The Blind Side

The young man at the centre of this 'compelling book' ("The Economist") will one day be among the most highly paid athletes in the National Football League. When Michael Lewis introduces him to the reader, he is one of thirteen children by a crack-addicted mother; he does not know his real name, his father, his birthday or any of the things a child might learn in school - such as how to read or write. Nor has he ever touched a football.

He takes up American football and school, after a rich, Evangelical, Republican family plucks him from the mean streets. Their love is the first great force that alters the world's perception of the boy, whom they adopt. The second force is the evolution of professional American football into a game where the quarterback must be protected at any cost.

Lewis' protagonist turns out to be the priceless combination of size, speed and agility necessary to guard the quarterback's greatest vulnerability: his blind side. Directed by John Lee Hancock, the film, The Blind Side, is set for release in November. Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw, Kathy Bates and Quinton Aaron lead the cast of this true-life sports drama.