A Book by Mick Foley
Yeah, I know it’s not anytime remotely close to Christmas in any way, but I figured that a wrestling biography from one of my favorite authors and wrestlers would likely be good all year round. Mick Foley, for the longest time, has been creating some very well-done autobiographical texts, usually summarizing his career at various points in his life when a chapter closes on whatever he was doing at that time. Have a Nice Day was his origin story, ending sometime after his initial WWE World Heavyweight Championship run, Foley is Good largely detailed his semi-retirement and shift to being an on-screen authority figure in WWE, Hardcore Diaries tries something new (journal entries) and shifts up to his life as of Summer 2006, Countdown to Lockdown details his move out of retirement into TNA Wrestling, and finally this book discusses his love of Christmas and his new-found passion for being Santa Claus and other charitable works. This is a quick read, but it is every bit as good as all of his other books.
“From beloved #1 New York Times bestselling author and WWE Hall-of-Famer Mick Foley comes a Yuletide tale like no other. After a lifetime of putting his body on the line to entertain his dozens (and dozens!) of fans, the Hardcore Legend is paying the price – physically and emotionally. When the final bell on Mick’s career tolls, not in the ring, but in a neurologist’s office, his future seems far from merry and bright. Until Mick is given the chance to become Santa Claus – not dress up, not pretend, but become Santa – allowing him to rediscover the joy of performing. Fully committing to his new mission, Mick details the drastic measures he takes to keep the Christmas magic alive for his young children, as well as the many children he meets in his travels who are in need of some Christmas Spirit.”
Mick Foley is a great writer; he has a wit and charm to his writing that most humorists have to try really hard to force into books, but one can tell it all comes to him naturally. Keep in mind, this is a man that spent most of his adult life covered in blood and gore and maiming people, albeit in a choreographed way, for the entertainment of screaming fans in wrestling venues all over the world. I have been a fan of every book he has written for a long time, even going as far as doing an entire presentation on him for a college speech class way back in my younger years. I’ve truthfully owned this book for a long time, but finally cracked it open and I’m sad it took so long.
This book covers a time in Foley’s life when he felt somewhat lost in what his place in the world was. He had finished up his career in professional wrestling and his kids were getting older. Rather than fade into retirement, he did the logical thing – have more kids and become Santa Claus! This book chronicles the lead up to the release of a documentary that Foley was part of called I am Santa Claus!, produced by the late Morgan Spurlock. He embraced the jolly man in the red suit so much that he wore a Christmas related thing every day for a year, hung out with a number of elite Santas and performed with his kids for children that may not have had much of a Christmas at all otherwise. It’s a heartwarming book with a touch of humor and a slight Mick Foley dementedness that we all should expect.
Overall, I take all of Foley’s books as one big story spanning multiple volumes for the most part, and this is no exception. While his older tomes definitely have the room to tell a more complete story and have the benefit of years of hindsight that this one does not really have, it’s a solid read and I had a blast reading it. Here’s hoping Mick has something new under his sleeve because it has been a few years since this book was released, I think we’re all about due to another look at his very interesting life.