"Our Boys" Review

I had mixed emotions before I started reading this book. I do not read a lot, so I thought I would take it nice and slow while reading a 275-page book. Once I started reading, I could not put this book down. This was one of the best sports books I have ever read.

I have lived in Kansas my whole life, but I had not heard about Smith Center until a couple of years ago when they were in the middle of their streak of dominance. So I really wanted to find out about the town, not just the high school football team. Joe Drape did a great job of taking us inside the town of Smith Center, Kansas.

As I got deeper in the book, I could not help but start to fall in love with the town. It is the epitome of what I think a small town should be like; not only does everyone know each other, everyone genuinely cares for one another. I had an instant kinship with this.

I also felt an instant kinship with Coach Barta, it was easy to see that he had a genuine love for every player that has played for him over the last 30-plus years. It made me think more of a father figure than a coach, which is not an easy relationship to cultivate with a bunch of teenage boys.

Joe Drape did something that other sports books I have read did not, he moved to Smith Center and lived there during the time he was writing this book, and he made me feel like I was living right there with him in Smith Center. It was another factor that made me not want to put the book down, and wanted to know what was happening with everyone off the football field.

Drape did a great job showing us what kind of people these boys were off the field, and they had all the responsibilities of farm boys. They had to work the fields, harvest crops, help support their families, and carry the hopes of a town on their shoulders. I caught myself wanting these boys to succeed even though I have never met any of them.

The people of Smith Center wanted the team to succeed and win, but they also kept the big picture in mind. They knew that the world would not end if the winning streak was broken, that was so refreshing. They are all a bunch of Midwestern, good-hearted people.

This book was one of the best portrayals of Kansas or any small town I have ever seen. I have recommended this book to everyone I know because it will do everyone some good to see that there are still people like those of Smith Center are still around.