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The Road Years
- A Memoir, Continued . . .
- Narrated by: Rick Mercer
- Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins
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Publisher's Summary
THE INSTANT #1 BESTSELLER
At the end of his memoir Talking to Canadians, Rick Mercer was poised to make the biggest leap yet in his extraordinary career. Having overcome a serious lack of promise as a schoolboy and risen through the showbiz ranks—as an aspiring actor, star of a surprisingly successful one-man show about the Meech Lake Accord, co-founder of This Hour Has 22 Minutes, creator and star of the dark-comedy sitcom Made in Canada—he was about to tackle his biggest opportunity yet.
The Road Years picks up the story at that exciting point, with the greenlighting of what would become Rick Mercer Report. Plans for the show, of course, included political satire and Rick’s patented rants. But Rick and his partner, Gerald Lunz, were also determined to do something that comedy tends to avoid as too challenging: they would emphasize the positive. Rick would travel from coast to coast to coast in search of everything that’s best about Canada, especially its people. He found a lot to celebrate, naturally, and was rewarded with a huge audience and a run of 15 seasons.
The Road Years tells the inside story of that stupendous success. A time when Rick was heading to another town—or military base, sports centre, national park—to try dogsledding, chainsaw carving, and bear tagging; hang from a harness (a lot); ride the “Train of Death;” plus countless other joyous and/or reckless assignments.
Added to the mix were encounters with the country’s great. Every living prime minister. Rock and roll royalty from Rush to Randy Bachman. Olympians and Paralympians. A skinny-dipping Bob Rae. And Jann Arden, of course, who gets a chapter to herself. Along the way he even found the time to visit several countries in Africa and co-found and champion the charity Spread the Net, which has gone on to protect the lives of millions.
Join the celebration, and revive a wealth of happy memories, with what is Rick Mercer’s funniest, most fascinating book yet.
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What the critics say
"[The Road Years] tells the story of the success of The Rick Mercer Report and all the great encounters and other adventures that making the show allowed Rick Mercer to experience. It's a celebration of happy moments told in Mercer's trademark positivism and humour"—CBC Books
What listeners say about The Road Years
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Liz C
- 2024-02-14
RMR memories
it is very interesting to hear the back story of so many RMR memories. Rick summation of what it means to be Canadian is accurate in so many ways. There amazing people in this country
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- Laurie Mann
- 2023-11-11
Fantastic
Rick was great love his stories he is Canada! I will always be a fan.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Alehandro
- 2024-02-18
a great read/listen
thanks Rick for the book! I really enjoyed listening to it. I really enjoyed your perspective on Canada. funny enough, being an immigrant to Canada one day I started wondering the same question, what is it that makes us Canadian. any where I've traveled to everyone seems to be fond of Canada and it's people but nobody would ever say anything more than the cliches... the answer is still a little blurry but you probably came closest to answering that question.
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- Cheryl Martin
- 2023-11-04
Great read and very informative .
I love it when the author read their books as you can feel their passion about their story. Lots of interesting, thought provoking stories which I’m sure Rick has an abundance of. Looking forward to a sequel.
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- Henry Lise
- 2023-11-10
Being Canadian
Love Mercer’s conclusion. I didn’ figure out what makes a Canadian but I wouldn’t want to be anything else.
Henry Lise
Proud Canadian
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- Amazon Customer
- 2023-12-07
Ricks delivery is just as good as on TV.
I loved a peek behind the curtain, often not what you would expect. Rick's usual auditory delivery is just as effective as watching him on TV, you can easily visualize Rick’s delivering every punchline. I often hung off every word, phrase, and cliffhanger, waiting for a full-on belly laugh. I miss Rick’s face on TV, but loved his oration of so many funny moments we would never have expected.
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- Amazon Customer
- 2023-12-07
Rick Mercer is Wonderful
I feel so fortunate to have followed Rick’s career in entertainment and as a great Canadian. This book was a lot of fun. Thanks Rick! 
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- Sara Lundrigan
- 2024-02-25
never disappoints
Rick Mercer reading Rick Mercer. it doesn't get much better than that. Especially the Jann Arden chapter.
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- Paul N
- 2024-02-02
Didn’t want to stop listening
Loved the book. I listened while walking the dogs and sometimes driving in the car alone and there were moments when I would literally laugh out loud. I was sad when RMR went off the air but now every once in a while I can listen to a book, watch reruns and YouTube videos to get my fix. The book is great, some short stories, thoughts and behind the scenes look at things you’d never know about. I learned a thing or two as well and have a whole new respect for Belinda Stronach.
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- Anonymous User
- 2023-11-15
A great listen that will keep you laughing
I really enjoyed listening to Rick and catching those small wise cracks that are intertwined throughout the book. I’m off to find his other books.
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1 person found this helpful