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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
This is a very in depth look at a talented, but flawed individual. Growing up watching Favre weekend after weekend here in Wisconsin, you couldn't help but see him on a pedestal, particularly after the Super Bowl win. The truth is that Favre was extremely selfish and cared about only one thing, being a starting quarterback in the NFL. On the surface, this is somewhat expected of a diva quarterback, but the exploits of Favre, the womanizing, drinking, partying, were hidden by a local small town/state press that protected its sacred football player. While we all know about the publicized addiction to pain pills, that really only one incident among many. Favre had women in many other football cities and was a womanizer for much of his career and his wife knew it and gave him chance after chance. Some see the Jets texting incident as a weird stand alone thing, but really it was just another incident among many. Reading of his treatment of Rodgers via interviews with many other players on the team paints the picture of an extremely insecure asshole. It's not surprising he didn't embrace Rodgers, but the cruelty of his treatment is eye opening. Lastly the drama of his final years, particularly the will he/won't he retirement stuff and his eventual move from the Packers to the Jets is very interesting. Again, a lot of the picture painted by the media is a glossed over caricature of what actually happened behind closed doors. This is one of the most interesting biography's I've ever read and if you watched Favre and follow his career at all, its a must read.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
fast-paced
I really struggled with the rating. but 2.5 is about as generous as I get with this.
Sports biographies are notoriously easy reads, and this is no different. I skipped 100+ pages about Brett's childhood and college, and skimmed about another fifteen percent. I don't read fast at all, and yet I read the book in roughly 24 hours. The issue with the book is I knew, or had heard about most of the racy bits about Favre's career. I remember hearing rumors about his womanizing, I remember hearing about his alcoholism and drug-addiction before the rehab stints. So Pearlman had an uphill climb with me., and the review reflects that more than a problem with Pearlman's narrative or information.
The stuff Pearlman added to my brain about Favre, I probably didn't want to know. It was fun to romp down memory lane, and the tidbits added to the games I remember vividly or vaguely were very good. I appreciate the research and the interviews Pearlman put into this book, but ultimately I only sort of enjoyed myself.
An aside: NFL Films have produced a Greatest Games DVD set for many NFL franchises. For reasons I'm not sure why, the Packers is 10 discs, primarily being a Brett Favre collection. Pearlman's book details at least five games on the Packers collection...Favre's first Packer game vs. Cincinnati; a game vs. the Bears; the NFC Championship Game vs. Carolina, the Super Bowl vs. Patriots, and Favre's incredible game after his father's death vs. Oakland. It's not the worst thing in the world to read Pearlman's book and then throw in one of those games.
Sports biographies are notoriously easy reads, and this is no different. I skipped 100+ pages about Brett's childhood and college, and skimmed about another fifteen percent. I don't read fast at all, and yet I read the book in roughly 24 hours. The issue with the book is I knew, or had heard about most of the racy bits about Favre's career. I remember hearing rumors about his womanizing, I remember hearing about his alcoholism and drug-addiction before the rehab stints. So Pearlman had an uphill climb with me., and the review reflects that more than a problem with Pearlman's narrative or information.
The stuff Pearlman added to my brain about Favre, I probably didn't want to know. It was fun to romp down memory lane, and the tidbits added to the games I remember vividly or vaguely were very good. I appreciate the research and the interviews Pearlman put into this book, but ultimately I only sort of enjoyed myself.
An aside: NFL Films have produced a Greatest Games DVD set for many NFL franchises. For reasons I'm not sure why, the Packers is 10 discs, primarily being a Brett Favre collection. Pearlman's book details at least five games on the Packers collection...Favre's first Packer game vs. Cincinnati; a game vs. the Bears; the NFC Championship Game vs. Carolina, the Super Bowl vs. Patriots, and Favre's incredible game after his father's death vs. Oakland. It's not the worst thing in the world to read Pearlman's book and then throw in one of those games.
Only having watched Brett towards the end of his career, this book was informative, hilarious, insightful, and heart breaking. He started as a sort of underdog before becoming an absolute legend. He is a flawed character, but was an absolute blast to watch play, and he helped bring the glory back to Green Bay. Pearlman's journalistic expertise and writing is the icing on the cake.
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
(4.5) When I was a kid, Baltimore had no football team. I was obsessed with the Orioles, Notre Dame baseball, and Maryland football. The NFL was interesting but only in passing. I enjoyed the sport but didn't really have a favorite team.
Being a modest NFL fan in the Baltimore metro area before 1996, you had two things happen on a Sunday afternoon: Washington's football team would get blown out at 1pm. And at 4:15pm, John Madden and Pat Summerall would be broadcasting the game of the week on FOX, which always included either Dallas, San Francisco or Green Bay (no one watched the inferior AFC). You watched Dallas and San Francisco because they were great franchises. You watched Green Bay because of Brett Favre.
Like most non-partisans who grew up watching Favre, I've ridden the roller coaster of emotions: pure joy at watching him play, frustration at his on/off again retirements, annoyance at him in a Vikings uni, etc. But he's one of the most compelling athletes of my lifetime, perhaps the most interesting football personality.
Jeff Pearlman is a good sportswriter who usually writes great books. His recounts on the 90s Cowboys and 80s Lakers are the ur-texts of those respective teams. His Barry Bonds bio is wildly underrated. And with this tale on Brett Favre, he wins once more. A deep, exhaustive look at the many facets of the Packer legend, Pearlman's books are great for their ability to help you learn without feeling overstuffed with fact or bogged down by narrative. I could be grossed out at Favre's behavior but ultimately impressed with some of his better actions. The best bios strive to give a balanced perspective. Few do. This one does.
