Review: Andre the Giant: Life and Legend

• Andre the Giant: Life and Legend
  Written by Box Brown
  To be published on May 6, 2014 by First Second
  240 pages
  Graphic Novel/Biography

Andre Roussinmoff is known as both the lovable giant in The Princess Bride and a heroic pro-westling figure. He was a normal guy who’d been dealt an extraordinary hand in life. At his peak, he weighed 500 pounds and stood nearly seven and a half feet tall. But the huge stature that made his fame also signed his death warrant.

The Princess Bride is one of my all-time favorite movies which means I’m a fan of the lovable giant rather than the pro-wrestler. That is the reason I wanted to read Andre the Giant: Life and Legend. However, after reading about his life, I’m left with a sadness on how Andre lived his life.

Box Brown really captured the loneliness of Andre’s life. All of his life he was treated with disdain. People feared him. However, once Andre discovered wrestling, his life changed. When he was in the ring, people loved him, but outside of it, he was an outcast who was feared and tormented by the same people who cheered him. This fear, loneliness, and abuse caused Andre to turn to alcohol to ease his pain; both mental and physical.

After reading this book, I felt that Andre was never comfortable in his body. He couldn’t be alone; or maybe he was afraid to be alone. He truly wished for a normal life; however, that wasn’t possible. Furthermore, Andre was a very flawed man. He was not only an alcoholic but he was a mean and abusive one at that. He made bad decisions and sometimes abused his friends. But it seemed they always forgave him for his shortcomings.

Andre’s body was not his friend. I couldn’t imagine that pain he endured just to remain mobile. However, he never gave up and remained in the ring until the end. Andre lived a full life; but, he lived a very sad and lonely as well. He died alone; but he will always be remembered. He is a true legend; a flawed one but a legend all the same.

Does anyone want a peanut?

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