Product Description

Irresistible to the punters, champion jockey Frankie Dettori is a charismatic personality with an easy charm and immaculate dress sense that make him an instant favourite on the track and a household name off it. His autobiography has been fully updated to include Frankie's record-breaking racing exploits in 2004. In his own words, Frankie Dettori charts his rise from stable lad to champion jockey, revealing the endless hours of hard work, the fun along the way, and his determination to succeed against the odds. Frankie relives his nine Classic winners in the UK and talks about his notable victories at the St Leger, The Breeder's Cup Mile, the Arc de Triomphe, the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, and, memorably, his seven winners on the same card at Ascot in 1996. He also shares the secrets of his successful partnerships with trainers like Luca Cumani and John Gosden, and owners such as Sheikh Mohammed of the Goldolphin organisation. This is also a human interest story. Frankie talks openly about using drugs to keep his weight down, his celebrity role as team captain on 'A Question of Sport', his rich and varied lifestyle outside of racing, including his family and inner circle, and of the moment when he almost lost his life following a plane crash. Controversial, informative and hugely entertaining, Frankie Dettori's life story will appeal to the millions of people who follow the sport as well as those intrigued to know more about one of the greatest talents that horse-racing has ever seen.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #144083 in Books
• Published on: 2005-05-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

AMAZON.CO.UK
High-profile sports stars choose to walk a fine line between nurturing the bloom of their celebrity, and exercising the talent that made them famous in the first place. Horseracing’s most recognisable face, Frankie Dettori – TV quiz show star, pizza endorser, restaurateur and pal of Vinnie Jones - publicly remarked recently that he realised he had crossed that line when someone seriously asked him how long ago he retired from being a jockey. In some ways then, Frankie, is a timely reminder that not only is Dettori a hugely talented horseman who is most definitely still riding, he’s arguably at his peak. At the time of writing the Italian has all-but landed his first jockeys' championship in ten years - after a frantic summer compared to his almost part-time campaigns of recent years - and is once again the best known AND the best. Thankfully while this ‘autobiography’, written with journalist Jonathan Powell, is not shy of trumpeting Dettori's unique achievements, it embraces the darker side of the affable imp persona too. Forget the married-with-kids, polished performer who appears on TV now – young Frankie, by his own admission, was a tearaway, a night-club wolf, a drugs-dabbler who was perilously close to seeing his career go permanently off the rails. Even when he had established himself as champion jockey he recalls among other failings, behaving like 'a real bastard' to challenger, and one-time pal, Jason Weaver, when he feared his crown was under threat. It's far from the only time when we see behind the cheeky chappie mask. Whether by accident or design, Dettori is refreshingly candid when it comes to revealing faults. His somewhat traditional views on women, in particular, will rankle with some. As will the underlying tone - Frankie's very much the star of the show, on the racecourse and off, and it's not an altogether likeable trait. But that's exactly what makes this book so entertaining - did you really think winners were nice guys? --Alex Hankin

Review
'An odds-on winner' The Irish Field 'He's that rare thing in horseracing -- a real superstar' BBC 'A gripping read that will prove a well-received Christmas present for anybody, whether a racing nut or not.' Horse & Hound 'A great read for anyone interested in racing.' Irish Independent 'Not since Lester Piggott stopped riding has racing been able to identify itself with a Christian name alone. Way beyond the confines of the betting office and the racetrack, people know who Frankie is.' The Sunday Times

From the Publisher
In his own words, Frankie Dettori charts his rise from stable lad to champion jockey, revealing the endless hours of hard work, the fun along the way, and his determination to succeed against the odds.His book relives his nine Classic winners in the UK and features his notable victories at the St Leger, The Breeder’s Cup Mile, the Arc de Triomphe, the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, and, memorably, his seven winners on the same card at Ascot in 1996. We also discover the secrets of his successful partnerships with trainers like Luca Cumani and John Gosden, and owners such as Sheikh Mohammed of the Goldolphin organisation.

This is also a human interest story. Frankie talks openly about using drugs to keep his weight down, his celebrity role as team captain on ‘A Question of Sport’, his rich and varied lifestyle outside of racing, and of the moment when he almost lost his life following a plane crash.

Controversial, informative and hugely entertaining, Frankie Dettori’s life story will appeal to the millions of people who follow the sport as well as those intrigued to know more about one of the greatest talents that horse-racing has ever seen.

Customer Reviews

A brilliant read!
Frankie Dettori holds nothing back in this "warts and all" autobiography. From the heady heights of his amazing 7 from 7 winners at Ascot in 1996 to his near fatal plane crash.

The book is totally endearing, with lots of surprising moments and lots of amusing moments too. There are a large quantity of photos throughout the book, not just of Frankie on horses, but other off-course antics as well.

In being so honest Frankie reveals the hardships of being a top jockey; the highs, the lows and the days that really made him question why he WAS a jockey...along with lots of stories of the wild-child situations he found himself in, early in his career. You don't have to be a fan of the man to appreciate his story and the huge amounts of information on the workings behind the scenes in horse racing.

If you buy this book you won't be disappointed!!!

Frankie: The Autobiography of Frankie Dettori
I have just received my copy of Frankie's new book - it's a large book, for a small (albeit hugely charasmatic) man, and even as a fast reader, it has taken several evenings to read from cover to cover. I have been a Frankie-fan for a long time, and as such, eagerly awaited the publishing of his autobiography although in fact I don't normally agree with people who have almost all their lives ahead of them writing autobiographies. In Frankie's case however, he has already lived a life-time compared to most of us, and this is well chronicled in his book. There are some very amusing stories in there, a very moving account of his life-changing accident in the light aircraft crash and his love for his rapidly expanding family (and his Ferrari!) comes through strongly. For anybody interested in flat racing, there are some wonderful accounts of what it's like to actually ride in a race. I like the cover with the raised front-on picture of Frankie on the front, and a rear-view of him on the back. The colour photographs of close family and landmark events in Frankie's life, throughout the book, are well chosen.

I think I would have given it a 5 but for the reservations I have regarding a, comparatively, young person writing an autobiography. I do wonder if there will need to be a Frankie Part 2 some time in the future! I am however, more than happy to have this book on my bookshelf, alongside my copy of A Year in the Life of ........

Interesting but errors make it annoying!
This book could have rated higher than three stars but for the glaring and amateurish errors in it. It starts off well and is an interesting account of Frankie's life. Also there are four colour photo sections which are interesting and add value.

However, once spotted, the mistakes start to annoy you and eventually ruin the enjoyment of the book. For instance, Marilyn Monroe spelt 'Munroe', Trusthouse Forte spelt Trust House Fort, and, most disturbing in a book written with someone who's supposed to have been a horseracing journalist for 23 years, War Admiral was the horse who duelled with Seabisuit NOT War Emblem! There are also various typing errors.

For me, the book came across as written in a hurry but is worth a read if you can gloss over the errors.