Big Russ and Me: Father and Son: Lessons of Life
June 23rd, 2008
Tim Russert's #1 New York Times bestseller -- now in paperback.
Now in paperback -- the #1 best-selling Father’s Day book of 2004, with over half a million copies sold in hardcover. Tim Russert, one of America’s most watched and trusted news anchors‚ connected with readers across the nation with his critically acclaimed memoir about growing up in the 1950s and the special bond between fathers and sons.
Amazon.com Review:
Veteran newsman and Meet the Press moderator Tim Russert is known for his direct and unpretentious style and in this charming memoir he explains why. Russert's father is profiled as a plainspoken World War II veteran who worked two blue-collar jobs while raising four kids in South Buffalo but the elder Russert's lessons on how to live an honest, disciplined, and ethical life are shown to be universal. Big Russ and Me, a sort of Greatest Generation meets Tuesdays with Morrie, could easily have become a sentimental pile of mush with a son wistfully recalling the wisdom of his beloved dad. But both Russerts are far too down-to-earth to let that happen and the emotional content of the book is made more direct, accessible, and palatable because of it. The relationship between father and son, contrary to what one would think of as essential to a riveting memoir, seems completely healthy and positive as Tim, the academically gifted kid and later the esteemed TV star and political operative relies on his old man, a career sanitation worker and newspaper truck driver, for advice. Big Russ and Me also traces Russert's life from working-class kid to one of broadcast journalism's top interviewers by introducing various influential figures who guided him along the way, including Jesuit teachers, nuns, his dad's drinking buddies, and, most notably, the late New York Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, whom Russert helped get elected in 1976. Plenty of entertaining anecdotes are served up along the way from schoolyard pranks to an attempt to book Pope John Paul II on the Today Show. Though not likely to revolutionize modern thought, Big Russ and Me will provide fathers and sons a chance to reflect on lessons learned between generations. --Charlie Williams
Lowest Used Price: USD 4.50
Lowest New Price: USD 5.65
Number Of Pages: 352
Release Date: 2005-05-11
Original Language: English
Unknown: English
Published: English
Excellent
Item was a gift, so have not actually read, but recipient has said book is an excellent read. Book very interesting and hard to put down. Recipient has expressed interest in other books of the same nature including Tom Brokaw's "The Next Generation."
A good read
My daughter, now in her 20s, bought this book for me to pass the time during a long trip that we recently took to visit my mother. It's a book that I had heard about before but had never once considered reading. What a pleasant surprise it turned out to be! "Big Russ and Me" probably will appeal to all generations for all the reasons that Tim Russert intended it to, but Baby Boomers, i.e., Russert's generation, probably will enjoy the book even more on account of the memories it evokes, intentionally or not, of growing up in the '50s and early '60s. That's what hooked me, more than the story of the relationship between Russert and his father, although this too, which is the book's primary theme, is indeed very interesting and Russert writes about it skillfully and engagingly. If you are a Baby Boomer, this book's for you. Even if you're not, it's still a good read.
Passionate man reveals lessons that shaped his character and work ethic
Tim Russert shares many stories from his chilhood about his father, baseball, school, and important days in history like the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Bobby Kennedy, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Of course, I especially loved his stories about baseball in Buffalo and growing up a Yankee fan. An unexpected bonus was learning new things about Yankee icon Yogi Berra. Reading this after his passing, I found it fascinating how many of his early lessons revolved around his mortality. Hearing Russert discuss his admiration for his son and the time they spent together makes the story even more powerful. Indeed we learn a lot from our fathers, and it seems we learn a lot when we become fathers too. I also anjoyed hearing about the lessons he learned from his three most influential teachers.
Buffalo native
My husband and I were born and raised in Buffalo, New York and it was a very special place to be raised. There is something about this City that stays with you as "home" all of your life. Although, for the most part, we enjoyed Tim Russert's book because we admired him and it made us nostolgic, it had a wee too much of the "Cleaver" family to it. Also, he seems to pretty much discount his Mother in this idylic childhood and her influence on him, which must have been great. As his parents seperated down the road, not all could have been that wonderful. However, we still thought he was a true, hard-working, well-prepared journalist and not a celebrity interviewer as so many newscasters are.
Great to remember the little things with a big effect
What a page turner! Not so much for the next chapter of events, but to bask, to saturate in the delight of the wholesome memories of which I had forgotten so many details. I will revisit Big Russ and Me to restore my belief in the goodness of folks or at least that there was a time when it was genuine. Russert captures it in an easy style that brings to mind a lazy afternoon over coffee at the kitchen table. So glad I didn't miss this one.Big Russ and Me: Father and Son: Lessons of Life
