Open Net: A Professional Amateur in the World of Big-Time Hockey »

One of the 20th century's most beloved literary figures, Manhattan blueblood George Plimpton was the cofounder and longtime editor of The Paris Review and the originator of "participatory journalism," a literary style that plunged the writer into Walter Mitty-like arenas and translated those experiences into literature. Among his bestselling books are Out of My League, Paper Lion, and Edie: An American Biography.

In Open Net, another of George Plimpton's inimitable accounts of a fearless amateur braving the world of professional sports, Plimpton takes to the ice as goalie for his beloved Boston Bruins.

Library Journal

In the interest of ``participatory journalism,'' Plimpton joined the Boston Bruins hockey team to learn to play goalie. His sojourn with the Bruins in training camp culminated in a five-minute stint in goal against the Philadelphia Flyers. The book follows the format of Paper Lion and Out of My League , as Plimpton tries valiantly to acquire the skills of the position and comes to his moment of truth with some degree of success. Although Open Net does not have the depth and richness of Paper Lion , it clearly illustrates the difficulty in playing the very physically demanding game of hockey. Jo DeLapo, Queens Borough P.L., New York