Reviews for The Long, Long Road to Wembley
Has a charm and wit that sets it apart - Stuart Maconie
An absolute delight. - Dominic Fifield, The Guardian
Every football fan will enjoy this - John Cross, Daily Mirror
Beautifully written, a book to lift the spirits - Ian Ladyman, Daily Mail
A life-affirming tale of never losing faith in your team - Adam Hurrey, Daily Telegraph
Reminds us what the game is really all about - Miguel Delaney, Independent
A heart-rending, life-affirming joy - Charlie Connelly, author of Attention All Shipping
Shows you real footballing love and reminds us that passion is not just about the Premier League. I really enjoyed it - Martin Lipton, The Sun
Reviews for Sad Men
Told with wit, warmth and an obsessive eye to detail that I have not seen since Nick Hornby was writing about pop music, Sad Men is both a brilliant memoir about a lifetime obsession with advertising, and a love song to the slogans, images and hot females eating chocolate that filled our wildest dreams.
Sad Men is a heartfelt, curiously moving book that roams the English-speaking world, but always returns to the fantasies that were created by smart people trying to sell us stuff.
Forget Don Draper – Dave Roberts is the world’s favourite ad man - Tony Parsons
If you want to know what kind of mad man becomes an ad man, the answers are to be found in Sad Men - Book Of The Week, Daily Mail
Sad Men is an insightful, eye-opening and often eye-wateringly funny tale - Sunday Sport
It's a heart-warming memoir of the life of a man who has done his best and made his mistakes - much like the rest of us. I laughed. Occasionally I wanted to shout that he shouldn't do something - but I was totally engaged in the story, hoping for the best whilst being prepared for the worst - The Bookbag
Witty, wry and self-deprecating. Go buy! - Freya North
"Genuinely enlightening... what is most surprising about the book, and the 'obsession' detailed within, is just how moving and sympathetic it proves. There's a tendency to think of advertising as an intensely cynical industry, but what Roberts' story illustrates is that there is often an artistic impulse and integrity at play as well. More than this, Sad Men takes one of the bugbears of contemporary entertainment, product placement, and uses it in the most sincere and even heartfelt fashion - Litro.co.uk
Reviews for The Bromley Boys
Agonisingly funny - perfectly captures the sad, futile, yet glorious world of the adolescent male football fan. - Harry Pearson, author of The Far Corner
The Bromley Boys is the best football memoir I have ever read. Dave Roberts relates his story with irresistable charm and sharp self-deprecating wit... The Bromley Boys deserves to be a classic. - Charlie Connelly, bestselling author of The Shipping Forecast and Stamping Grounds; Liechtenstein's Quest for the World Cup
Funny, wise and extremely charming. - The Guardian
Reminds you of Danny Baker's 606 at its vintage best. - The Independent
This marvelous memoir is a must-read...exceedingly funny...among the very best books with a sporting theme. - Yorkshire Evening Post
With laugh aloud moments as young Dave Roberts reveals his love for Bromley, sheepskin coats, skinheads and his best mate’s big sister, The Bromley Boys is well worth a read. - Kent On Sunday
Genuinely funny...thoroughly recommended. - When Saturday Comes
Will strike a chord with football fans everywhere. - Adrian Chiles, author of We Don't Know What We're Doing
Want to sit quietly in the corner of the bus? Then don't read The Bromley Boys. It will make you laugh (and occasionally cry) so much you'll get thrown off. - Martin Baker, author of Meltdown and football writer for The Observer and Telegraph
I loved it...extremely funny. A must-read for anyone who loves football. - Peter Crouch
Nothing has been as good as Fever Pitch. Until now. Laugh out loud funny...The Bromley Boys is a real treat..a must read for any football supporter. - TheBookbag.co.uk
One of this year’s best sporting books. - Kentish Times
The Bromley Boys is a wonderful book and I've no doubt you'll enjoy it greatly. It's funny, charming, engaging and enlightening in equal measure...you'll enjoy reading it from cover to cover. - Some People Are On The Pitch
An amusing and well-written piece of work, the book keeps your interest and, ultimately, makes you care about the fate of Britain's worst team. - Jon Carter, ESPN
It is a charming tale... A recommended read for all. - A Cultured Left Foot
Roberts writes with a wry wit and gentle love for his younger self... highly entertaining and beautifully handled. If you are a football fan, this is a must read. - Bluechrome
Reviews for Home and Away
Excellent - The Sun
A wonderfully warm-hearted book, which gives the beautiful game a good name - Saga
A glowing testament to the camaraderie and inclusiveness of supporting a team lower down the football pyramid. Everyone is welcome in this uplifting book that celebrates the happiness to be found in reconnecting with your friends, your team and your home - When Saturday Comes
