Book Review: Signature Shoes: The Athletes Who Wore Them and Delightful Pop Culture Nuggets
Signature Shoes: The Athletes Who Wore Them and Delightful Pop Culture Nuggets. Ryan Trembath, Eckhartz Press, November 28, 2020, Trade Paperback, 154 pages.
Reviewed by Brian R. Johnston.
As you’ve witnessed some of the greatest moments in sports history, have you ever wondered about the story behind the shoes that the athletes are wearing? If so, you’re in for a real treat, as Ryan Trembath has recently released his book, Signature Shoes: The Athletes Who Wore Them and Delightful Pop Culture Nuggets. I just completed the book and, as a big sports fan, I found it to be a fascinating read.
In the introduction, the author says, “The intentions of this book are to chronicle every signature shoe leading up to the Jordans and immediately following.” I would say that the author did a great job with this.
The book is broken into many small chapters, each telling the story behind a signature shoe. It starts with a brief history of the origins of the idea of a signature shoe, followed by chapters on many different shoes that span the history of sports such as basketball, tennis, soccer, and others.
The author goes into a lot of detail describing each shoe, including what it looked like and why it was important in history. The majority of the book covers the 1970s, though there are also chapters from before then, as well as on the 1980s and 1990s. Mixed in with details about the shoes are entertaining explanations about pop culture trends that were taking place during the time each shoe was popular to place the shoes in historical context.
The book is easy to read, with clear language and without a lot of jargon that would make it difficult to understand. The author clearly has a passion for his topic, as it frequently shows throughout the book. In the middle, a section of photos shows the shoes he talks about
Whether you’re a fan of history, sports, collectibles, or all of the above, Signature Shoes would be an interesting read, and I recommend it to anyone who likes to study these topics.