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Babycakes (Abridged) Audiobook
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(3.01) - 4,321 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
""Maupin's San Francisco saga careens beautifully on."" —New York Times Book Review
The fourth novel in the beloved Tales of the City series, Armistead Maupin’s best-selling San Francisco saga.
When an ordinary househusband and his ambitious wife decide to start a family, they discover there’s more to making a baby than meets the eye. Help arrives in the form of a grieving gay neighbor, a visiting monarch, and the dashing young lieutenant who defects from her yacht. Bittersweet and profoundly affecting, Babycakes was the first piece of fiction to acknowledge the arrival of AIDS.
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"We are back to 28 Barbary Lane, San Francisco, following the adventure of Mary Ann, Brian, Mouse and Mona. It's the forth book, and all the character are now so familiar, that they do feel like family. This is, so far, the best written book of the series, Maupin really improved his writing skills over the year (and he was great to start with). The story flows very smoothly now and it's adroitly crafted so that everything falls in place without forcing events. As a result the story feel credible and real. The story takes place during the AIDS years. Mouse is mourning the loss of Jon, Mona is looking for a new life in Seattle, Brian wants a baby to give a meaning to his life, and Mary Ann tries hard to balance married life with her career. A quite amazing snapshot of a San Francisco of the end of the last millennium, witty and touching at the same time."
— Marco (5 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“An extended love letter to a magical San Francisco.”
— New York Times Book Review -
“Armistead is a true original. His tales are bang up-to-date. They will surprise and maybe even shock you, but, I promise, they will make you laugh.”
— Ian McKellen -
“Maupin has a genius for observation. His characters have the timing of vaudeville comics, flawed by human frailty and fueled by blind hope.”
— Denver Post
Babycakes Listener Reviews
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" While the first three books in the Tales in the City series were, for me, the best, there's something about a Maupin book that is like no other. "
— Martin, 2/18/2014 -
" Fourth novel in his Tales of the City series. We reunite with Mary-Ann and Brian who desperately want a baby, Mary-Ann goes to extreme lengths to achieve this dream, lengths that the reader can see will backfire on her dramatically. But you expect drama from Maupin, you also expect twists and unexpected turns of faith. We find Mouse grieving and traveling to England to shake the melancholy he's feeling. We reconnect with Mona, who's been MIA for a while. Set in the early '80s, we have the AIDS shadowing the fun and games of our heroes. Lighter in some ways than the early books, despite the melancholy and the sorrow that clings to many of the characters. Liked it even if the plot was very thin but I don't read Maupin for the plot. "
— Writerlibrarian, 2/16/2014 -
" Not as good as the Tales of the City novels. I honestly don't even remember what this one was about. Could probably be skipped if you've never read Tales of the City. "
— Sezin, 2/11/2014 -
" Babycakes (Tales of the City Series, V. 4) by Armistead Maupin (1994) "
— Tom, 2/10/2014 -
" Mary Ann is a lot harder to connect with in this book. Her actions in this book are a far cry from the Mary Ann of the first three Tales of the City stories. Still a great read if you're in the mood for a well-written San Francisco soap opera. "
— Laura, 2/9/2014 -
" As far as this series goes, this was probably my least favorite book. It just didn't engage me as much, as all the characters sort of slumped into their own versions of adulthood and domesticity. "
— Elysabeth, 2/6/2014 -
" So unmemorable that I was 100 pages into it and forgot that I already read it. "
— Beaver, 2/6/2014 -
" The best way for newcomers to San Francisco to get to know and love the city. Highly entertaining series you won't be able to put down. "
— Zoe, 1/18/2014 -
" This ended my love affair with the tales of the city. I didn't like the PBS series at all either. It was way time to move on for me "
