Anyone who has seen the movie first will notice the stark contrast between it and the book. I really enjoyed the movie, but I was struck by just how much more attractive the characters and story had been made for the movie. The book story is actually much darker and despite the emphasis on silver linings tells a real story, where things don't always work out the way you want them to. Am trying to decide if it would have been better to read this first or not, perhaps I wouldn't have liked the movie so much. 
 The story is well told with interesting real and very flawed characters. Pat in particular, has a certain naivity about him that made me smile but also feel sad for him. Pat's fragile relationship with his father and the intertwining way in which footballs affects their happiness is all so interesting. 
 A very thought provoking and interesting book.