The Life You Imagine: Life Lessons for Achieving Your Dreams

Go Yankees

This is the best story to be ever told. Derek jeter tell his sucsess at the plate and on the feild it takes hard work and detumanation.

I <3 Derek Jeter

As long as i can remember ive wanted to marry Derek!!! He is by far the best baseball player EVER

great yankees hizstory

This book is a great historic book that tells about jeter and how he got to were he is now i think this is worth 5 stars

Boo-Yah! This book was a homerun. October 27, 2011

This book illuminates the life of a young Derek Jeter and the struggles and obstacles he had to overcome to get to where he is today. From the age of eight years old Derek Jeter has wanted to become a baseball superstar. The book illustrates a young Derek walking in to his parent's bedroom and announcing that he would be playing for the Yankees one day. Once I began reading this book, I realized how great of a man Derek Jeter truly is. To start off being raised in a poor neighborhood and working his way to the top, you begin to respect him in a whole new light, not just for his athletic ability. Jeter goes into detail about what it was like growing up in an interracial family and the book demonstrates how his parents "gave him the best of both worlds." We also get stories from Derek's student-athlete days in Kalamazoo. Jeter and Curry, the co-authors of the book, did an exceptional job illustrating the life that Jeter lived, with his use of old memories, and heart -felt reflections the reader connects with Jeter in a whole new way. Jack Curry one of the authors of this book is a columnist for the Yankees. So with him and Jeter himself covering the life of a Yankees player isn't good enough for you I don't know what is. If you didn't already understand that I like this book, you should know that I do and I recommend to basically anyone who likes a story of hard work, dedication and love not only for the game of baseball, but the game of life.

great book

listen to his advice its good advice go yankees

great book if you are inspired to follow your dreams!

Truly inspiring!

Hi

Have you ever thought Derek Jeter had a perfect life all of the time? Well, think again. Derek Jeter's dream in life is to make it up to the Yankees and play short stop.
He grew up in Massachusetts, and always worked hard in everything he did. Everything went down hill when he joined baseball. He put so much importance on baseball that he started getting detentions, getting into fights and his grades started slipping. His mom and dad especially, got firm, and slammed their foot down to immediately stop this. They promised him if he kept this behavior up, he want play baseball ever again. One month later Derek Jeter got straight A's and stuck with baseball.
Derek has made huge accomplishments in life as far as baseball, school, and even contests he has entered. Later in his life he joined the Yankees as a stared rookie shortstop. That year they won the World Series. That's what he has always dreamed of.
I can relate because I have had rough times before too. I also play shortstop in baseball.
I recommended this book because it really shows how even famous people make mistakes. It also shows good life lessons that you have been through, or are going to go through.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

The Life You Imagine

The book called "The Life You Imagined," was written by Derek Jeter with Jack Curry. The main focus of the book is about achieving your dreams but it will take some hard work and determination and also to tell a little about Derek Jeter's life as he was growing up. The very first point I want to talk about, from the book, is achieving your dreams or goals that you set out to accomplish. What the book talks about is that it requires hard work in order to do that. It can't just put a little effort in to something that requires a lot more effort and expect to see good results; it is just not going to happen. You have to be willing to work at it and continue working at that certain dream or goal until you are satisfied with your result.
In the book, Derek Jeter also talks about all the hard work and dedication he put into his sports as well as his schoolwork. Before you put all the hard work into things you have to have enough dedication to start the goal or dream and to keep at it. You have to be able to keep moving forward even if you hit a few roadblocks. And this also applies, very much, in school and all the hard work you have to do in school. Most people realize that you have a better chance to go farther in education than you do in sports, so it is good to keep your school grades up, whether playing sports or not, so that you have something to rely or fall back on just in case your career in sports doesn't work out.
Overall I think this book is a very helpful and useful book. I say this because it really helps you to understand that accomplishing things in life takes hard work and determination, whether it's playing major league baseball, getting a dream job, or anything else. But it doesn't overwhelm you with this sort of information it has a good mixture of Derek Jeter's life and things that he has accomplished. Although, at times, people may get the impression that he might be bragging a little. In the end I think this is a great motivational book.
Derek Jeter was born in Pequannock, New Jersey, and lived in West Milford, New Jersey, with his family until he was four and then they moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan. He grew up wanting to play for the New York Yankees major league baseball team but he also played other sports such as soccer, when he was younger, and basketball in high school. His dream came true when he was selected as the first round draft pick and signed with the Yankees, when he was eighteen. Derek Jeter still plays shortstop for the New York Yankees today, and is a well known player. He also has a foundation called the "Turn 2" foundation; it helps kids by teaching them the dangers of drugs and alcohol, they run different programs to help kids in different situations, and holds baseball clinics in New York.

