You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
I read this because I heard "this is a book Brett Favre doesn't want you to read." I knew a lot about his philandering in college because I had friends from Green Bay who talked about seeing him in the bars and all the rumors that flew around. I LOVED Brett when he was a Packer, and I have so many good memories of watching the games and Super Bowl seasons when I was in college. He really became dead to me when he unretired, and especially when he went to the Vikings. This book really made me angry during the chapters he was there, and now that he's been caught stealing welfare funds to build stadiums at his alma mater, well. We'll miss you, Brent.
Can you be uninspired by a well written book? That's how I feel about this and why it took me nearly a month to read. There wasn't anything earth shatteringly new in here, and I was kind of disappointed to read the author needing to rehash every only Favre story. The man was no saint, we got that, but this book made him seem like the devil incarnate. When I got to the afterword and realized Brett didn't talk to him, I wondered if maybe that was why.
It was nice to have some of the holes filled in around Brett's college play and especially his recruitment to Southern Miss, but this just seemed like an author with an interesting in reviving old ghosts on the occasion of Favre's selection to the Hall of Fame. If you're interested in the Favre story, you'll learn a lot and Pearlman does a lot to counter the official NFL myths, but not sure that's always a good thing
It was nice to have some of the holes filled in around Brett's college play and especially his recruitment to Southern Miss, but this just seemed like an author with an interesting in reviving old ghosts on the occasion of Favre's selection to the Hall of Fame. If you're interested in the Favre story, you'll learn a lot and Pearlman does a lot to counter the official NFL myths, but not sure that's always a good thing
I am a life long Green Bay Packer fan that lives in Connecticut. I have always appreciated Brett Favre the athlete and his abilities on the football field. However, I do not put him on any pedestal as the greatest of all time (there's another guy playing right now, #12, that might be the one). I picked this book up expecting to have an enjoyable read about the life of Brett Favre. I've read several other books on Favre and enjoyed them (some of which Mr. Pearlman refers to in negative light at times).
Having said all that, I don't really enjoy reading this book. I think it sucks. But I am plowing through it, but just don't dig the way it is written or the amount of copy written for certain periods of his life.
I will finish the book, but honestly, the ONLY good thing about this book is the cover photo with the title GUNSLINGER! That would make a great poster.
Having said all that, I don't really enjoy reading this book. I think it sucks. But I am plowing through it, but just don't dig the way it is written or the amount of copy written for certain periods of his life.
I will finish the book, but honestly, the ONLY good thing about this book is the cover photo with the title GUNSLINGER! That would make a great poster.
Yawn. Really nothing new. And the stories that could have made it fresh and interesting went as far as, 'Brett liked beer', 'Brett liked women', 'Brett had an ego and played pranks', a book which dives into this-- favre, winters, chmura, or Scott and Brett, or Brett for one season' would have been move captivating. Retread and tired
informative
slow-paced
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Jeff Pearlman has become my favorite sports historian, not that I read a lot of sports books, but when you grow up in the shadow of Lambeau Field, you have a tendency to at least follow pro football.
I had the pleasure of working at a local TV station in the early 1990's, when Brett Favre and Reggie White would come to our station and do exclusive interviews every week. There were times when Favre failed to show up because he was too hungover, or arrive at the last minute, looking like he'd just gotten out of bed. Of course, in a city of Green Bay's size (approximately 100,00o people), it's still very much a small-town feel. And there were tons of stories about Favre and other Green Bay Packers that never made the news.
Pearlman peels back the Gunslinger facade and reveals Favre's life escapades on and off the football field. He was erratic on the football field, and he played with pure joy most of the time, which made him exciting to watch. After DECADES of mediocre teams playing in Green Bay, a whole new generation of fans like me got a taste of what it was like for the Glory Years of the Packers. Yet, as this book, and Favre's actions the past few years have revealed, he can be a pretty crappy human. The whoring, the drinking, the drugs, the much-publicized trip to drug rehab, the not-so-publicized continuing to drink and cheat on his lovely wife, Deanna. Blech.
I got to relive those 4-5 YEARS of retirement speculation that gripped our city and was the talk around the NFL. I went to many of Favre's signature games, including the 1996 NFC Championship and the 2007 NFC Championship, Favre's last game as a Packer. I remember the hour-long retirement announcement like it was yesterday. When he went to the Jets, the fans were divided: some, like my husband, blamed the front office, while some blamed Favre himself for the "divorce." Then he went to the Vikings, and fans became feral. But a few years after retirement from football, Wisconsin welcomed Favre back to retire his number. He was a once-in-a-lifetime player, and the Packers were lucky to have him. But as is true with any public figure put on a pedestal and then revealed themselves to be less than perfect, Favre's reputation has not fared well with his antics off the field.
Pearlman interviewed hundreds of people for this book. Many I know or know about because of their ties to the community, the media, or the team. The extensive research and cohesive story makes for a great read or listen to anyone who likes a good sports story.
I had the pleasure of working at a local TV station in the early 1990's, when Brett Favre and Reggie White would come to our station and do exclusive interviews every week. There were times when Favre failed to show up because he was too hungover, or arrive at the last minute, looking like he'd just gotten out of bed. Of course, in a city of Green Bay's size (approximately 100,00o people), it's still very much a small-town feel. And there were tons of stories about Favre and other Green Bay Packers that never made the news.
