The SquizLog

According to Skull

"You're smiling again. I've never seen you smile so much when you're reading a book!", my 12 year-old son said to me last weekend.

I was reading Kerry O'Keeffe's book, According to Skull, which was a welcome birthday present on Saturday. As I had expected, it was thoroughly enjoyable with plenty of laughs along the way.

Not all humour, though. As I've found with Kerry's appearances such as those on The Fat, he often switches out of laughing mode, quickly changing his demeanour to make a serious point. The book includes several surprisingly open reflections on periods in his life when he was doing it tough. Which, to me, made it all the more compelling.

Another reason for my interest is that I can actually say that I know Kerry. We're not best mates or anything but I did get to know him a little during his few years with the Vets at Sydney Uni in the mid-1980s when I was playing grade there. He mentions Andrew "Otto" Bell and Cyril Latimer in his few pages on that experience and I'm sure that, at least in retrospect, he enjoyed their humourous approach to the game. Even if he didn't appreciate their fielding efforts at the time.

Add to that my memories of him bowling in Test Matches when I was a youngster and then trying to imitate his unique bowling style in the back yard.

These days I always look forward to hearing O'Keeffe's cricket commentary on ABC radio. He's a gem, able to mix his unique brand of humour with insightful comments about the game.

As in his commentary, According to Skull shows how much he has mellowed and how much his ability to laugh at himself contributes to his humour. I thoroughly recommend the book. For those interested to know more, here's a good review by Graeme Blundell.

Posted to Cricket, Personal, Writing by Keith Pitty