North Dallas Forty

I bought and received the book the same week. Fast, no mess service. I would definitely buy from this seller again. Thanks!

I have read and re-read this book 3 or 4 times. It just rings true. Gent's insights into the personalities of the athletes and those who idolize them are dead-on accurate.

Peter Gent wrote other books after North Dallas Forty, but none of them were as forceful, or prescient, as this one. Fans and the media are always surprised by the drug scandals in the NFL. The revelations about cocaine and steroid use in the last 20 years have been greeted with a sense of shock and incredulity, as if these problems never existed in the NFL's glory years. North Dallas Forty is a thinly fictionalized account of the Dallas Cowboys of the late 60's and early 70's. Needless to say, drug use was just as big a problem in the NFL then as it is now, as Gent graphically illustates through the trials and tribulations of Phil Elliot. Anyone who has read this book realizes that drugs are not a new problem in sports, but a continuing one. The book is laced with savage humor, graphic sex, and an unflinching exploration of the dark side of the NFL. It is fun to pick out the fictional versions of real-life figures. B.A. Quinlan is obviously Tom Landry. Seth Maxwell is obviously Don Meredith. Delma Huddle is obviously Bob Hayes. This book illustrates that athletes are basically the same people that they were 30 years ago. They aren't better or worse. The main difference is a 24 hour media that magnifies players' actions for entertainment value and increased salaries.

North Dallas 40 ranks right up there with some of the best books ever written about professional football. The characters in this book are able to invoke a full range of emotional responses from the reader. Gent is an extremely interesting writer and this book will be what he was remembered for.

ND 40 is by far the best book about football that I have ever read. Gent's insight into the game and, much more importantly, the human condition is exemplary. There is abundant sex and violence but don't be misled; the allure of the novel is its compelling analysis of society and human relationships. The protagonist is a cynical tight end who uses pain-killing drugs to continue his career and mind-altering substances to deal with the vicissitudes of everyday life. One hectic week in his life is chronicled as he copes with crazed coaches and teammates, a new girl friend, and memories of a failed marriage. It's difficult to put this book down and I have read it about 4 times. (For what it's worth, I am a Phi Beta Kappan with a Ph.D in Psychlogy. ND 40 shows more insight into human behavior than a stack of texts). Do yourself a favor--read this book.