HighBridge Audio

Skip to Main Content »

Category Navigation:

Search Site
 

Work Hard

Audiobook
Nonfiction: Memoir / Sports
Unabridged   8.25 hour(s)
Publication date: 11/03/2009

Hard Work

A Life On and Off the Court

Available from major retailers or BUY FROM AMAZON
Audio CD ISBN:9781615730209
Digital Download ISBN:9781615730216

Summary

How determination took Coach Williams from an impoverished home in the mountains of North Carolina to the very pinnacle of coaching success, culminating in the 2009 NCAA National Championship (his second in five years). An inspirational story for anyone willing to commit themselves to their dreams.

Be the first to review this product
Email to a Friend


Product Description

Roy Williams, head coach of the University of North Carolina men’s basketball team, the Tar Heels, has the highest winning percentage in NCAA history. Over the last seven years, the 58-year-old Asheville, N.C., native—who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2007—has won 205 games, including 24 in the NCAA Tournament. That’s more Final Fours, more wins, and more NCAA Tournament victories than any basketball coach in the nation.

Hard Work tells the story of Roy Williams’ life that few people know, in Williams’ own distinct and colorful way—his troubled upbringing, his college years, his years of trying to make ends meet before becoming a head coach. It reveals how determination took him from an impoverished home in the mountains of North Carolina to the very pinnacle of coaching success, culminating in the 2009 NCAA National Championship (his second in five years). And it pulls back the curtain on one of college basketball’s most guarded programs as witnessed by one of the most successful, dominant coaches, at the prime of his power.

Coach Williams describes himself as the most competitive person on earth, admitting that he once got into a game of pool with Michael Jordan that nearly ended in a fistfight. In addition to providing a fresh look at Jordan, Hard Work will chronicle Williams’ connection with such basketball luminaries as Paul Pierce, Kirk Hinrich, Jacque Vaughn, Phil Ford, James Worthy, Sam Perkins, Sean May, and Rashad McCants, along with Tyler Hansbrough and Ty Lawson, all of whom Williams credits with having earned him the highest winning percentage in NCAA history.

Hard Work is an inspirational story of what can be achieve by anyone who commits to a dream.

Reviews/Praise

“Far more than a basketball book . . . the story is classic Southern Appalachian storytelling, reminiscent of the work of Rick Bragg. To satisfy the basketball fans, there’s lots of inside material on stars such as Michael Jordan. . . . Alan Winter narrates with enough of a drawl to make the account realistic but not so much that it makes understanding difficult. His pacing is easygoing and his tone is conversational, a style that makes the book speed along surprisingly quickly.”
       —AudioFile [Earphones Award Winner]

“Unlike a lot of books by coaches, which tend to focus on how to succeed in business or delve into mind-numbing X’s and O’s, Williams tells his life story, warts and all. It’s an inspiring tale.”
       —SportsIllustrated.com

“Alan Winter’s Southern accent matches the author’s coloquial style. Williams’ rough path makes him even more worthy of coach-worship.”
      —The Chapel Hill Herald

Praise for Coach Williams:
“What makes Coach Williams one of the great coaches isn’t just his extraordinary record, but his dedication to his players. He’s just as serious about making these guys into men and into leaders as he is into making them champions.”
       —President Barack Obama

“His willingness to understand the athlete and get the best out of the athlete is what makes Roy a Hall of Famer.”
       —Michael Jordan

“He’s like Tiger Woods in golf—they have the whole package . . . I certainly consider him to be the best college coach in the country.”
       —Dean Smith

Author Bio

ROY WILLIAMS head coach of the University of North Carolina mens basketball team, the Tar Heels, has the highest winning percentage in NCAA history. Over the last seven years, the 58-year-old Asheville, N.C., native—who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2007—has won 205 games, including 24 in the NCAA Tournament. Thats more Final Fours, more wins, and more NCAA Tournament victories than any basketball coach in the nation.

Writer TIM CROTHERS was for many years a Senior Writer at Sports Illustrated before returning home to Chapel Hill to teach in the School of Journalism at UNC, his alma mater. He is the author of The Man Watching, a biography of Anson Dorrance, the legendary coach of the UNC Womens Soccer Team.

You Might Also Enjoy

Swee'pea

Swee'pea

Dust Bowl Girls

Dust Bowl Girls