Acquire Lanterne Rouge: The Last Man In The Tour De France Curated By Max Leonard Issued As Textbook

start by saying I dislike cycling/roadracing in general and the Tour de France in particular, which makes this a strange purchase for me.


What drew me to it is that it's about the men who finished last the glorious sporting losers that I usually find far more interesting than the automatons that win.


What kept me reading was Max Leonard's writing he weaves together the wonderful tales of Arsene Millocheau and AbdelKader Zaaf, and many more, turning these names from history into real living, breathing, people once again.


Their stories are by turns funny, aweinspiring, and heartbreaking,

I recommend this book to anyone who, like me, cherishes the underdog, Unlike Etape, which is a book for diehard Tour de France and cycling fans, this book is a little more suited for people who casually follow the Tour every July and do not pay as much attention to the sport the rest of the year.
Mr. Leonard gives a great history of the Tour and some of its most exciting figures, including those who have finished last in this amazing race.
The stories are fun to read about, the interviews are full of good questions, and he explains some of the cycling lingo in the book that makes it easy for people who do not understand cycling can read.
Fantastic book on a fantastic subject, I was disappointed that the writing didn't stay more focused on the actual Lantern Rouge winners, The best parts of the book were those pieces the author devoted to the lives and adventures of those who won that ignominious award.
However, all too often the author couldn't help himself from going off on long digressions, spinning out of control on characters from racing history and other cycling events that lost the thread of the story in many of the chapters.
For hard core racers, or folks 'in the know' about the Tour de France, this may be worth looking at, For the rest of us, probably not worth it, Lantern Rouge by Max Leonard is a book that tells the story ofcompetitors of the Tour de France that most people never think about: the ones who came in last.
As explained through interviews and publications, this does not mean the ones who came in last were the slowest or the laziest riders.
Instead, the reasons these people crossed the finish line at the Champs Elysee in last place on the very last day of theweek race are as varied as the people themselves.
From the very first Tour until, Leonard picks out riders with different histories and different stories to give them theirminutes of fame though some of the names are wellknown to cycling fans from other exploits.
It is a very interesting and informative book for people who both enjoy professional cycling and who have a soft spot for those who worked outside of the limelight and most of the time press coverage.
Not sure what I was expecting, but was a LONG journey through history! Thend half was much much better but unless you love Le Tour, this probably isnt for you.

My favourites were the brothers Flores amp the chapter discussing doping, although a rewrite to include Lawson Craddock wouldnt go amiss! Great TdF book focused on the stories behind the scenes and not as much on the famous names.
The writer is clearly at fan and knows his stuff about cycling, which makes it great for other fans, Some of the names are more obscure for those who aren't as familiar with cycling history, He goes through the entire history, from the earliest years to the postwar famous names to the drug controversies of thes which I find many of the other broad histories still avoid like the plague to recent years.
I really enjoyed reading this book, which I started as theTour was in its final stages, At times it was hard to follow due to there being so many names, teams and timelines, but overall I thought the author gave a fascinating insight to the part of the race that few people focus on.
I'm relatively new to following pro cycling but for me this captured everything I love about the Tour de France and I think the perspectives of the various lanternes rouge will give me extra motivation next time I'm out on my own bike.
The introduction had me soaring and excited, but I couldn't maintain that pace, I enjoyed learning a new term lanterne rouge and about some different and interesting Tour de France trivia and personalities, I much preferred the the last men who ended up there rather than those who found themselves near the bottom and then pursued the final spot.


It was great to think about the Tour de France and be reminded of how much goes into it, . . even if it started as a publicity stunt,

A nice collection of stories about some of the riders who finished the Tour de France in last placebut the key word there is 'finished'.
It offers a different perspective to the race, and gets at the motivations and attitudes of some of the riders who were never going to win the Tour.
It is presented as something of a personal journey of discovery by the author, and an opportunity to reflect on sport and life.
I really didn't enjoy this book, It tells the stories of some of the men who finished last in the Tour de France, which is an interesting premise, but in this author's hands results in a book that quite frankly was boring.
Also, the author does a poor job of trying to weave together the stories that he's telling, so that at the end of the book, I asked myself, "What was the point" Definitely would not recommend this book, not even to someone who's interested in bicycle racing or the Tour de France.
The story of some of the hardest working men in the Tour de France, Max breaks down the truth behind why some end up in last place, and

there are some fascinating stories here, He also weaves in his interesting journey to complete the book, It turns out it is more interesting to read about the last place finishers then the racers on the podium, Highly recommended if you want some insight into the hard fought efforts in the Tour, This book is reallyshort stories where the lanterne rouge is the central theme, Its This American Life in book form, Given the format I suppose its expected that I really connected with some of the chapters while floundering through others, Overall, its worth the read for a cycling enthusiast or tour aficionado, sitelinkLanterne Rouge: The Last Man in the Tour de France is fascinating exploration of the psyche and mindset of the last place finishers in Le Tour, the Lanterne Rouges, and in this exploration, sitelinkMax Leonard relays how the whole concept and identity of Laterne Rouge came to be, and to then become so celebrated.


There is a loose chapter structure to the book as Leonard organizes the concepts and themes of how he believes these riders come to be the Lanterne Rouges: sprinters, failed attackers, and the allgiving domestiques.
Leonard's writing is at times lyrical and evocative, but unfortunately is also often choppy and dry, as he jumps around between interviews and little anecdotes from the different years of the Tour, often incorporating his own personal experiences while researching the book.


Lanterne Rouge does give the reader an inside look into some of the ins and outs of this celebrated bike race, including some of the dirt and drugs.
It also gives us insight into what it means to be the last place contender participating in this holy race: the sacrifices, the suffering and ultimately the upside down heroism.
stars. .