COMMITTED: Confessions of a Fantasy Football Junkie

Little boys fantasize about being NFL players, but grown men fantasize about owning them—drafting them, trading them and arranging them in starting lineups that compete against other "teams" based on the players' performances in real games. St. Amant quit his advertising job to pursue a fantasy football league championship and pen this boisterous celebration of the burgeoning pastime. He mixes hyperbolic commentary on his own travails with a recap of the hobby's origins, conversations with aficionados and pointers for neophytes. He depicts fantasy football as fandom on steroids; by placing the traditions of sifting stats, critiquing players and kibitzing strategies in a formal competitive setting, the essentially passive experience of watching football gains an imaginary dimension of control and mastery. In fact, watching becomes as grueling as playing ("My stomach feels as if it's been stopping cannonballs," St. Amant groans after one Sunday in front of the tube). The author writes like the life of the locker-room party, dishing out sarcastic trash talk and assaultive anal sex banter, but undercutting his macho bluster with self-deprecation. It's a fitting, if sometimes overbearing, tone. St. Amant's obsessiveness lacks critical perspective, but those who share his addiction will find his voice authentic. Agent, Bob Mecoy. (Sept. 4)