Promised Land: Leeds United, the Team that Disappeared

by Anthony Clavane

Clavane sees the club’s 50-year journey, from Revie’s arrival in 1959 to League One obscurity in 2009, as a powerful lens through which to examine the rise and fall of an ambitious, upwardly-mobile society.

288 pages, Hardcover

First published October 27, 2009

Reviews

[Daniel Wiseman]

Passionate. Loved it!

[Chris Brough]

Excellent personal history of Leeds and Leeds United.

[Vuk Trifkovic]

Somewhat disappointed. Decided to check it out as it won a few awards as the football / sports book of the year. The concept sounds great - personal history, history of Jewry in Leeds, history of Leeds United - what's not to like, right?

Well, mainly that the writer did it by half measures. Everything is lopsided. The ideas zip and zing but don't end up going anywhere in particular. Not to mention some of the laziness in writing with really obvious metaphors liberally sprinkled (you know, 'the fog is descending from the moors' and stuff like that).

Basically at every single chapter I just wished the writer dug more and elaborated more. at 260 pages in hardback (and pretty big font too!) it's just too short. This could easily have been a 500-page magisterial work on class, ethnicity and football in the last 50 years in Britain. As it is, it's another footie book...

[Subu]

brilliantly written...no matter which club you support

[Tomas Segerman]

Very very interesting about the city of Leeds, the immigrants and Leeds United of course. Even for a Swede outside England.

[Glenys Day]

Don't normally read football books but this was exceptionally good. Enjoyed the family history included. It is quite a while since I read it and have now passed my copy on.