Tales from Margaritaville [Mass Market Paperback]

Jimmy Buffett (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 5, 1993

"Entertaining...The whole volume is a tribue to Buffett's storytelling skills and his essentially sunny, manana-influenced worldview."
THE HOUSTON POST
Just where is Margaritaville, anyway? It's not on a map, that's for sure. But it does exist, in the brilliantly creative imagination of singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. TALES FROM MARGARITAVILLE is a collection so vividly packed with restless dreamers, wild wanderers, and pure gypsy souls that just reading it is an adventure itself.

Editorial Reviews

Review

PRAISE FOR TALES FROM MARGARITAVILLE

"Good natured tales of free-spirited characters . . . In fact, Mr. Buffett's lighthearted endorsement of adventure is so persuasive that, upon finishing the book, many readers will be tempted to get out their maps."--The New York Times Book Review

"Buffett created his own Lake Wobegon in a place called Heatwave."--Houston Chronicle

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From the Publisher

Having grown up on Jimmy Buffett's songs in the '70s, especially Margaritaville and Cheeseburger in Paradise, I read with interest his first book "Tales from Margaritaville". Not surprisingly, it had the same wonderful style and spirit of his songs--funny, original, free-spirited. It seemed to me that Jimmy Buffett was truly living--and chronicling-- the American Dream. But what I found most interesting was a story I heard during one of his first bookstore signings (in Virginia or Georgia, I think). The day of the book-signing, hundreds and hundreds of people showed up and the line snaked around several blocks. But what was truly interesting was the mix of people--teenagers, aging hippies, moms and dads, blue-haired old ladies--all proud to call themselves "Parrotheads". Buffett's new book "A Pirate Looks at Fifty" is currently a bestseller proving that Jimmy Buffett's appeal is as timeless as he is.
--Maureen O'Neal --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Fawcett; first 1993 edition edition (July 5, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0449222489
• ISBN-13: 978-0449222485
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (58 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #305,957 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Buffett Literary Debut, December 20, 2000

By 

Thomas Magnum (NJ, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Tales from Margaritaville (Mass Market Paperback)

Jimmy Buffett's songs always have a the feel of mini-stories, so it was only natural that he would take a crack in the literary world. This debut book is a collection of short stories that was released as a companion to his cd Off To See The Lizard. The stories are expansions of the songs on the cd. They are delightful to read and are liberally spiked with Mr. Buffett's humor. You can almost picture sitting at some bar in Key West listening to Mr. Buffett spin these yarns. Light and breezy and good fun.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars So much fun-- this guy knows how to live-- it's 5 p.m. somewhere, July 29, 2006

By 

Joyce Schwarz "Joyce Schwarz" (Marina Del Rey, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Tales from Margaritaville: Fictional Facts and Factual Fictions (Paperback)

Every bar in the world will tell you it's 5 p.m. somewhere if you want to buy a drink at 10 a.m. in the morning and say it's too early-- many folks say that Jimmy Buffett is responsible for that line-- it's 5 pm. somewhere in the world!. The book I got had a new preface by the author whose tales are just amazing...cowboy culture from HEartache Wyoming to Graceland with Tully Mars...singer, songwriter/author Buffet is a legend in his own time. I like this one even better than his autobiography a pirate turns 50 -- his stories sing with romance, adventure and a sense of saltiness that goes beyond Lake Wobegon sameness. It's so much fun-- men and women will love this book. Not because it's full of insight or soul searching but because it's FUN. Great read on an airplane, Fun to keep in your closet for a guest visitor and maybe the perfect book to take on a cruise with you. Or a busride or train ride around the country. Fabulous tales....I wish he could tell one to me why I drink a Margarita -- you could be any age to read the book -- but if you're over 40 you may find a certain understanding of what it means to be moving on in life and still young enough to care about romance and the unknown. Good book to read when you're changing your life -- changing jobs, got fired, moving, or yearn to -- try this book for a break from the same old.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Okay, so you know the song... now read the stories!, December 27, 2002

By 

Urban Medic - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tales from Margaritaville (Mass Market Paperback)

Margaritaville is Jimmy Buffett's biggest hit, and if your knowledge of him ends there, that's okay. This book of short stories, some fiction, some autobiographical, is excellent tropical escapism at its finest. Love, triumph, coming-of-age, you can almost pick the archetype, and in one way or another, he addresses it with a magnificent cast of characters, from the bizarre friends in our own neighborhoods, to good-natured scoundrels we'd love to emulate if we could, to the girl next door we wish we could reconnect with.

Buffett's descriptive style is reminiscent of Garrison Keillor's Lake Wobegon books, and it works so well, you can almost see exactly where the characters are walking to in their towns, smell the aromas, hear the townspeople in the street, etc. Rumor has it that a studio optioned the book... I can't wait to see the movie!