Lucky Bastard

My Life, My Dad, and the Things I'm Not Allowed to Say on TV

By: Joe Buck

Narrated by: Joe Buck

In this New York Times bestselling memoir, the announcer of the biggest sporting events in the country—including the 2017 Super Bowl and this century's most-watched, historic, Chicago Cubs–winning World Series—reveals why he is one lucky bastard.

Sports fans see Joe Buck everywhere: broadcasting one of the biggest games in the NFL every week, calling the World Series every year, announcing the Super Bowl every three years. They know his father, Jack Buck, is a broadcasting legend and that he was beloved in his adopted hometown of St. Louis.

Yet they have no idea who Joe really is. Or how he got here. They don’t know how he almost blew his career. They haven’t read his funniest and most embarrassing stories or heard about his interactions with the biggest sports stars of this era.

They don’t know how hard he can laugh at himself—or that he thinks some of his critics have a point. And they don’t know what it was really like to grow up in his father’s shadow. Joe and Jack were best friends, but it wasn’t that simple. Jack, the voice of the St. Louis Cardinals for almost fifty years, helped Joe get his broadcasting start at eighteen. But Joe had to prove himself, first as a minor league radio announcer and then on local TV, national TV with ESPN, and then finally on FOX. He now has a successful, Emmy-winning career, but only after a lot of dues-paying, learning, and pretty damn entertaining mistakes that are recounted in this book.

In his memoir, Joe takes us through his life on and off the field. He shares the lessons he learned from his father, the errors he made along the way, and the personal mountain he climbed and conquered, all of which have truly made him a Lucky Bastard.

Critic reviews

Praise for Lucky Bastard

“[Buck] unleashes his inner stand-up comic, sprinkling the text with surprisingly funny and often self-deprecating wit.”—Booklist

“With a comic yet reverent approach to his life and broadcasting, Buck effectively captures the merging of his career and the popularity of American sports.”—Publishers Weekly

“Honest, poignant, and full of fun and heart, this is the kind of sports book any fan will love reading.”—Bustle

“With light humor and darker emotion, Buck candidly calls the game of his own life.”—Kirkus Reviews

“A steady flow of humor, love, pain, loss, and genuine human emotion.”—Sports Illustrated

“Emmy Award–winning sportscaster Joe Buck pulls back the curtain on both his public and private lives in the entertaining, but poignant autobiography Lucky Bastard. . . . This is a quick, captivating read.”—The Missourian

Terrific book from one of the best!

I really enjoyed this book. Joe is open, funny, and interesting.Highly recommended. Thanks to the author.

Buck as in doesn't suck

I have never been a Joe Buck fan. In fact I don't really like him as a broadcaster but I saw him play himself on the show Brockmeier and heard him interviewed on the radio and found him to be funny and self-deprecating to the point that I wanted to hear his story. I was not disappointed. It is not a great book, but I found it very entertaining--in fact, laugh out loud funny in parts--and came away with a new respect for Buck. Would recommend to any sports fan.

A raw insight

I think Joe did a phenomenal job revealing why he’s the way he his and how baseball and his father shaped him. Through tears and laughter I felt I was right next to Joe as he recounted his life and all the positive and negative memories. As a fellow St. Louis an I walked away with a new found respect for Joe.

Great Read!. I actually like him now!

Great Read for both sports fans and non fans of Joe Buck. He shows humility, humor and doesn't mind telling you the internal trials and tribulations of being the son off a legendary sportscaster. I enjoyed his self deprecating humor and appreciate the humility of his talking about his life failures. Great tag line: "Buck rhymes with Suck "
Craig K, Seattle WA

Excellent, excellent, excellent

Decided to re-visit this book after the death of Tim McCarver because I remembered how highly Joe spoke of Tim in this book. Joe and Tim provided so many great memories to this baseball fan, and this book only amplified them.