strangebehavior's review against another edition
3.0
Pretty interesting interviews with an assortment of people.
docmarten's review against another edition
3.0
Fun, easy read. A collection of interviews that author Neil Strauss conducted over his career as a journalist. Featuring a slew of celebrities that often open up to Strauss giving us a look into their thoughts, opinions, complaints and more. A few celebrities interviewed include Johnny Cash, Trent Reznor, Lady Gaga, Marilyn Manson, Sasha Baron Cohen and many more.
sunseas's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
stuedb's review against another edition
4.0
Bought this at Waterstones when @neilstrauss came on his UK tour the other week. A very interesting snippet of the lives of the famous people he's met while being a journalist for Rolling Stone magazine.
cmbwell's review against another edition
4.0
A series of interviews, like eating potato chips. "Just one more...!" Good summary at the end.
ndavis8880's review against another edition
4.0
A Book about Life
I think my original intent when buying this book was to read dirt on celebrities. There is that, but more. People are flawed and make poor choices in search of happiness; some of them just happen to be rich and famous. I ended up enjoying stories about people I’d never heard of just as much as the ones about Lady Gaga or Cher. The book also introduced me to music by some of those people I’d never heard of as well as reignited my interest in music from points in my life years ago. This book shows the power of asking questions and finding connections with other people.
I think my original intent when buying this book was to read dirt on celebrities. There is that, but more. People are flawed and make poor choices in search of happiness; some of them just happen to be rich and famous. I ended up enjoying stories about people I’d never heard of just as much as the ones about Lady Gaga or Cher. The book also introduced me to music by some of those people I’d never heard of as well as reignited my interest in music from points in my life years ago. This book shows the power of asking questions and finding connections with other people.
kelseyreadingstuff's review against another edition
4.0
Very interesting, but it definitely changed how I view almost everyone he interviewed. They all pretty much confirm (in my mind) the idea that fame turns you into an asshole.
lauren_salsa's review against another edition
4.0
Three-and-a-half-leaning-toward-four stars.
I’ve been reading this book off and on for about two years. To be honest, I’d forget about it and then notice it on the bottom of my book stack. Strauss was a longtime Rolling Stone and New York Times writer and this is a nicely collected set of his interviews (as opposed to the finished articles). Of course, like the celebrities he interviews, some are vastly more interesting than others. And, to be honest, his words are more interesting than most of those coming out his subjects’ mouths. The best parts of this collection were his asides, his introductions, and what he was doing at the time of the interviews, such as starting, “Madonna has an unusual way of relating to strangers” or talking about riding around California with Snoop Dogg. So perhaps I would have been happier reading a collection of Strauss’ articles instead of the interviews itself. But overall, this was a fascinating two-year read.
I’ve been reading this book off and on for about two years. To be honest, I’d forget about it and then notice it on the bottom of my book stack. Strauss was a longtime Rolling Stone and New York Times writer and this is a nicely collected set of his interviews (as opposed to the finished articles). Of course, like the celebrities he interviews, some are vastly more interesting than others. And, to be honest, his words are more interesting than most of those coming out his subjects’ mouths. The best parts of this collection were his asides, his introductions, and what he was doing at the time of the interviews, such as starting, “Madonna has an unusual way of relating to strangers” or talking about riding around California with Snoop Dogg. So perhaps I would have been happier reading a collection of Strauss’ articles instead of the interviews itself. But overall, this was a fascinating two-year read.
tikimark's review against another edition
4.0
Great collection of interviews, smartly broken up into bite-sized chunks in an interesting order. Highly recommended for students of pop culture and music.
claudiavolano's review against another edition
5.0
Everything [and more than] you ever wanted to know about rock and rollers and various other performers. Not necessarily a pretty picture but I was drawn in and kept going. Neil Strauss has a gift for being non-judgmental and so folks just open up to him. Sometimes it's just ego blasting and lots of F-bombs but it's engrossing and you just want more. Human nature - more fun than a barrel of monkeys!