Customer Reviews

Talking to Girls About Duran Duran: One Young Man's Quest for True Love and a Cooler Haircut

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

A song can really transport you back to a specific time and place more than just about anything else, and this book may have you frantically googling for videos of the obscure 80's bands described so you can head back there for just a little while. The memories triggered by music are the driving force behind this book.

"Talking to girls..." is Rob Sheffield's second book after Love Is a Mix Tape: Life and Loss, One Song at a Time. I wasn't sure how this book would hold up after "Mix Tape" because the latter story was so absolutely gut-wrenching and beautiful all at once; it had the feel of a completely singular work of art. But I have to say that Sheffield, a contributing editor at Rolling Stone, delivers a second time.

This memoir is about growing up in the `80s, and is told through experiences with many different songs from that time. Sheffield gives us a guided tour (with soundtrack) through the everyday life experiences that we can all relate to--crummy jobs, first loves, first music that got us excited. He does this with as much warmth and humor as he did with "Mix Tape". The only place where this book does not hold up in comparison is obvious, because it couldn't possibly. Whereas Mix Tape was a love letter to his wife who so tragically died young, this book does not pack that kind of emotional punch. It's more of a sweet, breezy walk down memory lane. His love for his family and friends is abundantly clear, and the warmth of this book has made me happy since I picked it up.

My only (minor) criticism is that the writing does get a bit uneven in places, and if you are unfamiliar with some of the bands and music described, you will indeed have to google away to get yourself caught up. My MAJOR criticism is that Mr. Sheffield clearly hates Tom Petty...and this is simply unacceptable. And "Shiny Shiny" by Haysi Fantayzee may actually be the worst song ever to grace the airwaves. His love for this song is inexplicable. Nonetheless Sheffield is such an excellent writer that I won't deduct any stars for these somewhat disturbing character flaws.

Bottom line: recommend, most especially for music fans and kids who grew up in the '80s.

My 11 year old son hates it when I listen to the oldies station, because listening to all of those great 80's hits always generates lots of stories that start out "when I was in high school...'' The author has offered firm evidence of something I've known all along. In the 80's, it was all about the music. I am ashamed to admit that I don't remember much of what was going on geopolitically during the 1980s, but I have very vivid memories of the launch of MTV and exactly where I was for the premiere of Michael Jackson's Beat It. The author offers up some hilarious riffs on music lyrics, movies, and his own experiences with a crazy bunch of sisters. His descriptions of his summer jobs brought back memories of some of my own summers spent with Walkman firmly in place, trying to decipher just exactly what some of those lyrics were and the hidden "true meanings" behind them.

The pop culture references come pretty rapid fire and I was able to keep up with most of them, but Haysi Fantayzee? Really? That one threw me. Sometimes the author gets pretty out there, so you have to be pretty up on your 80's new wave if your'e going to ride along, but it's all done in a very affable manner that makes for an easy read. This is a fun book that I would recommend to anyone who spent their formative years in this crazy decade. It brought back a lot of fond memories and quite a few cringes as I remembered things that were better off locked in the vault. It also kind of made me feel better for liking some of the music that I'm still pretty fond of. I must admit though, that with about 50 pages to go, I was getting tired of the 80's all over again and was ready to move on... at least until my next turn at the oldies station.

A few of the bands that shaped my teen-dom are missing. There's no ABC, there's no Adam Ant. But what is there is pure genius. Your 40 year old self will look back with longing? embarrassment? I'm not sure what - but you'll look back and laugh your butt off. If you were that kid in the record store in the back corner where they kept the imports looking for the EP of the song that you heard that morning on college radio in 1984 you will love this book. It's written for us! Highly recommend!

This book is a must read for anyone who has grown up with the music of the 80s as the soundtrack to life, love and loss. It's funny, insightful and a little whimiscal supported by a tinny backbeat of immortal walkman and vinyl tracks. Talking to girls about Duran Duran is, of course grounded in the meaning of life as defined by the Fab Five; as for many of us growing up there was no life without them (and for some of us, that's still largely the case!). However, the author reaquaints the reader with some of the most quintessential music of the 80s from Madonna to Culture Club to The Smiths. A great, entertaining, easy read. Highly recommended for the Gen X in all of us.

I can't think of a book that made me happier this year. Rob Sheffield remembers his youth better than I remember mine, but we shared a soundtrack and a love for music that lasted through everything. I laughed out loud on almost every page of this book, and remembered songs I hadn't thought of in 20 years or more. Several people will be getting this book from me for Christmas.

