Customer Reviews

Beatleology: A Magical Mystery Tour to Discover Your Inner Beatle

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The premise of this book is fun and simple. Instead of us being a "Leo" or year of the dog, according to Beatleology each person is either a John, Paul, George, or Ringo. We all have an Inner Beatle which dictates our personality and relationships. For instance, thoughtful, introspective people are Georges. Type-A personalities tend to Pauls. After reading a few chapters I was quickly able to identify all of my friends and family members which was a lot of fun. Along with descriptions of the four different Inner Beatles, the book discusses minor signs and why we should watch out for our Yoko (a hilarious idea). I found Beatleology to be a great gift for all the Beatles fans in my life.

I love my copy of Beatleology. Not only do I get to learn fun facts about one of my all time favorite bands, but I get to see that I am a George, which is quit funny and actually makes a lot of sense. I love all of the humor in the book. It's a lot of fun to take the quiz with friends and get into silly philosophical discussions about the fab four.

This book is great in that it does go into a bit of "pop" psychology, but also analyzes the style and personality of each Beatle and how they contributed to the band. Also, it talks about how to deal with the Yokos in your life. Very funny--any Beatle fan would enjoy it as gift!

This feels like an expanded version of a late-night discussion over drinks with old friends. Insightful, funny, often cringing with introspection. Of course, being a Beatles fan is a must, and if you aren't, then you're just a Yoko.

I think this could be tweaked down into a great party game. Roll some dice, ask some questions, see if people agree with the answers and if they've correctly guessed which Beatle fits said answers. Rum and wine sold separately.

Overall, this is a highly entertaining book that's a worthwhile read for any Beatles fan. It will give you some of the same insights that a good personality inventory (like the Meyers-Briggs) would, but it will make you laugh along the way.

Looking at personality types through the prism of the four Beatles works surprisingly well. The authors are even-handed, assessing the strengths and weaknesses of each Beatle type in a tone that's sometimes tongue-in-cheek but is always affectionate. This isn't a "joke" book by any means, but it doesn't take itself too seriously, either. The basics of each Beatle type won't surprise any fan -- Johns are innovative and wildly creative but moody and prone to impulsive, sometimes destructive decisions, Pauls are driven to make the most of their talents and are highly romantic but can be overbearing and soppy, etc. -- but the book develops these types and their interactions in interesting ways. Looking at the types from the standpoints of how they relate in love, at work, and in families produces a lot of fascinating ideas about how and why people do or don't get along.

I would have appreciated more use of the band's music to back up and expand on what the authors were saying about each Beatle. It's pretty telling that it's George who sings "Don't Bother Me," that it's John inviting us to "Strawberry Fields" where "nothing is real," that it's Paul who needs his love to be "Here, There, and Everywhere," and that it's Ringo wishing to be with his friends in an "Octopus' Garden."

Finally, it's dismaying that the book gets some basic, easily verifiable facts about the band wrong, and that different sections of the book contradict each other on factual issues. This isn't as damaging as it might have been, since the factual summaries about each band member are so brief, and the personality profiles don't depend on the factual details. But the sloppiness is irritating, and this definitely isn't the book to go to to learn what actually happened. For example, in the section on John, we're told that John was "admitted to the Quarry Bank Grammar School at the age of twelve where he met future Beatle Paul McCartney," even though their actual meeting at the Woolton fete, brokered by a mutual friend, has passed into legend and is exhaustively documented. (The section on Paul has Paul going, correctly, to the Liverpool Institute for Boys.) At times this kind of thing affects assertions about the band and what it did, as we're also told at one point that "George was considered the most musically experimental of the all the Beatles" (arguable, at best) but later told that George's "straightforward ballads and pop songs provided valuable balance to the increasingly psychedelic and experimental Lennon/McCartney" compositions (again, arguable at best, given that George wrote "Within You Without You," among other songs).

Also, it's pretty mean-spirited to warn people to watch out for their "Yoko," who will bring them down. Yoko Ono and John Lennon's relationship was mighty complicated, and while it wasn't the picture-perfect tale some would like, it's wrong to put too much blame on Yoko, in my opinion.

In sum, "Beatleology" is well worth reading for the psychological insight and the humor. Just get your facts about the band and its members elsewhere.

Of all the Beatles books I own, this has got to be the most fun (and the only one I can show off to friends!).

A quirky little book that's as in-depth as a real horoscope (which is a compliment), you'll find out quickly which Beatle you associate with the most in terms of personality. Thankfully, not every question makes it as obvious as you'd think as to which of the four you are, so you can't cheat.

With informative sections about each sign, minor signs, your "Yoko", and even famous people who exhibited traits of the Fab Four, it'll make for great fun to use on friends and family. I found that I was a George with a Paul rising, and I can see some of these things in the people I hang out with.

Definitely worth the purchase; you'll find yourself nodding and saying "that is just like me!" the whole time.