Straight Shooter (Unabridged)
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4.7 • 368 Ratings
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- $19.99
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- $19.99
Publisher Description
AN NAACP IMAGE AWARD NOMINEE
America’s most popular sports media figure tells it like it is in this “raw, deeply authentic, and immensely entertaining” (Bob Iger, #1 New York Times bestselling author and CEO of The Walt Disney Company) book, not only dishing out his signature, uninhibited opinions but also revealing the challenges he overcame in childhood as well as at ESPN.
Stephen A. Smith has never been handed anything, nor was he an overnight success. Growing up poor in Queens, the son of Caribbean immigrants and the youngest of six children, he was a sports-obsessed kid who faced struggles, from undiagnosed dyslexia to getting enough cereal to fill his bowl. As a basketball player at Winston-Salem State University, he got a glimmer of his true calling when he wrote a newspaper column arguing for the retirement of his own Hall of Fame coach, Clarence Gaines.
Smith hustled and rose up from a reporter on the high school beat at Daily News (New York) to a general sports columnist at The Philadelphia Inquirer before getting his own show at ESPN in 2005. After he was unceremoniously fired from the network in 2009, he became even more determined to fight for success. He got himself rehired two years later and, with his razor-sharp intelligence and fearless debate style, found the show he was destined to star in: First Take, the network’s flagship morning program.
In Straight Shooter, Smith writes about the greatest highs and deepest lows of his life and career. He gives his thoughts on Skip Bayless, Ray Rice, Colin Kaepernick, the New York Knicks, the Dallas Cowboys, and former President Donald Trump. But he also pulls back the curtain and talks about life beyond the set, sharing authentic stories about his negligent father, his loving mother, being a father himself, his battle with life-threatening COVID-19, and what he really thinks about politics and social issues. He does it all with the same intelligence, humor, and charm that has made him a household name.
A provocative and moving “blueprint of tenacity” (Fat Joe), this book is the perfect gift for lovers of sports, television, and anyone who likes their stories delivered straight to the heart.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
“Brash” and “opinionated” are the words usually used to describe ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, but his memoir will convince you to add “determined” and “resilient” to that list. The longtime host of First Take gets self-reflective, sharing his journey from the streets of Hollis, Queens to a successful career in newspapers to becoming a sports-TV star. Smith makes no bones about his unabashed ambitions, but though his quest for fame has yielded wealth, celebrity friends, and things of that nature, we loved hearing him talk about staying true to himself no matter what. Smith gets incredibly candid, revealing his loving devotion to his mother as well as some shocking truths about his father. Through it all, his distinctive vocal style makes his narration compelling and hypnotic. It can be easy to reduce the boisterous Smith down to a caricature, but Straight Shooter makes it clear he’s not someone to be underestimated.
Customer Reviews
HOW BOUT STEPHAN A
I always loved listening to Stephan a smith on first take, well now I get a first hand account of his life and man has this man faced adversity, grievance, and triumph, and overcame it all. He is an extremely hard worker, the reader will come to find and his perseverance and faith in God gets him through it. I would love to meet him one day and tell him “Stephan A tell it like it is”
Never judge a book by its cover
Outstanding book and what a great time to write and release it. Stephen A. said it best that his loud and obnoxious disposition is a turn off to some (I was turned off). It wasn't until I took interest in the hilarious commentary on his feelings for the Dallas Cowboys fans (The Stephen A. Smith Show) that I took note of his delivery on various topics in a different light. I've followed him ever sense. Everyone has a story and Steven A's story is a true example of starting from the bottom, working with what you're given to climb, believing in yourself, accepting tough love support; all while staying true to yourself and staying open to work on the best you.
I absolutely enjoyed the book Bruh.
For anyone — a fan or not of SAS
Made me appreciate him even more hearing his story, spoken by himself. Learned a lot about him. He’s my favorite person to listen to.