Thoughts 
Paul is Undead by Alan Goldsher, Blackstone Audio 2010, 7 hours 50 minutes
I have Literate HouseWife to thank for the suggestion to listen to this to get the full range of talent that is “narrator Simon Vance”. And then I find out that Kailana read this book, too. The Guilded Earlobe says exactly what I would say, so I’ll let him :
A hilarious novel that probably would have worked even better if I was more of a Beatles fan. Simon Vance’s narration itself makes this title worth a listen.
I had wishlisted this at the Audible.com site and recently, it went on sale. Just in time for RIP VII.
So I purchased and started listening right away. I just had to find out if this Simon Vance dude was as good as everyone says!
He is. And oh, what a funny odd gross story this is.
In a quick nutshell? It’s an oral history of the Beatles as zombies. Actually, Ringo isn’t. Paul insisted that at least one band member have blood pumping through their veins. (It IS cool that Ringo is a ninja. Yoko is, too, in case you are curious but don’t think you’ll read/listen. Oh, and Mick Jagger is a Zombie Hunter.)
Recommended for any Beatles aficionado with a high gross-out tolerance and a wicked sense of humor.
Four slices of pie. PIE ON FIRE!!! (chapter 4)
“So I can’t interest you in a flaming pie, John Winston Lennon?
No, you can’t interest me in a flaming pie, you sparkle-eyed wench.”
.
HIdeinWhitetoSkipLine
I was wondering if this one was any good. It sounds pretty funny.
yea, it is. gory but hilarious.
Nice hashtagging! I’ve been forgetting lately. You are making me want to cave in and get an Audible subscription now.
Oh, did you find this from Twitter? I wish I could customize the twitter tweet when I publish (maybe I can but haven’t figured it out yet?)
No, I got to it from email, I think. There were only a couple of very basic options for customizing the Twitter feed that I ever figured out.
I do love Simon Vance, but zombies aren’t my thing, so I’m not sure about this one.
It was over the top, I admit. But I did laugh a lot and that has to be good.
What an odd story! I like the idea though. I have yet to hear Vance read a book but everyone raves about him. I did listen to a short clip once to get a feel for his voice and I thought it was sublime.
And he is very good at all sorts of accents.
I think the title comes from a rumor that was going around in the 60′s that Paul was dead and all sorts of fans felt that the cover of (because Paul had no shoes on) and song lyrics in Abby Road were hinting at this or something. I am not much of a Beatles fan either, but I do remember reading about the “Paul is Dead” rumour somewhere.
Oh OK. That makes sense. I know I am not up on all that is The Beatles.
The title is “Paul is Undead” (as opposed to one of the other Beatles) because there is an urban legend that Paul died and was replaced by a look-alike in 1966. There are apparently clues in the band’s music and the Abbey Road cover art: According to the theory, the band members are dressed and arranged like a funeral possession, with Paul as the corpse without shoes on. There’s a whole wikipedia page devoted to the theory: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_is_dead
I read this book a few years ago, and I really didn’t like it. It has some good facts in it, but I didn’t find it very funny. I felt like it was trying to be funny, but perhaps this particular brand of humor just isn’t to my taste.
I do think I would not have enjoyed it as much if I only read it as opposed to having it performed, ifyouwill, by Mr. Vance.
I recall way back in the day… I really was a nerdy naive little kid and my cousin only one year older berated me quite harshly as only cousins can for not even knowing that Paul McCartney started a band after the Beatles broke up. He was going on and on and on about The Wings and I didn’t know any of it, had little music knowledge (must have been in the mid-70s?) and he couldn’t stop making fun of me for being so out of it. I always think of him when I think of Paul McCartney.
Thanks for the link and info.
I too have heard how amazing and awesome this Simon Vance is. I’ll have to check it out … though it sounds beyond weird.
Weird? After all the other horror books I have read lately?!
This sounds pretty hilarious. I’m not a Beatles fan so I don’t think I’ll listen to it. I will find something else narrated by Vance though.
My next SimVan will be Dickens’ Bleak House. next month readalong, join?
Maybe. I’ll see if my library has a copy of it on audio.
YAY!
I never finished this one! I blame it on my general ambivalence towards all things Beatle.
Yea, I had a moment that I decided to not give it up and push on and enjoy it. It was only 8 hours – compared to the King books I have listened to this was a stroll in a park.
What fun! I like the Beatles a lot but wouldn’t call myself a rabid fan or anything. Maybe just a rabid enthusiast.