by Nick Hornby
This has been on my list for years now, and I finally got around to picking it up as a summer / travel read before heading to Africa. It's autobiographical, and details Hornby's relationship with FC Arsenal, and the sport of soccer. The book was adaptated into the sub-par Fever Pitch, the movie, starring Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore.
Some of Hornby's observations provide piercing insight into the relationship fans have with their favorite teams and fellow fans. He describes everything from how sports provide an instantaneous means for (especially) men to connect, the agony of crushing defeats and miraculous highs of magnificent victories, and the joyous delerium of winning a championship (those passages took me back to the Blue Jays' World Series Championships in 1992 and 1993).
It's well worth a read if you are a sports fan, or want to get in the head of one for a little while.