{"product_id":"american-kings-a-biography-of-the-quarterback-hardcover","title":"American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback - Hardcover","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eSeth Wickersham\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"A MUST BUY\" -- \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e \/ \u003ci\u003eThe Athletic\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e New York Book Festival - General Nonfiction Winner \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"An instant classic--not just a great sports book but a great cultural history.\"\u003cbr\u003e--Jonathan Eig, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of \u003ci\u003eKing: A Life\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003ePull back the curtain on the most powerful position in all of sports. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eIt's Better to be Feared\u003c\/i\u003e examines football's QB lifecycle: high school, college, the NFL, retirement--and all that comes with it. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe quarterback: the American equivalent of royalty, long glamorized, mythologized, and worshipped. Still, long before the Super Bowl trophies, massive contracts, brand deals, and millions of social media followers comes the dream. From the backyard to Pop Warner, from high school to college, from the NFL to the Hall of Fame, becoming the country's ultimate idol requires single-minded focus while navigating a maze of bad breaks, insecurities, jealousy, pressure, and fame. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eLong known as the outsider's guide into this elite world, Seth Wickersham's fresh reporting goes deep into the quarterback journey, measuring the distance between what the men who have traveled it expected and what they found at the end of the road. Through unprecedented access into the lives of dozens of quarterbacks and generational greats such as Johnny Unitas, John Elway, Peyton Manning, Warren Moon, Steve Young, and others, as well as those figures striving to be remembered, like Caleb Williams and Arch Manning, Wickersham reveals how this one position has become emblematic of success in American life. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAs an inside look into a uniquely American job and a uniquely American obsession with football, \u003ci\u003eAmerican Kings \u003c\/i\u003eis a must-read for sports fans and anyone who wants to understand what the price of ambition tells us about the quest for achievement and status.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eSeth Wickersham\u003c\/b\u003e is a senior writer at ESPN and the \u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eIt's Better to Be Feared: The New England Patriots Dynasty and the Pursuit of Greatness\u003c\/i\u003e. Focusing primarily on longform enterprise and investigative work on the National Football League, Wickersham has been a finalist for the National Magazine Award for Reporting, and his stories have been anthologized in the \u003ci\u003eBest American Magazine Writing, \u003c\/i\u003e the \u003ci\u003eBest American Sports Writing\u003c\/i\u003e, and\u003ci\u003e Next Wave: America's New Generation of Great Literary Journalists, \u003c\/i\u003eamong others. Released in 2021, \u003ci\u003eIt's Better to Be Feared\u003c\/i\u003e was named Nonfiction Book of the Year by \u003ci\u003eSports Illustrated\u003c\/i\u003e and Best Sports Book by the National Sports Media Association. He lives in Connecticut with his family.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 416\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.37 x 9.24 x 6.35 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e September 09, 2025\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51979048190253,"sku":"9781368099189","price":28.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0938\/3185\/6429\/files\/vfv4_qPdpD9781368099189.webp?v=1775818669","url":"https:\/\/ishookbooks.com\/products\/american-kings-a-biography-of-the-quarterback-hardcover","provider":"iShook Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}