Preview
  • Semi-Tough

  • By: Dan Jenkins
  • Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
  • Length: 7 hrs and 39 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (68 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Semi-Tough

By: Dan Jenkins
Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $17.19

Buy for $17.19

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

Seventh on Sports Illustrated's Top 100 Sports Books of All Time, Dan Jenkins' Semi-Tough is a raucous, politically incorrect football spoof starring New York Giants' redneck star Billy Clyde Puckett.

As Puckett records the outrageous buildup to his team's Super Bowl clash with cross-town rivals the Jets, his best friend's voluptuous main squeeze puts some knee-buckling moves on him that he finds difficult to dodge.

©1972 Dan Jenkins (P)2008 Recorded Books, LLC
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Critic reviews

"Jenkins is as irreverent and hip a sports satirist as ever ..." ( Publishers Weekly)

What listeners say about Semi-Tough

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    31
  • 4 Stars
    21
  • 3 Stars
    7
  • 2 Stars
    5
  • 1 Stars
    4
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    29
  • 4 Stars
    12
  • 3 Stars
    8
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    4
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    27
  • 4 Stars
    12
  • 3 Stars
    8
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    4

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great book almost ruined by narrator

Would you consider the audio edition of Semi-Tough to be better than the print version?

No idea

What was one of the most memorable moments of Semi-Tough?

When the narrator wasn't trying too hard.

What didn’t you like about L. J. Ganser’s performance?

Too theatrical, but I guess it grew on me to be tolerable, but just barely.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Very funny and entertaining

The story is funny and entertaining but the reading from L.J, Ganser is brilliant! It really takes you into the characters and the story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Don't be mislead by the 1 star reviews

The people that left the one star reviews are exactly who you think they are. This gem is 50 years old and set in a sports setting in the early 70s and there are a lot of racial slurs thrown around and the vast majority are in jest. There are a couple parts that get uncomfortable but as a whole it's a great listen. It took a bit to get rolling but I was sad when it was over.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Reread 40 years later

Rereading after 40 years I can still laugh at Dan's wit, and cringe slightly @ words. It caused me to think how publishers nowadays in a politically correct world, how would this book be published.
Hopefully it wouldn't as I am sure there's no maliciousness involved.
I'm looking forward to reading more from Dan Jenkins, his daughter Sally as well. I am becoming a big fan, she's every bit as good as her father was.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Maybe too raw

Pre-internet glimpse into the lives of rich & famous athletes. Racial epithets & descriptions of women made me uncomfortable

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

This has not aged well

Loved this book when I was in High School. But the culture has changed. The parts I remember as funny are still funny, But the vocabulary is more jarring than I remember.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Vulgar and Disgusting

I am no prude, but this book simply has no redeeming qualities. It is filled with pathetic attempts at eight grade humor, laced with vulgar profanity.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

TRASH!

Never was a fan of locker room trash talk. Here's a book that has nothing to do with sports/football, and has everything to do with racial slurring, female degradation, and towel popping antics that were offensive when published and even more so today. How it ranks as No. 7 on SI's top 100 sport books of all time is a mystery. Do yourself a favor and buy The Match, by Mark Frost. You'll be inspired and in awe of a classy sport with classy figures - the very opposite of this waste of time.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Outdated and Unfunny

What disappointed you about Semi-Tough?

The effort to overcome years of avoiding this type of name branding

What was most disappointing about Dan Jenkins’s story?

Bigotry

How could the performance have been better?

Read Ball 4 and start over...

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Semi-Tough?

Page one to the end.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!