The autobiography of the legendary coach of the Georgetown Hoyas, whose achievements on and off the basketball court reflect America's unresolved struggle with racial justice.
Every chapter will bring back a lot of great basketball memories from Thompson’s coaching days along with his playing career, his family ties, the people who inspired him and others. Washington pens a brilliant note as the co-author. Thompson follows with a strong introduction ... Thompson is very candid in the book. In addition, the book tells you stories that you didn’t know. With basketball season starting, it’s a great book to read.
In I Came as a Shadow, Thompson — who was long wary of revealing too much about himself and yet was continually frustrated about being misunderstood — finally gets to cast his legend on his own terms, in all of its contradictions ... Thompson (or, perhaps, his co-author, Jesse Washington) is a lively and entertaining writer ... The greatest value of I Came as a Shadow though, is that it offers us one last, long opportunity to hear Thompson’s singular voice.
John Thompson, who dominated the Georgetown University basketball scene for 27 years, held little back on the court and off. So it’s not surprising that his autobiography, I Came as a Shadow, is brutally honest and unsparing both to many in Thompson’s life and to Georgetown ... I find Thompson a fascinating figure ... This superb book, done with Jesse Washington, a writer for ESPN’s the Undefeated, has been eagerly awaited for years.
