Customer Reviews

Urban Legends: The Truth Behind All Those Deliciously Entertaining Myths That Are Absolutely, Positively, 100% Not True

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

What is it about a salacious urban legend that appeals to my secret morbid curiosity? Gaping at car wrecks, nasty gossip about lovers' trysts, celebrity rivalries and divadom-you may not want to admit you live for this stuff, but I do and if you've found your way here than you do too. Urban Legends bring a little spunk or rush to what maybe an otherwise dull existence. Believing the story is true, knowing that "this happened to a friend of a friend of my aunt's" makes it that much more juicy. I think the lure of the UL dates back generations, because they're actually a modern-day version of folk tale and story telling, which indeed is an art. Once these stories are proven false, however, the bubble bursts, and I'm left feeling deflated. Somehow with Roeper's book though, the debunking of these urban legends is fun! He has a way of exposing the myths that is just as much of an art form as the story telling itself. He explains why we might be inclined to believe them, and that although the stories sound better had they been true, there truly is no possibility of it. He's got the journalistic talent and a thorough researcher and fact checker to back up what he's written. It is easy to see that Roeper has a passion for the ULs and years of experience tracking them. Plus, you'll never believe some of the ones he's included. You'll be surprised how many of them you've heard and believed to be true! This is a great book to read all in one night or pick up every now and then for light entertainment. I have done both. Don't miss the one that compares "The Wizard of Oz" with "Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon," "kidney harvesting" and the chapter on weddings. Those are particularly fun.

In this book there are many of those Urban Legends that we've heard of that have been circulating since we can remember. And, there are also many tales that we haven't heard of. Today we get most of these myths via email, but before email came to be, I remember hearing...."this happened....I heard that....so-and-so said....did you know that....?" And beyond the humor, are the effects these tall-tales can have on the people and places they're about. Many of these "alleged" rumors were followed up in the form of questions from journalists during media interviews. Often, the media will investigate a rumor (urban myth) to see if there is any merit to it. Once debunked as false however, the rumor lives on in peoples' minds.

HIV positive Hyperdermic needles left in the coin returns of pay phones. Those unfortunate people who went out on the town to wake up in hotel bathtub filled with ice, and a note left to call the Doctor because their Kidney had been removed. And what's to that gerbil rumor involving a celebrity we all know? Well, that's false too. That particular myth has been tagged on other celebrities going back to the 70s.

Who started these tales? When? How did they get spread?
In addition to listing and describing these interesting myths, Roeper notes of the origins, means and methods of their growth, and the current believability status of many of them. Good coffee table book. It'll occupy some of the folks you'll bring over.

Rich Roeper has done a thoroughly entertaining and very meticulous job of dispelling some of the great urban legends of our time. From the Craig Shergold business-card hoaxes to the rumors of thousands available from Disney and Bill Gates via the internet, to some of our favorite and most-hallowed backstreet Hollywood stories, Roeper takes 'em on and takes 'em down. In addition, Roeper's singularly amusing and inclusive writing style makes his deconstructions of these myths just plain fun to read. Terrific bedside reading and delightful from start to finish.

"Urban Legends" by Richard Roeper is a light read perfect for a teen audience. This book touches on most of the common urban legends, the welcome to the world of AIDS urban legend, whether Tupac is really dead, Tommy Hilfiger on Oprah and other urban legends that have been rehashed over time. The book dispells what is truth and what is fiction. Overall though this book doesn't really tell readers what can't be found on the Internet or in other books. It's an entertaining book.

If you have ever questioned the truth of any story that begins with "A friend of a friend told me...." then this is the book for you. What sets this book apart from other collections of urban legends, is Roeper's investigations of the facts behind the stories. Every legend in the book has been carefully researched and although it comes as no surprise that most of these rumors have no basis in fact, it is neat to see how urban legands can become public relations nightmares!

This is a great way to pass the time while you are waiting for a check from Bill Gates after you have tested his e-mail tracking program.

I first heard about this book on the Howard Stern Show and I immediately went on Amazon to buy it. This book was great and It's really cool how in the book they tell you how these stories couldn't possibly be true. It's definately worth checking this one out!

This was what I call a masterpiece. It simply is the most entertaining book I have read in years. The mear writing style of the author was enough just to keep reading on let alone the content; which was awesome. I would recommend this book to anybody, there is not a better book out there that would keep your attention. This was simply the most well written book published, I look foward to reading another masterpiece by this author.

It is hard to review a book like this...or is it easy? The book is a collection of modern urban legends and the truth (or untruth) behind them. I guess you could criticize his selection of legends to cover, but that is more a personal choice. The truth is, Roeper does a solid job of reviewing the legend in question and then delving into the story behind it.
It succeeds exactly where it intends to succeed. It is a light-hearted, entertaining book. This is a book you can read 10 minutes at a time and always come away entertained.

I really enjoyed this book. It was very entertaining and informative. I didn't know a lot about the subject matter, and it was amazing how many of the ULs I'd heard growing up and didn't know if they were true or not. Good reference if you want to give proof to some of those die-hard UL believers (like my hubby who still "insists" that he saw the ghost of a little girl in Three Men and a Baby!) I definatly recomment this book!

"Urban Legends" is entertaining but ultimately tedious, with far too much focus on celebrity gossip and rumors. For example, three pages are devoted to the fascinating question of who the "You" is in Alanis Morissette's "You Oughta Know." The author offers his own speculation, and we are treated to ruminations by fans and Internet posters, but we are left in the dark as to why this merits a place in a book on urban legends. Maybe there are urban legends that explain why popular musicians like Phil Collins and the members of Pink Floyd are regarded as geniuses in the journalistic world, on the Internet, and wherever else high school lives forever. Two and a half stars for an excellent selection of Internet, campus, and computer-tech legends, not to mention a badly-needed expose of the deathless "Bozo No-No" legend. (I was told this had happened on local television in Toledo, Ohio. Not.) Minus the same amount for the remaining fluff.