The Life You Imagined

The Life You Imagined, an autobiography by Derek Jeter, tells the story of his life, both personal, and in Major league baseball playing for the New York Yankees. His biography entails his childhood, overcoming racism, as well as all the steps towards success he had to take. Rather than simply being a biography encompassing his major league experiences, a good chunk is dedicated towards being a motivational piece.

Essentially, the main point of the book is to further the cliche that no matter what one strives for, they can achieve it through hard work. The book's underlying message is pretty inspirational, and, though I personally don't fully believe this message, I think it's helpful for some to actually try and aspire to be something better than their current state.

I enjoyed many of the small details about Derek Jeter's life embedded throughout The Life You Imagined including interesting tid-bits I was unaware of until reading the book - some of these include he had a black father and white mother, and was subject to racial slurs as a child, he was a solid basketball player in high school, and he only went to one semester of college before dropping out for major league baseball. Jeter is not at all modest about his entire life, saying nearly everything has worked out perfectly for him; and even his mistakes are greatly downplayed. This is my greatest pet peeve about the book. For example, he downplays the vast amount of errors he has, and his moderate-but-not-great defensive skills by telling himself other greats have been just as lackluster. It almost seems like at times he's living in his own world.

Depending on the person, this has the possibility be a good read - for someone who understands that they're not capable of doing anything and everything, the book will be a good source of inspiration and motivation to climb up in the ranks. Though for those who are naive enough to believe the 2000's catch phrase of "you can be anything you want", this book will likely lead to a life full of failure and an inability to cope with that failure. Thankfully, Jeter does speak of the tough work and dedication that he put into sports, as well as succeeding in school, which offsets the message "you can be anything you want!" a bit. If you're looking for something to motivate you to get out and do something, definitely check out this book, as well as other sport autobiographies of those who overcame adversity and achieved their lifetime goal of becoming a professional athlete.

I give this book a 4/5 simply because I was looking for more information about Derek Jeter's life, and that's what the book provided. The reason it's a 4 and not a 5 is the book was padded with exaggerated motivational speech material that, like I said, I don't fully believe in.

should be titled how to achieve your hopes and dreams... NOT!

Derek Jeter the life you imagine is an auto biography, and gives a detailed background oh Jeter's life, on the field and off. Anywhere from his goal of becoming a pro baseball player for the Yankees at just six years old, to his tight walk to achieve his unusually high goal. The book did not sugar coat anything, the path to becoming a pro athlete is not easy, not all fun and games, a lot of sacrifices were made in order to make his dream a reality. While keeping his grades for every year he was in school, he also dealt with racism, rough times, but kept on playing the game he loved so much. The major theme was that you can accomplish what ever you set your mind to as long as you have the grades and determination. Set your goals high is what Jeter preaches during this book, because even if you fall short you are father than when you started. Never give up, never listen to other people when they put you down, Jeter's theme was determination, and hard work will get you to your goals! I liked the book, mainly because he is my favorite athlete besides Simon Dumont, although it was geared toward a younger audience than myself, I enjoyed the message; although I no longer believe in it. I don't think we should all go around telling our kids they can be a pro baseball player or a movie star. The book did tell about all the hard work it takes to achieve these goals but realistically this is not possible. The book did have its down sides also, mostly it came off as very boast full, Jeter is one of the best players out there, and has lived a pretty clean life but he talks about how perfect it has been, the way he portrays it is that he rarely messed up and because of that he is now on top. It almost sounds as though anyone who has not achieved their goals is lesser of a man than himself because of this. Besides that I liked the book and would highly recommend it to anyone who likes sports and whose favorite player is Derek Jeter. You should read this book if your ten to twelve with big ambitions and looking for some inspiration and guidance on achieving your high goals. You should not read this book if you have entered the real world, and the high ambitions have slipped from your grasp. Oh and if you don't want to hear about Jeter boast about his perfect life and how he doesn't make mistakes. even in the minor leagues when he has 56 errors in one season, has convinced himself that was acceptable because other greats have done the same, and he learned from it. My overall rating is below average, I was excited to read this book, then once I did I was highly disappointed, it had so much potential, but didn't pack the punch I was expecting.

