Leap of Faith
Price as reviewed:
£20.00 hard cover
Leap of Faith: Frankie Dettori’s autobiography
Author: Frankie Dettori
Published: 2021
Available as paperback, hardcover, Audiobook or Kindle edition
View now at amazon.co.uk
About the book
This is Frankie Dettori’s second autobiography – the first, Frankie, was originally published in 2004 and charted 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. This book continues the story – the successes, as well as personal anguish, recovery and restoration – both in and out of the saddle.
Review
It must be tricky to work out how, when writing a second autobiography, to avoid a great deal of repetition. Many don’t pull it off. However, Frankie Dettori and his ghostwriter, the novelist Boris Starling, ace it in Leap of Faith, published 17 years after Frankie’s first effort. Its use of the present tense and short blocks of text give it an immediacy and intensity that reflect the world’s most famous jockey’s own personality, and the early years of his career are dealt with in a light but deft manner.
Frankie’s relationship with his father – himself a very successful jockey – runs, ribbon-like, through the book and is clearly intrinsic to everything about Frankie, on and off the racecourse stage. It feels like a very personal book – quite different to many standard sporting autobiographies; any even casual racing fan knows what Frankie has achieved, but this gives us, I think, real insight into who he is, why he is like that and why he has, at times, been his own worst enemy.
He doesn’t shy away from the scandals – failed drugs tests, the break with Godolphin, and the “resurrection” of his career at the hands of John Gosden in recent years.
About the author
Frankie Dettori is an Italian Flat racing jockey. He has been crowned Champion Jockey on three occasions and has ridden more than 500 Group winners.
Verdict
A highly enjoyable – and enlightening – read.
View now at amazon.co.uk
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