Pulling an all-nighter the night after having finished my last exam of the fall term may seem slightly unconventional, but stopping to put down tennis icon Andre Agassi’s autobiography Open is an even crazier thing to do. Having finally been granted the liberty of picking my own reading topics, I was excited to dive into the misunderstood world of Agassi and was grateful that I would have something to occupy my time on my long trek home for the holidays. The book was finished before I even boarded my plane; it’s just that good.
Open is an inspiring story about Agassi’s life on the court and his personal journey through torment and adversity to find himself. The book is told in a flashback of Agassi’s life that he experiences after a historic match in the 2006 U.S. Open. It’s written in the present tense from Agassi’s perspective at each time in his life.
Agassi recounts stories and matches from decades ago, accounting for every detail. His descriptions are so vivid and nearly photographic that while reading you feel as though you are there, experiencing Agassi’s life right along with him. You usually find yourself wishing that you could do something to help him.
Agassi, the only man to have ever won a “golden slam”—all four Grand Slam tournaments and an Olympic Gold Medal—admits in his book that he actually hates tennis. A shocking confession, considering his career choice, but we learn through his stories that he didn’t have much of a choice at all. He lives a life full of contradiction as he hates the game but drives himself to succeed for money.
As a young boy, Agassi is forced by his violent and aggressive father to play tennis as he sees it as being the shortest route to the American Dream. His father compromises all aspects of Andre’s young life in order to push him into tennis—even forcing him to skip school and ingest speed at a young age to enhance his play. At the age of 13, Agassi is stripped away from his best friend Perry and is sent to Florida to attend a tennis academy that he describes as nothing short of a prison camp. In Florida, Agassi struggles with school and begins to rebel by changing his image, drinking, and smoking pot. Being such a talented tennis player, Agassi is able to wheedle the head of the school, Nick Bollettieri, to let him drop out of his academic classes in grade nine. At this point, there is no option other than tennis. There is no turning back.
Agassi’s story continues into adulthood where his journey to find himself and create a personal identity begins. He depicts the continuous inner turmoil that he faces with his hairstyle, admitting that his signature “flow” was actually a head-piece, as well as his battle to play on with his treacherous back pain due to being born with spondylolisthesis. He describes all of the important and influential people in his life, including coaches, family, competitors, ex-wife Brooke Shields, and even Barbra Streisand and how they all either helped or added to his constant struggle and downfall. His trainer, Gil, is given the role of a father figure and is depicted as the hero in Agassi’s life.
After falling into depression, Agassi struggles on tour and is caught by the Association of Tennis Professionals for his use of crystal meth. After fabricating a story about his drug use, Agassi is given a second chance and makes a tremendous comeback, not only on the court but in his personal life as well. He is finally able to find peace through his wife Steffi Graf, his children, and his foundation school in Nevada, which raises money for underprivileged kids and gives them the education that he was so unjustly robbed of as a youth.
Open appeals to tennis fans and players alike, as Agassi vividly recounts numerous matches and offers up portraits of other star players that he encountered during his long career. Any competitive tennis player will be able to understand the solidarity and loneliness that Agassi depicts on the court, but all readers, tennis buffs or not, will be able to relate to the personal struggles that Agassi faces while trying to establish his identity and purpose in life.
The writing by ghostwriter J. R. Moehringer, is impeccable, and a huge factor in the books success. Every sentence is descriptive, to the point, creative, and often times funny. I often caught myself smiling while reading along because of the truly outstanding craftsmanship of sentences and how the stories are perfectly sewn together.
Tennis fan or not, this book is a must read—a masterpiece even, and I suggest picking it up before the semester gets heavy. Reading Week is much too far away to wait for this one.
