AustLit

'Justin Langer scored more centuries than Ian Chappell, Doug Walters or Bill Lawry and had a better average than Mark Taylor, David Boon or Mark Waugh yet lived almost every moment of his glittering Test career as if it was his last.

'In this intimate and at times poignant account, Langer looks back on the mateship, change room antics and onfield triumphs which made up his 105-Test innings as a member of one of the game's greatest teams. Peer behind the scenes to relive the night they soaked the English change rooms at Lords in beer, the midnight frolic around the SCG in their underpants and baggy green caps and the Caribbean dinner which cost the ACB $16,000.

'What was it like to face the barrage of the West Indies and Pakistan attacks at their peak, who was the best bowler he ever faced and why did an Adelaide pool table help Shane Warne hone his flipper. It's a journey from the world's great cricket grounds to the poorest areas of the sub-continent, Africa and the West Indies, and the luxuries of a feted sporting champion to the day Matthew Hayden arrived in India with a gas stove in his cricket bag.

'Learn how meditation and martial arts helped him battle his chronic fear of failure and read first-hand snippets from childhood sweetheart Sue Langer who shines a unique light on life as a cricketer's wife.' (From the publisher's website.)