— Sweetman, 10/12/2013 -
" Really good follow up, good surprises and very warm happy and sad moments. Maupin at his best! "
— EP, 9/14/2013 -
" Another great one...as always, gripping and odd. The ending will surprise you! "
— Becky, 6/15/2013 -
" Liked it more than the last couple. Interesting adventures for the characters. Sadly the last few books aren't in my shelf so shopping required. "
— Polly, 6/10/2013 -
" An entertaining read, no doubt! Characters I wanted to know more about, real (and truly funny) story lines, not overly wordy. My first taste of the 'Tales of the City' series, eagerly anticipating more. "
— Ellen, 5/15/2013 -
" Maupin holds up after all these years. Solid writing, great characters and great character portrayal. And an accurate snapshot of a very different San Francisco of not so long ago. "
— Mary, 3/3/2013 -
" Book four in the Tales of the City series. "
— Julie, 8/7/2012 -
" This was once a series for television and is still on sometimes... "
— Tori, 7/25/2012 -
" Probably my favorite book of the series so far. The growing pains of "Further Tales of the City" have paid off in layering the world of Babycakes. It's definitely the most serious and adult of the books, but also has some of the sweetest moments. "
— Matty, 2/23/2012 -
" Brilliant, a true page turner and in my opinion one of the best in the series. "
— Wickedmirror, 2/8/2012 -
" I was addicted to this series, and needed to continue reading. "
— Lisa, 2/2/2012 -
" Another interesting book in the series. Character development is exceptional. Surprised me at the end. "
— Linda, 8/28/2011 -
" I wanted to marry Michael Toliver! "
— Kevin, 7/25/2011 -
" See my review of this series under "Further Tales of the City" "
— Stephen, 7/20/2011 -
" finished up 2012 with this fun read. Love Armistead Maupin!!! "
— Terry, 5/24/2011 -
" I read this several montes ago. I forgot to put it on my goodreads. Love some armistead. "
— Chamie, 5/8/2011 -
" A good continuation of the 'Tales of the City' series, but I wish there had been more than just 2 storylines: 1) Is Mary Ann trying to surreptitiously get pregnant? and 2) Is that really Mona in England? and that their revelations weren't so obvious early on. "
— Mitchell, 4/4/2011 -
" These books are very entertaining and are easy reads, but the stories are pretty incredulous. It's like a soap opera basically. "
— Angela, 3/21/2011 -
" Maupin holds up after all these years. Solid writing, great characters and great character portrayal. And an accurate snapshot of a very different San Francisco of not so long ago. "
— Mary, 3/20/2011 -
" Not as enjoyable as the first three. Mary Ann! How could you do something so dumb? "
— Alex, 2/17/2011 -
" The worst so far of the series. "
— Wang, 2/1/2011 -
" My favourite of the TotC series so far. "
— Tom, 9/21/2010 -
" Brilliant, a true page turner and in my opinion one of the best in the series. "
— Wickedmirror, 7/10/2010 -
" Probably my favorite book of the series so far. The growing pains of "Further Tales of the City" have paid off in layering the world of Babycakes. It's definitely the most serious and adult of the books, but also has some of the sweetest moments. "
— Matty, 2/18/2010 -
" Babycakes (Tales of the City Series, V. 4) by Armistead Maupin (1994) "
— Tom, 12/15/2009
About Armistead Maupin
Armistead Maupin is the author of numerous novels, including the highly popular Tales of the City series. His novels Sure of You and The Days of Anna Madrigal made the New York Times bestsellers list. He was the 2012 recipient of the Lambda Literary Foundation’s Pioneer Award. In 2014 he was awarded an honorary doctor of letters degree by the University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill. Three miniseries starring Olympia Dukakis and Laura Linney were made from the first three novels in the Tales series. The Night Listener became a feature film starring Robin Williams and Toni Collette. He was born in Washington, DC, in 1944 but grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina. A graduate of the University of North Carolina, he served as a naval officer in the Mediterranean and with the River Patrol Force in Vietnam. He worked briefly as a reporter for a newspaper in Charleston, South Carolina, before being assigned to the San Francisco bureau of the Associated Press in 1971.