Running: The Autobiography, by Ronnie O'Sullivan
While Chigwell's finest snooker player has five World Championships and scores of other tournament wins to his name, his life has undeniably had its ups and downs.
By the age of 10, when he was already knocking in 100 breaks, he was travelling the amateur circuit; at 17, a year after he had turned professional, his adored dad was sentenced to 18 years for murder; later on his mother, having taken over running the family porn business, was also jailed, for tax evasion; and he subsequently fought a long, bitter and costly legal battle with his former wife for access to their two children.
So it is hardly a surprise his career has been punctuated by wild fluctuations in form, spells in rehab for drink and drug abuse, and lengthy withdrawals from the game.
And yet here he is at 38, an age when most modern players are past their best, celebrating back-to-back world titles and promising more to come. What is his secret?
Running has played a major part in his salvation, he says; not jogging, but serious training and racing – he is good enough to run 10km in under 35 minutes.
This ghost-written autobiography has been somewhat self-consciously constructed around this part of his life, each chapter subheading containing a nugget from his athletic exploits.
However, O'Sullivan's candid assessments of his snooker opponents and revelations about his out-of-control binges, visits to Sex Anonymous and searches for enlightenment are what will catch the headlines.
Having at one point embraced Islam he then rejected it, saying, with doubtless unintentional hilarity: "I tried Christianity for about three months, but that didn't do the trick either."
O'Sullivan comes across as a fragile but likeable person, and his account earns full marks for honesty – fewer for succinctness: we are told certain facts, such as when his dad saw him on the telly it was like getting a prison visit, more than needed. O'Sullivan claims he might write a novel. If he does, he deserves a stricter editor.
Published in hardback by Orion, £18.99
Comments
Share your thoughts and debate the big issues
Please be respectful when making a comment and adhere to our Community Guidelines.
You can find our Community Guidelines in full here.
Please be respectful when making a comment and adhere to our Community Guidelines.
You can find our Community Guidelines in full here.
Follow comments
Vote
Report Comment
Subscribe to Independent Premium to debate the big issues
Want to discuss real-world problems, be involved in the most engaging discussions and hear from the journalists? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Already registered? Log inReport Comment
Delete Comment
About The Independent commenting
Independent Premium Comments can be posted by members of our membership scheme, Independent Premium. It allows our most engaged readers to debate the big issues, share their own experiences, discuss real-world solutions, and more. Our journalists will try to respond by joining the threads when they can to create a true meeting of independent Premium. The most insightful comments on all subjects will be published daily in dedicated articles. You can also choose to be emailed when someone replies to your comment.
The existing Open Comments threads will continue to exist for those who do not subscribe to Independent Premium. Due to the sheer scale of this comment community, we are not able to give each post the same level of attention, but we have preserved this area in the interests of open debate. Please continue to respect all commenters and create constructive debates.