Kevin McDonald recommends

Friday, December 16, 2011 |

whatreadingbig.jpg


CBC Books is always on the look-out for book recommendations from some of our CBC personalities who love a good story. Recently, we caught up with Kevin McDonald and asked him for his pick.

Comedian, writer and director Kevin McDonald — best known as one of the founding members of the hilarious Canadian sketch comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall — is an avid reader with eclectic tastes.

kevin_mcdonald.jpg

McDonald is in the middle of three books right now, including the fantasy classic The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. But he had another pick for us:


"I'm really enjoying When the Game Was Ours by Larry Bird, Earvin Johnson and Jackie MacMullan. It's about the competitive rivalry between two all-time greats of basketball: Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. It actually is such a compelling story that it seems made up and a work of fiction. It reads like a movie — How Magic and Bird played in the college championship on opposing teams then played in the finals in the pros several times. They start off as bitter enemies and through their respect for each other's talent become the best of friends — knowing that their rivalry was something special in the history of sports. I think it's important for sports fans to see the truth of what lies beyond the actual games that we see on TV. It is also yet another reminder that as an asthmatic over 40, I will probably not become a professional athlete."


Check out McDonald's other recommendations at Manitoba Scene.






When the Game Was Ours.jpgWhen the Game Was Ours
by Larry Bird, Earvin "Magic" Johnson and Jackie MacMullan

Buy this book at:

Save on Music, Books and Dvds at Indigo

From the publisher:


"A riveting portrait of two legendary players whose fierce rivalry came to define one of the most exciting periods of professional basketball.

In Celtic green was Larry Bird, the hick from French Lick with laser-beam focus, relentless determination, and a deadly jump shot — a player who demanded excellence from everyone around him and whose caustic wit left opponents quaking in their high-tops. Magic Johnson was Mr. Showtime: young, indomitable, a magnetic personality with all the right moves, he was a pied piper in purple and gold and he burned with an inextinguishable desire to win..."


Read more at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.