It's hard to say what I liked most about it but I guess it would be the tales of Favre's upbringing and family. I was allowed to see what made Favre Favre without any hidden revelations. Even more interesting, Favre's family cooperated. Favre himself did not but didn't seem too displeased at Pearlman's research. There's something to be said for that, especially since this book is not a hagiography.
I think Favre fans and haters alike will enjoy this one. And if you're a football fan, it's a most.
Being a modest NFL fan in the Baltimore metro area before 1996, you had two things happen on a Sunday afternoon: Washington's football team would get blown out at 1pm. And at 4:15pm, John Madden and Pat Summerall would be broadcasting the game of the week on FOX, which always included either Dallas, San Francisco or Green Bay (no one watched the inferior AFC). You watched Dallas and San Francisco because they were great franchises. You watched Green Bay because of Brett Favre.
Like most non-partisans who grew up watching Favre, I've ridden the roller coaster of emotions: pure joy at watching him play, frustration at his on/off again retirements, annoyance at him in a Vikings uni, etc. But he's one of the most compelling athletes of my lifetime, perhaps the most interesting football personality.
Jeff Pearlman is a good sportswriter who usually writes great books. His recounts on the 90s Cowboys and 80s Lakers are the ur-texts of those respective teams. His Barry Bonds bio is wildly underrated. And with this tale on Brett Favre, he wins once more. A deep, exhaustive look at the many facets of the Packer legend, Pearlman's books are great for their ability to help you learn without feeling overstuffed with fact or bogged down by narrative. I could be grossed out at Favre's behavior but ultimately impressed with some of his better actions. The best bios strive to give a balanced perspective. Few do. This one does.
It's hard to say what I liked most about it but I guess it would be the tales of Favre's upbringing and family. I was allowed to see what made Favre Favre without any hidden revelations. Even more interesting, Favre's family cooperated. Favre himself did not but didn't seem too displeased at Pearlman's research. There's something to be said for that, especially since this book is not a hagiography.
I think Favre fans and haters alike will enjoy this one. And if you're a football fan, it's a most.
My first thought after I finished Gunslinger immediately went to the fact that Pearlman is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.
His attention to detail is unmatched. I really appreciate when an author approaches a subject without a preconceived agenda of how they want to shape the story and just let the story shape itself through their research.
Brett Favre has always been entertaining but it was great learning about what molded him as a person.
A great read for anyone with a love for sports or interesting people.
His attention to detail is unmatched. I really appreciate when an author approaches a subject without a preconceived agenda of how they want to shape the story and just let the story shape itself through their research.
Brett Favre has always been entertaining but it was great learning about what molded him as a person.
A great read for anyone with a love for sports or interesting people.
I grew up in Green Bay so naturally I am a Packer fan. I also grew up with Brett Favre as our teams quarterback (I was 12 when he came to Green Bay). I thought I knew a lot about Brett Favre. This book proved me wrong. I was blown away by some of the stories and tidbits from his personal life. It was fascinating.
Pearlman is the most reliable sports biographer around today
I really struggled with the rating. but 2.5 is about as generous as I get with this.
Sports biographies are notoriously easy reads, and this is no different. I skipped 100+ pages about Brett's childhood and college, and skimmed about another fifteen percent. I don't read fast at all, and yet I read the book in roughly 24 hours. The issue with the book is I knew, or had heard about most of the racy bits about Favre's career. I remember hearing rumors about his womanizing, I remember hearing about his alcoholism and drug-addiction before the rehab stints. So Pearlman had an uphill climb with me., and the review reflects that more than a problem with Pearlman's narrative or information.
The stuff Pearlman added to my brain about Favre, I probably didn't want to know. It was fun to romp down memory lane, and the tidbits added to the games I remember vividly or vaguely were very good. I appreciate the research and the interviews Pearlman put into this book, but ultimately I only sort of enjoyed myself.
An aside: NFL Films have produced a Greatest Games DVD set for many NFL franchises. For reasons I'm not sure why, the Packers is 10 discs, primarily being a Brett Favre collection. Pearlman's book details at least five games on the Packers collection...Favre's first Packer game vs. Cincinnati; a game vs. the Bears; the NFC Championship Game vs. Carolina, the Super Bowl vs. Patriots, and Favre's incredible game after his father's death vs. Oakland. It's not the worst thing in the world to read Pearlman's book and then throw in one of those games.
Sports biographies are notoriously easy reads, and this is no different. I skipped 100+ pages about Brett's childhood and college, and skimmed about another fifteen percent. I don't read fast at all, and yet I read the book in roughly 24 hours. The issue with the book is I knew, or had heard about most of the racy bits about Favre's career. I remember hearing rumors about his womanizing, I remember hearing about his alcoholism and drug-addiction before the rehab stints. So Pearlman had an uphill climb with me., and the review reflects that more than a problem with Pearlman's narrative or information.
The stuff Pearlman added to my brain about Favre, I probably didn't want to know. It was fun to romp down memory lane, and the tidbits added to the games I remember vividly or vaguely were very good. I appreciate the research and the interviews Pearlman put into this book, but ultimately I only sort of enjoyed myself.
An aside: NFL Films have produced a Greatest Games DVD set for many NFL franchises. For reasons I'm not sure why, the Packers is 10 discs, primarily being a Brett Favre collection. Pearlman's book details at least five games on the Packers collection...Favre's first Packer game vs. Cincinnati; a game vs. the Bears; the NFC Championship Game vs. Carolina, the Super Bowl vs. Patriots, and Favre's incredible game after his father's death vs. Oakland. It's not the worst thing in the world to read Pearlman's book and then throw in one of those games.