Just finished reading this book and couldn't recommend it much higher. Roberts is the most high profile gay pro athlete to ever come out and you really get a taste of the consequences and rewards of the process.
As literature the writing is uneven but the subject blows me away. It's informed and insiteful when viewing the past and becomes more like a chat as it approaches the publish date of 1997.
The book, available through this link through the Outsports store, is written by Aussie Paul Freeman, who BTW has a cute photo of him in the arms of Ian and friends, who does a decent job of taking you inside Rugby League. If you're not a big fan or get put off by the Ozspeak you could still find a lot to like about this book.
The amount of violence in this high-contact, no-padding sport put me off a bit as well. Things like this embedded tooth in player Jamie Ainscough's arm are mild compared to some of what Roberts went through.
Not for the squeamish, but definitely a good read and, for my part, the best non-fiction sports book I've read. Since it was as high as number eight on the non-fiction sports book list in Oz in 1998, a lot of ordinary Australians have had the kind of introduction to gay life in sports that we in the USA can only dream of.
[ August 28, 2002: Message edited by: sportinlife ]