The Hardcore Diaries

great book great read i couldn't put it down, a must read for all

The Hardcore Diaries is a natural extension of the other two Foley books. He fills in some of the gaps left by the other books' autobiographical material and also brings readers up to speed with his life as of Summer 2006. The book also brings additional insights to the reader in the sense that it describes how an upper-division talent like Foley pitches storylines to Vince McMahon, as well as how the WWE creative team functions as an extension of McMahon. Readers also receive insight on Mick's philanthropic endeavors, which seems to me to be worth reading because it really establishes Foley as more than a wrestler-turned-author; rather, he is a man who knows what to do with his fame. Is this book too pro-McMahon? Perhaps. Does Foley seem to toot his own horn in many places? Yes indeed, but this books is still a great quick read and will add to your knowledge of professional wrestling.Just to clear things up--another reviewer falsely claimed that Foley makes no mention of Al Snow. He actually makes tried and true Al Snow jokes on pages 31, 67, 69, 136, and 140, just to name a few. Foley also takes comic shots at Test too, but I didn't bother to note the pages.

Everything arrived on time and as advertised

It was a good book that gave a lot of insight into the workings of the wwe. The biggest thing you learn is how stifling they are with creativity. They took what could have been a moment for the ages and watered it down for a rehashed DX bit that was really forgettable. The book made me feel like I really got cheated out of a great storyline.

Good book with good moments but reading his previous two books this one leaves something left to be desire. Some stories like the sand which story are very interesting while others don't connect.

I remember reading it when it first came out such a great book not as great as his first two books but still a great book.

Not his best work but a good read. While some parts are certainly downers, you will get many entertaining stories from the Mickster himself, and get a look into the inner workings in the WWE.

He should have stuck to the primary story of following the development of how an angle gets written, changed and carried out. When he strays from that if feels way too bloggy (as it should because that was the source for much of it, his blog). I say this as a major Foley fan (Mick, if you're reading this I'm the guy that bought 'Scooter'). It's great that he's doing the charity work, I can understand him wanting to bring attention to the charity work. But don't charge me for it and don't interrupt a great story to it.

Supposedly, at the tender age of around 20, Wayne Rooney signed a deal to provide his autobiography in three volumes. Quite how interesting the next one is going to be given that he's spent most of the following year getting injured is anyone's guess. By contrast, Mick Foley has published a third volume of his autobiography, after reaching his forties. Admittedly, he has also spent quite a long time in his career being injured, but he's managed to get a far wider range of injuries.I've followed Mick Foley's career as both wrestler and writer, seeing both the highs and the lows. He has won titles, lost titles and produced an autobiography I found impossible to put down, as well as a second part which wasn't nearly as good and felt a little forced. How would he manage the third time around; both in terms of autobiographies and in wrestling comebacks?"The Hardcore Diaries" is more a biography of a wrestling storyline than it is of the wrestler himself. After a little while out of wrestling, Foley approaches his boss with an idea, both for a wrestling storyline and for another book. Foley is sure that his idea for the wrestling will work, but wonders how people will approach yet another book, especially as it's not the first time he has done something like this?As it turns out, the basic idea for the book is actually fresher than the idea for the wrestling. The wrestling angle pitches him back into the hardcore style of wrestling - hence the title - an area where he made his name. It also pits him up against Terry Funk, an old friend and opponent of Foley's and a man whose name featured prominently in many sections of Foley's first autobiography, "Have a Nice Day".The idea for the book, however, is based around a diary - hence the rest of the title - so that some of the entries can be phrased as if they were diary entries. As Foley was already writing a fairly regular column for the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) website at the time, these diary entries could then be interspersed with reprints of these columns. After all, even when he wasn't wrestling, Mick Foley tended to be heavily involved in WWE activities outside the ring. So he could write about himself and WWE at the same time and it would, he thought, make for a decent book.I thought so as well and I was proved correct, although not in the way I thought. Over the last few years I have spent a lot of time without access to Sky Sports and so have very much lost touch with what has been going on in WWE. This meant that for the first time in a Foley autobiography, he was talking about wrestling matches and angles that I wasn't already familiar with, although many of the names seem to have remained the same since I was last watching regularly. I did find that this left me feeling further removed and less involved in that part of things than I have done before with Foley's books.The rest of the book does make up for this, however. There is more to the life of the average wrestler than just travelling around the US and occasionally to other countries and throwing yourself around a ring for the amusement of others. Foley is involved with sponsoring orphans and visiting sick children and soldiers and the whole of the WWE are very supportive of American troops and various charities both in the US and overseas. Thanks to Foley being on the spot during all these activities, we get a behind the scenes look at them and thanks to Foley's simple writing style I found myself constantly wanting to read all about the next one, even knowing that there was a chance I wouldn't be as involved as with his previous works.Despite not being as gripping, this is certainly better than the second autobiography, "Foley Is Good". There is a slight preoccupation with his new (at the time of writing the book) novel "Scooter", which gets mentioned frequently enough for it to seem like a little sneaky advertising, but as that book is already on my "to read" pile, that didn't bother me too much. This time around Foley's writing is more fluid and he doesn't descend into lists of things like he did last time out and there isn't the feeling that he's straining to fit the diary concept he's using like he seemed to be squeezing things into the "real world is faker than wrestling" theory last time around.I did enjoy the book, but more for the insight into the wrestlers as people and celebrities rather than them all as wrestlers, which came as a bit of a surprise. But Foley is always readable and isn't afraid to criticise his WWE bosses when he disagrees with them, which is refreshing as well as unusual for a company that size.If you've followed wrestling for the last few years and remember Foley's recent battles with Terry Funk, then you'll almost certainly enjoy this book as Foley puts a human face on the in ring bloodshed and describes it as if it's his passion; which to be fair, it probably is. If you've been a wrestling fan in the past and like Foley, you'll find you enjoy this in the same way as I did; slightly detached from parts of it, but still able to enjoy Foley's warmth of character and writing. If you're not a wrestling fan, I really wouldn't bother as no matter how much they talk about the work they do outside the ring and outside the arena, they're still wrestlers and I suspect that would be enough of a turn off to prevent you enjoying the book.This review may also appear, in whole or in part, under my name at any or all of www.ciao.co.uk, www.thebookbag.co.uk, www.goodreads.com, www.amazon.co.uk and www.dooyoo.co.uk

I wasn't expecting a great deal, and to be honest I have gone off Mick Foley after meeting him and him practically ignoring my existence so I consider him somewhat of a hypocrite, but alas it's an enjoyable summary of what has been going on in his life at that period. I was pleased to have read it, and it is a good read for the train or on holiday.

The next installment of the ever increasing memoirs of Mick Foley, if you like Mick Foley and are interested in his life and time withTNA give it a read you will love it.If you dont know who Mick Foley is read the first 3 autobiographies then read this one.

A fantastic read for any wrestling fan. This book is extremely well written and is as eloquent as it is entertaining.

Having read his past efforts I knew I would be in for a treat with this one from Mick. What didn't know was just how informative and insightful it would be. From rows with the boss to insights into the wonderful promos this book cannot be recommend highly enough. This is a must for all wrestling fans.