Download Rage Is Back: A Novel Audiobook

" Dondi's dad, Billy Rage, is back in town after being gone some eighteen years. He's a famous graffiti artist whose come back to New York to stage the most outrageous graffiti stunt of all: writing on every subway in New York over night . . . with the help of friends. "

" The parts of it that work make all the parts of it that very much do not all the more disappointing. Some great characters, some very clever moments, a little -- though maybe too little -- NYC graffiti history -- but disappointing, if not just anticlimactic, as a novel. "

" This is a terrific book that offers a fascinating look inside the world of the graffiti artists. The author has an impressive breadth of knowledge of this world, along with hip-hop music, but unlike some authors (like Michael Chabon in Telegraph Avenue) that knowledge never seems to be show-offy, and always works in service of the story. I can't say I always fully understood all the urban slang, but I never felt too confused to follow the story and the funny, quick repartee that's exchanged between the characters. The novel has a great protagonist as narrator - the superbright teenaged Dondi, who was abandoned by his legendary graffiti artist father, Rage, and was raised by his tough-talking mother, Karen. After getting expelled from a private school for selling pot, Dondi is left with not much to do until his father arrives back on the scene, determined to protest the political rise of a Transit Authority cop who is now running for mayor. Back in the heyday of graffiti writing, that cop killed a member of Rage's crew, and after a prolonged effort to let all of NYC know through his art on trains, Rage went underground and spent time with shamans in South America - leaving Dondi without a father for most of his youth, a fact Dondi can't help but resent even while all the people he knows through the graffiti world worship his father as a legend. There is one crazy fantastical element to the story - a building staircase that lets you jump 24 hours into the future - but for the most part it's a straightforward and brilliantly clever tribute to a bygone era and an attempt by a global band of graffiti writers to resurrect the golden days in an effort to undermine the candidacy of that rogue cop. By the way, if you have the opportunity to see Mansbach for a reading, be sure to go. My wife and I had the good fortune to see him at Brookline Booksmith in MA. He puts on a funny and entertaining show, and has a great, sarcastic wit, while fully respecting his audience. "

" I really enjoyed the book based on it's NYC setting and portrayal of Graf culture. I found it to be awkward at times when the narrator breaks the fourth wall and speaks directly to the reader. It's basically a diary account for a month long time period, with some historical asides. It definitely won't be for everyone, and is likely more 3.5, but I was a fan! "

" Old school graffiti bombers and hip hop, rastas, mystical shamen, coming down on The Man...what more do you need. "

" I learned a lot about the tagging/spray-painting culture from reading this novel, but the characters felt flat and undeveloped. "

" Reads a bit like a 1980's NYC revenge fantasy, a la Inglorious Basterds or Django Unchained- interesting but a bit of wish fulfillment. Characters are well drawn and the plot is fun, but I'm not sure it adds up to more than that.. "

" The narrator is laugh out loud funny and I really liked a look at generations of graffiti artists and their culture! "

" This one surprised me. I didn't get a lot of the references and names, not being a street-savvy girl, but I very much enjoyed the characters and the story. It's not something I would normally go for, but I do suggest you read it! "

" GR review to come, or read it early here. "

" Loved the references to pop culture. Inventive. Smart. "

" Different type of story, but it kept my attention/interest. "

" 3-1/2 rating, why because there were way too many characters to keep up with, but we'll written. I will read more by this Author. "