Awesome book

I would have to say this is one of the best books I have ever read. I liked this book, because it's about my favorite baseball player, and the person who I look up to, Derek Jeter. This book is an autobiography, so Derek Jeter is telling us all about his life. Derek had a dream when he was a kid, it was to play for the Yankees. He always said he was going to play for them, that dream came true. At the age of 18 Derek was drafted to the Yankees. He said you should always study hard in school to get good grades if you want to accomplish your goals. Derek is a great athlete and an awesome teammate, who supports everyone,just like his dad taught him to. When I grow up I want to follow Derek's foot steps and be just like him. I would recommend this book to someone who likes to read books about peoples lives, since this is an autobiography, and to someone who is interested in sports, just like me.

Jeter knocks one out of the park with this book

Life lessons that everyone should learn. Jeter explains his story of hard work, persistance, and his passion for the game he loves in order to make it to the big leagues. This book gives inspiration to its reader, and proves that dreams can come true.

A Goal Derek Jeter shouldn't have tried to accomplish!

No one can deny the fact that Derek Jeter is a phenomenal baseball player and all around athlete, especially Derek Jeter himself! The Life You Imagine, is 279 pages of Jeter explaining to the audience of readers how talented, focused, and basically all around perfect he is. Over and over he states that whenever he sets a goal he achieves it without fail, and how he is living the perfect life. Derek tries to send an inspirational message to America by saying that we should all never give up and, we need to try our hardest, and we should not be afraid of failure. But how can Derek Jeter even begin to preach to the world about how to accept failure when he himself is under the impression that he has never messed up? The way that Derek¿s life is portrayed one would almost expect to see a picture of a well-painted house with a white picket fence, a little dog named sparky in front of him and his family all holding hands and smiling. That is the portrait Derek Jeter paints in our minds throughout the book. He apparently is the perfect human being. The major message that can be taken from the book is that Derek Jeter is amazing. Unless one is extremely attracted to feeling inferior and worthless compared to the accomplishments of Derek Jeter, then this book should stay of your hands. Overall, in no way will I recommend this book simply because it is a huge monologue about the perfect life.

Any Thing But Easy

The book The Life You Imagine by Derek Jeter and Jack Curry is a book about the life of Derek Jeter and what he did to get to the major league. It describes the steps that he and his parents enforced to help him reach his goal of playing for the Yankees. From the time he was six years old he always knew he would play major league baseball and his parents always encouraged him to pursue his goal. The books major ideas were about how he overcame racism, hard times and still had fun doing what he loved. I liked this book because it showed how it is not all fun and games when you¿re trying to reach the major leagues. It shows you always need to work hard at what you love. After you reach your goal you still have to fight to keep it. You should always have a strong supporting cast and pick your friend wisely. This book finds a way to relate to you on a personal level, whether you are trying to reach the major leagues or just trying to get a good grade on a test. At the same time I disliked this book because it became very repetitive. It emphasized over and over how great Derek Jeter is. It seemed like every time there was a new paragraph, he would say the same thing it said in the last paragraph. Everyone should read this book because it has a good out-line how everyone should model his or her life. It emphasizes to set your goals high. If you set your goal low, what are you going to do when you reach it? When you set your goal high and you fall short you¿re in the same position you were in before. You should always choose role models, no matter who they are, young or old, you can learn something from them. There will always be challenges in your life and you must deal with them in a reasonable fashion. Most of all, it emphasizes that you should never give up on your goal no matter how outrageous it is.

A 279 page cliché: a goal Derek Jeter shouldn't have tried to accomplish!

Derek Jeter has an outstanding amount of talent and athleticism in everything he does, and Derek himself has no problem letting the whole world know just that. The Life you Imagine is a 279 page explanation of how Derek Jeter is, apparently, just plain better than everyone else. Not once in this whole autobiography does Derek say that he makes mistakes or messes up. Somehow he even manages to convince himself that his fifty-six errors in the minor leagues (in one season) were excusable because great players have done the exact same thing. Derek Jeter does try to ¿help out¿ the nation by saying that all we need to do is to try our best and all of our greatest dreams will come true. Also, we should not be afraid of failure. What?!?! How does Derek Jeter have any room to talk about failure when not once in this entire book does he admit that he has made a mistake? It just doesn¿t work that way. Overall I did not find one thing that I liked about the entire book, I had to stop reading it several times simply because I was disgusted at how full of himself Derek Jeter was. If I could rate this any lower than a ¿poor¿ I would in a heart beat!

amazing

i loved this book. Like Jeter, i am extremely passionate about baseball. I someday plan to be in the majors just like him. His suggestions have helped me to understand what i must do to make the next step to get to the mlb. It is also very inspirtational to help you reach a goal even if it does not have anything to do with baseball. GREAT BOOK RECOMMENDED TO all baseball fans as well as anyone interested in accomplishing a goal.Derek also tells about his life and childhood baseball memories.

