Translated from the original German, the book chronicles the rise of Enke starting with his youthful days at minnows Carl Zeiss Jena to moving to Portuguese giants Benfica and beyond.
Yet Enke was struggling. He could not escape the memories of his in-game mistakes. The role of a goalkeeping is an isolated one and this took its toll.
Despite this, the natural talent of Enke (below) was seeing him receive praise from the footballing world, culminating in his transfer to Barcelona.
What should have been the highlight of the German's club career proved to be a nightmare. In his debut for the club away at the third tier side Novelda, which ended in a 3-2 defeat and the subject of a whole chapter of the book, Enke was later blamed for two of the goals by captain Frank De Boer.
It would be too simplistic to state that Enke's depression started at this point, especially considering his ever present anxieties since becoming a professional footballer, but it was a turning point in the career and life of the German.
A similarly troubled time in Istanbul followed for Enke, which is brilliantly described by Reng (below) who among other things uses extracts from Enke's personal notebook throughout the book.
Yet Enke bounced back both on and off the field. A move back to Germany was followed by a resurgence. However with knowing in hindsight the fate of Enke, there are always sharp reminders of the troubles of those with Enke's have to endure, even when things seem to be going well.
Reng not only portrays the life of Robert himself, but also those around him. He makes a conscious effort to detail the struggles and the length to which those close to Robert went to help him.
It is also importantly noted the many happy times that Robert and his wife Teresa shared (below). There are many funny stories of their lives together and Robert's interactions with his fellow players.
The death of Teresa and Robert's daughter Lara greatly upset the pair and was in part the cause of the second spell of depression that Robert could not overcome. He was Germany's number one goalkeeper and the captain of his new team Hannover 96 but Enke could hardly get out of bed.
The last two chapters of the book reach the climax of Robert's struggles in a compelling and heart wrenching fashion. There is no over dramatic ending, just the simple passage "He knew the timetable off by heart. He knew, for instance, that the regional express from Bremen came speeding through Elivese at 6:15pm.
Enke and Reng had always stated that they hoped to one day write a book together. Unfortunately the latter had to do it on his own. However he has done Robert proud and all those who suffer from his illness.
Hinman Rating- 89/100
Authors- Ronald Reng
Publisher- Yellow Jersey Press
ISBN- 9780224091664
Price- Cheap, no more than £7
Availability- Wide, most bookshops and websites