Pearlman peels back the Gunslinger facade and reveals Favre's life escapades on and off the football field. He was erratic on the football field, and he played with pure joy most of the time, which made him exciting to watch. After DECADES of mediocre teams playing in Green Bay, a whole new generation of fans like me got a taste of what it was like for the Glory Years of the Packers. Yet, as this book, and Favre's actions the past few years have revealed, he can be a pretty crappy human. The whoring, the drinking, the drugs, the much-publicized trip to drug rehab, the not-so-publicized continuing to drink and cheat on his lovely wife, Deanna. Blech.
I got to relive those 4-5 YEARS of retirement speculation that gripped our city and was the talk around the NFL. I went to many of Favre's signature games, including the 1996 NFC Championship and the 2007 NFC Championship, Favre's last game as a Packer. I remember the hour-long retirement announcement like it was yesterday. When he went to the Jets, the fans were divided: some, like my husband, blamed the front office, while some blamed Favre himself for the "divorce." Then he went to the Vikings, and fans became feral. But a few years after retirement from football, Wisconsin welcomed Favre back to retire his number. He was a once-in-a-lifetime player, and the Packers were lucky to have him. But as is true with any public figure put on a pedestal and then revealed themselves to be less than perfect, Favre's reputation has not fared well with his antics off the field.
Pearlman interviewed hundreds of people for this book. Many I know or know about because of their ties to the community, the media, or the team. The extensive research and cohesive story makes for a great read or listen to anyone who likes a good sports story.
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Jeff Pearlman has written several books that peel the varnish off and gives us a glimpse at the real lives of sports stars. This book about the life of Brett Favre is no exception. It reveals the great, the good, the not so good, and the bad. It’s all here.
This biography of Favre does a great job of filling in his childhood, high school, and college days which many people are not as aware of. Brett started out as a prankster and living life hard (or to its fullest) and he never really quit. The book details his rise in the National Football League and offers many anecdotes about his behavior, both good and bad, but also about his unbelievable play on the field.
One of the most fascinating aspects of Brett Favre is his almost Jekyll and Hyde nature. He can be unbelievably kind to young fans and those in need, but unbelievably cruel to some family members and teammates. His practical jokes sometimes went a little too far bordering on meanness. He is a good family man but also a philanderer. He basically behaved, even as a superstar, like a juvenile with too many hormones and too little brains. He also became addicted to alcohol and painkillers while in the NFL.
Another interesting aspect of the book is Farve’s father Irv and how he really latched onto Brett’s fame and fortune and started living out his own dreams through his son. He also was a philanderer and spent a lot of time around the team, in bars, and bragging about who his son was. I didn’t know much about Irv until this book.
Finally the book of course talks about Favre’s incredible Hall of Fame football career. Despite the prankster attitude he took football seriously and clearly loved playing the game. He had one of the best arms in NFL history but his biggest downfall, as the title of the book suggests, was he was a gunslinger. He often took chances he shouldn’t have so in addition to the many passing records he holds, he also holds the record for most interceptions in a career. I would argue that Green Bay would have won more than one Super Bowl had Favre not had a tendency to throw interceptions in the playoffs.
The details about his move to the New York Jets and then the Minnesota Vikings after Green Bay Packers got fed up with the uncertainty of whether Brett really would retire or not is well told here. There was a lot of drama in Green Bay around Brett’s departure and he didn’t help matters by playing into the drama with his coy indecisiveness for a few years.
The only fault I have with the book overall is there really isn’t much that is new here except some of the interviews conducted during the book. But a lot of what is chronicled here is mostly already known. The book does a nice job of pulling it all together go and weaving together the narrative of Brett’s life on and off the field.
This biography of Favre does a great job of filling in his childhood, high school, and college days which many people are not as aware of. Brett started out as a prankster and living life hard (or to its fullest) and he never really quit. The book details his rise in the National Football League and offers many anecdotes about his behavior, both good and bad, but also about his unbelievable play on the field.
One of the most fascinating aspects of Brett Favre is his almost Jekyll and Hyde nature. He can be unbelievably kind to young fans and those in need, but unbelievably cruel to some family members and teammates. His practical jokes sometimes went a little too far bordering on meanness. He is a good family man but also a philanderer. He basically behaved, even as a superstar, like a juvenile with too many hormones and too little brains. He also became addicted to alcohol and painkillers while in the NFL.
Another interesting aspect of the book is Farve’s father Irv and how he really latched onto Brett’s fame and fortune and started living out his own dreams through his son. He also was a philanderer and spent a lot of time around the team, in bars, and bragging about who his son was. I didn’t know much about Irv until this book.
Finally the book of course talks about Favre’s incredible Hall of Fame football career. Despite the prankster attitude he took football seriously and clearly loved playing the game. He had one of the best arms in NFL history but his biggest downfall, as the title of the book suggests, was he was a gunslinger. He often took chances he shouldn’t have so in addition to the many passing records he holds, he also holds the record for most interceptions in a career. I would argue that Green Bay would have won more than one Super Bowl had Favre not had a tendency to throw interceptions in the playoffs.
The details about his move to the New York Jets and then the Minnesota Vikings after Green Bay Packers got fed up with the uncertainty of whether Brett really would retire or not is well told here. There was a lot of drama in Green Bay around Brett’s departure and he didn’t help matters by playing into the drama with his coy indecisiveness for a few years.
The only fault I have with the book overall is there really isn’t much that is new here except some of the interviews conducted during the book. But a lot of what is chronicled here is mostly already known. The book does a nice job of pulling it all together go and weaving together the narrative of Brett’s life on and off the field.