Our Books
Jarrod has written several books.
The most recent one is the Art of Batting, where he looked at who the greatest batters of all time were, and what they did. This book was truly a part of Good Areas, as the main researcher was Shayan Ahmad Khan, another writer on this site.
'Kimber is a 22nd-century cricket writer' - TheGuardian
Colourful cricket history meets expert analysis in this richly researched exploration of the art of batting.
Most batters are trying to do their best, yet the top players are creating art. It is physically impossible to face an 80mph delivery and track it with your eyes, yet the greatest batters do more than just watch the ball, they predict where it will go. They can see into the future.
This book is about the batters who see what mortals don't. Javed Miandad purposefully made errors to manipulate the field, Sachin Tendulkar dug up a pitch to take on Warne, Shivnarine Chanderpaul was peppered by tennis balls on the beach until he created his bastardised technique and Joe Root's great play against spin is a confluence of three random events. Others, such as Smith, Pietersen and Richards, carried on the work of a man 100 years before their time, and Ranji changed cricket with a bucket.
Their methods and stories are different, but their currency is the same: runs. Through interviews with cricketing greats such as David 'Bumble' Lloyd, Graeme Swann and Rob Key, this book shows you the science, skill and culture that made the 50 greatest batters of all time, and, ultimately, how these players conquered leather with willow.
In 2024 Good Areas turned one of their podcast series into a book called Overthrowing Cricket’s Empire. Simply put, Jarrod and Abhishek Mukherjee looking at the first major victory over England.
Cricket was once used as a tool to colonise. What happens when those countries grow up? Overthrowing Cricket's Empire unearths the audacious stories of teams toppling the cricket colossus, England.
From W.G. Grace's Ashes-igniting run-out to Calum MacLeod's modern heroics, the book spans 150 years of fierce history. New Zealand's unexpected draws in 1949, Zimbabwe’s poultry farmer heroics, Ireland's audacious chase and hair, India’s elephantine triumph and South Africa’s spin saga are all etched in defiance.
This is a book about a bunch of Davids taking on Goliath. Every chapter has tales of the greatest English players and the men who stood up to slay them. The narrative transcends sport – a testament to resilience and national identity. Amid victories, there’s human drama.
A few years ago, Jarrod wrote a story on his father and cricket; it was called the Lillee of Campbellfield and can be read on Kindle.
This is Jarrod Kimber's autobiographical novella on his relationship with his father in Melbourne's outer suburbs. It's a story about two different men, cricket, school, suicide, work, true crime and the fire in their gut. It's about the heroes they don't make films about.
Hanna D, Amazon Review
A quick but engaging read about the writer's relationship with his father and his internal struggle to find success and escape his surroundings may sound like an old trope but Kimber's novella is funny, poignant and heartbreaking at times. How can one so deftly weave all those emotions into such a short space? It's written at that sweet spot of maturity where you can fully realize the struggles of your parents and yet have forged your own style in dealing with the next generation and is full of heart.
Introspective, clever and grounded in cricket, "The Lillee of Campbellfield" is an extension of it's author and reflects a journey that is familiar to everyone in a way that feels familiar but looks completely new.
Test Cricket: The Unauthorised Biography was Jarrod’s first look back at cricket history. Released in 2015 it was the story of how cricket had become the sport it was.
S Schwartz, Amazon review:
There is a certain vein of sportswriting, best exemplified by Eduardo Galeano's "Soccer in Sun and Shadow" that aims to capture the magical aspects of sport and its impact upon the people who follow it.
This book feels very much in that tradition; there is exaggeration, there are flights of fancy -- and yet in each of those there is a great deal of truth, and a great deal more than can be said in a dry recitation (or even a very exciting recitation) of fact. I feel like I have a *deeper* knowledge of cricket and the world, from reading this -- of the people who played it and the way the world reacted to them.
Thank you, Mr. Kimber!
Jarrod also co-wrote and directed Death of a Gentleman, an award-winning documentary about the big three takeover of cricket.