Pure gold... A brilliant book that all football fans can relate to - Late Tackle
A cracking, beautifully observed pilgrimage - Birmingham Post
A timely celebration of non-league football... provides a great antidote to sport as big business - The Bookseller
Football books can be a mixed bag, but Dave Roberts really hits the target with Home and Away - The Non-League Paper
If ever there was an author that could capture the love for the non-league game, then that man is Dave Roberts...laugh out loud.. highly recommended - The Non-League Magazine
What this book does beautifully is affirm that the enjoyment of football isn't so much about the game or the result, it's about the journey we, as supporters, take in the process - The Football Pink
A great read for anyone who loves football - The Ball Is Round
Roberts perfectly captures what it is to follow your team and the lengths that fans go to in order to get their football fix. And from these journeys it can be seen how Roberts' writing has been compared to Bill Bryson, with wit and warmth - Football Book Reviews
Reviews for 32 Programmes
A little gem... a brilliant way to reflect on his love affair with football. - Daily Telegraph
Very funny in wry, Nick Hornby-esque fashion... This memoir will gain Roberts a lot of fans. - Book of the Week, Independent on Sunday
A brilliant idea nicely executed, it's certainly the funniest sport-related read this Christmas - Independent
A wistful evocation of the author's early life told through a vast accumulation of football programmes he was forced to cull. - Guardian
Imagine loafing in your favourite armchair, old mates around, beers and bites on hand, humour high, watching and discussing re-runs of memorable football matches. Sounds good, doesn't it? Well, it's not far off what you get with Dave Roberts' delightful homage to the beautiful game, and the part his life has played in it... A book full of the joys, miseries, near-misses, hopes, failures and fun of life, in this case a football obsessive's, but it's one we can all find something to identify with. A heart-warmer, people. Up there with the best of 'em. - Book of the Week, Sunday Sport
A lovely book. - The Scotsman
Hugely enjoyable, poignant book... Dave Roberts' wonderful series of tales explain why every one of the programmes made it into the box; each is infused with a mixture of touching reminiscence or laugh-out-loud anecdote. - Birmingham Post
Deliriously enjoyable... utterly engaging. - The Bookseller
Best football culture book of the year. - FourFourTwo
Nostalgically warm in its tender recall of the way things used to be, this is a book for the true football follower, whose life has been shaped by the game and doesn't mind admitting it - Duncan Hamilton, two-time winner of the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award
Wonderful, hilarious and moving. 32 Programmes is not just a football memoir but a delicious slice of the 1960s and 1970s, a razor-sharp and achingly evocative social history. This brilliant memoir will resonate with all of us who have ever supported a football team, listened to music and fallen in love. - Charlie Connelly, author of Attention All Shipping
I loved this book. If you know a man in his forties or fifties, please give him this book. - John Inverdale
A funny, charming and heart-warming tale of obsession. - Western Sunday Independent
I fail to believe that anyone who reads Dave Roberts' new book 32 Programmes cannot relate to his thinking as a football fan. It traces his life as a football fan through 32 chapters in his life, going into the bitter-sweet details of growing up in the 1970s and '80s via 32 football matches. Building on and around his first book,The Bromley Boys (soon to be released as a film, no less), Dave introduces us to his career, his attempts to find a soul mate and finally in a twist his life changing circumstances that will have you reaching for a tissue. If you read one new book on your holidays this summer, choose this one. And then you try and detail 10, let alone 32, games that mark the milestones in your life. - The Ball is Round
Entertaining, heart-warming and expertly executed, this book is certain to strike a chord with anyone who's ever loved the game. Engrossing and enjoyable... funny and charming. - Two Banks of Four
An entertaining read, rich in nostalgia and reminiscent of Nick Hornby's Fever Pitch, this offers an insight into the power of obsession and how the beautiful game has changed. Moving and amusing. - Sport Magazine
Reviews for e-luv: an internet romance
Addictive reading... guaranteed to make you chuckle. - Caroline Smailes author of Bees to Honey and Black Boxes
Hugely entertaining. I laughed out loud several times, which is rare for me. - Ariane Sherine author of Atheists Guide to Christmas
Entertaining, funny and very addictive. - Chris Pascoe author of Death, Destruction and a Packet of Peanuts and A Cat Called Birmingham
Extremely funny and eminently readable. - Stan Cattermole author of Bête de Jour
Very funny/poignant/well written. - Emily Dubberley author of the Ex-Factor