four seasons in the former American Basketball Association before going on to become a high school and collegiate head coach.