Music journalist Rob Sheffield has put together a chronological series of essays based on pop tunes from the 1980s that he feels define some major turning points in his life as he came of age in that decade.
One would think that such a limited time-frame would exclude those of us who experienced adolescence earlier or were born later, but this is not the case.
We are all aware of the major players in this game: The Go-Go's, Culture Club, Hall & Oates, Prince and Madonna and if we find ourselves floundering with L'Trimm or Haysi Fantaysee Sheffield stands by to throw us a lifeline from his vast footlocker of pop music trivia.

His references to early MTV bear surprising parallels for those of us from the birth-of-FM-radio generation. In fact he transcends the whole idea of generations by taking us back to our own eras when the answers to life's most difficult questions could be found on the radio. We all have a store of emotional and biographical touchstones, these are Rob's and he explores them with sensitivity and wit that brings the reader into the picture with him.

And the guy can turn a phrase. His stream-of-consciousness style rapping has a rhythm as infectious as any good dance tune and his wide-ranging references, from Byron to Baba Ram Dass and back, are esoteric enough to make us feel smart while accessible enough to let us all in on the joke.

So, if you can't tell John Taylor from Nick Rhodes don't despair, Rob Sheffield will see you through, and let you in on the secret to proper toilet paper placement when entertaining female guests as well- "They just DO".

Opportunities to be funny, smart about music, interesting and connected to reality. The author seems to create his own reality that excludes what the rest of the world saw clearly. These short blurbs about songs in the 80s and how they related to his life barely connect in many parts. I can't help but wonder if the author read his own work.

Best part of the book is when he talks about clipping his grandfather's ingrown toe nails; it's actually quite intimate and disarming compared to the rest of the boredom that goes on here.

Talking to Girls About Duran Duran is Rob Sheffield's personal story about being a teenager in the 80's and the effect 80s music had on his life. He begins the book when he is 13 years old and each chapter's title is a song from the 80s. He holds nothing back no matter how embarrasing it might be, his awkwardness around girls, his years living as a hermit listening to The Smiths, his glory days as the ice cream man, all are discussed in the book with the music he loved mixed in to help tell the story.

I really enjoyed this book. I was also a teenager in the 80s and this book brought back a lot of memories- the good and the bad. Rob Sheffield is a writer for Rolling Stone and his knowledge and passion for music really shines in this book. Along with the music from this time Sheffield also talks about the fashion, movies, and TV shows that will really bring you back to the decade. I particularly enjoyed the tribute to John Hughes movies which I loved.

I found myself laughing out loud quite a few times in this book, Sheffield is very funny and I found myself thinking how much fun it would be to hang out with him at a party. His personality really comes through in his writing.

I do not think that everyone would enjoy this book as much as I did. I think it is really meant for people who grew up in the 80s or people who enjoy hearing about that decade. I know that a lot of the things that he talks about would probably be lost on a younger reader. For all of you fans of Madonna, The Smiths, and of course Duran Duran you will have a great time walking down memory lane with Rob Sheffield.

Rob Sheffield captures the coming-of-age exuberance and anxieties (remember War Games?) of the New Wave era in this fun book. You won't cry and you may laugh. "If you ever step into the Wayback Machine and zip into the 1980s, you will have some interesting conversations, even though nobody will believe a word you say." So begins Sheffield's fun mixtape down memory lane. Remember the cassingle? I don't, but enjoyed walking in Sheffield's shoes through the New Wave and his coming-of-age memories evoked, even the bad music (it turns out there's a deeper reason guys didn't like Duran Duran). There isn't really a great 80s American novel (I'm talking to you, "Less Than Zero" and "Bright Lights, Big City") but "Talking to Girls About Duran Duran," published in 2010, is the next best thing.

It took me awhile to get into this book. The humor did not come across right away. I kept reading, though, and Rob Sheffield's hilarious self-deprecating wit came through. Anecdotes about the high school wrestling team, wanting to be a genius by sitting around doing nothing, garbage and ice cream man tales, etc. -- all quirky and fun. I absolutely had never heard of some of the artists cited in the book. I do think Mr. Sheffield had a more "pop" taste than I did. U2, arguably the best band of the eighties, got scant mention. Some big hits were overlooked -- but then again, this is Mr. Sheffield's story, not a definitive treatise on music of the eighties. How sweet that he would be so awestruck by his sisters. Wow! I love my brother and he loves me, but I don't think I had the same hypnotic effect on him. We were too busy sniping at each other to be that warm and fuzzy. With a laptop nearby as I read, I was able to hear all the songs I somehow missed the first time around -- very helpful. This book would greatly benefit from the inclusion of an "Index of Songs."