The life you Imagine

The book I choose was the life you imagine by Jack Curry. This book is about New York Yankee star Derek Jeter life from his young childhood to his life in the big leagues as a baseball player. Derek Jeter favorite saying is ¿Never give up on life.¿ The main character is Derek Jeter, and the people he looks up to like his hero are his parents. But Derek Jeter¿s role model in baseball was Dave Winfield who played for the New York Yankees and Dave wasn¿t the greatest Yankee ever to play but he was the hardest worker out of anyone and gave the most hustle out of all of them. Derek Jeter said that he wanted to be like him because he gave it his all the time on and off the field. Derek Jeter is a very strong person because being a baseball player in the big leagues you get lots of bad stuff from fans that don¿t like you and also gets lots of publicity from the press and you can easily lose your cool and do bad. Derek Jeter is very lucky because he gets to play in the greatest stadiums of all-time in Yankee stadium in the Bronx of New York. Derek says ¿that Yankee stadium is the most exciting stadium ever he has been in and the energy turns up when the team runs on the field.¿ Derek Jeter major conflict he had to deal with in life was his childhood because he was really depressed in life because he never got to see his parents because they were always at work and Derek didn¿t have anyone to help him with his school work. When Derek¿s parents quit from there jobs and got new ones Derek was doing a lot better in school and when he graduated from high school Derek had a total gpa of 3.8. Excitement is want this book gave me because it was about how pro baseball players live and how they are treated. Derek Jeter that was telling a reporter that wanted to write a book about him if the reporter told the story it would have been different because Derek Jeter wasn¿t telling it told this book. This book made me see life in a different way because I wasn¿t doing good in school and after I read this book it made me do good in school and love the game of baseball and get me to the next level.

Catch This Book!!

This is a great book. It teaches you to set your goals high and always follow your dreams. I loved the book a lot. First of all because I love Derek Jeter and the intire Yankee team, but also he is trying to tell us that just because a dream sounds impossible doesn't mean it is.

The most inspirationial book i have ever read.

I beleive the book 'The life you imagine, Derek Jeter' is a very good book. This book is one of the most inspirational books i have ever read. The book talks about how Derek's life long dream was to play shorts stop for the New York Yankees, and all the the struggles and hardships he had to overcome. This book explains, to follow your bigest dream no matter how outragous it is. Rading this book inspires me to make a big dream, and work for it. This book also inspires you to work harder, and push you harder. This book also gets you ready and prepares you for life on and off the field. i like ths book alot, and i also repect derek jeter alot more after reading his book.

Changed My Life

This book was the most inspiring and educating book I have ever and probably will ever read. I don¿t think any other athlete has ever or will ever write a book that is as inspiring as this one. The life lessons and the way he describes them are amazing. He has a way of explaining things that don¿t even involve baseball so well that it catches your attention from the very beginning. Reading this book has changed many things in my life. By reading about someone who you admire, and someone who was once in your shoes trying to make it to the top gives you great insight on the way to go about certain situations. If I could model myself to be one person it would be Derek Jeter because of his talent in baseball and his gift to be so generous, thoughtful, and giving to people he doesn¿t even know. He is always trying to do the right thing for everyone. The way he describes his life when he was young and growing up playing baseball everyday with his dad and practicing with his sister is amazing. it¿s a great book for all ages because it¿s a lessons for children, parents, athletes, coaches, anyone you can think of. Even if you know nothing about the game of baseball, reading this book will show you that family is everything. Playing baseball brought his family together and he loved it so much that it became apart of him and his life. There is also hardships that he over came in his life, it wasn¿t all pretty. I would imagine that growing up with a black father and a white mother would make things harder, but he found a way to make it work and that¿s why he is such a inspirational person. I recommend this book to anyone who is thinking about making it in baseball, and anyone who is planning on or already has a family.