A Lion's Tale by Chris Jericho

Mick Foley's first book is the standard by which all other wrestling books are judged. Reading this book made me feel the same way I felt when I read that one. The books tell a similar story with the same level of storytelling ability and the personality of the author shining through on each page. If I had to pick which one was better, I might need to flip a coin because they are so close in quality. I give this book my highest recommendation with one caveat. The book ends with his debut in the WWE.

This book tells the story of a man with a dream. Chris Jericho's dream was to be a WWE Superstar. His path there involved wrestling in multiple countries and he has some great stories about his time in each place.

His wrestling journey starts with his "training" by the Hart brothers in Canada. He spent time in Mexico where the promoter's wanted him to wear an interesting ring outfit. His time there was highlighted by being left for dead by a brother and sister crime family. His meetings with the criminal elements of the world got worse when he went to Japan and ran afoul of the Yakuza.

If these horrible stories are told in a way that makes the readers laugh then you can just imagine how entertaining his road stories that don't involve imminent death are.

His story is one that may never be told again due to the changes in the industry. Today a wrestler usually spends time working in a WWE developmental territory learning the WWE way before getting called up to the big leagues. In Jericho's day, a wrestler usually found themselves working for many different territories around the world before making it to the big time. And the big time in the '90s meant WCW and the WWE. The book has many great WCW stories and provides even more insight into why that company is no longer in business.