You Must Go and Win: Essays Audiobook (Unabridged)

" An interesting collection of essays. I especially enjoyed all the history, which was a wonderful surprise. A book I'll probably pick up and read again in the future. "

" Meh. The beginning and end are engaging--and certainly the memoir is easy to read--but in the end, what does any of this matter, aside from occasionally interesting but heavily edited stories from one person's life? There's very little there there. I'm interested in why this memoir has garnered so much praise--perhaps it is just the aging of my generation, but hearing someone talk about Britney Spears transforming their understanding of pop music seems dated--and leaves me cold. Very cold. However, I will try her mother's borscht recipe. "

" I listened to this book, downloaded from Audible.com, but the audible version is not one of the choices given here. Some are the essays are 3 star and others, 5 star. Simone does a good job writing humor, which is hard to sustain in any venue. Her attempts to live with a roommate in a tiny apartment in NYC are quite funny as are her descriptions of several trips taken to Russia and the Ukraine. Her research attempts to contact a settlement of Doukobortsy in British Colombia is extremely funny. Ms. Simone seems to have a natural curiosity about numerous subjects and an excellent eye for the unusual. This book was never dull! "

" it's cute but the writing style gets redundant really fast. I'd rather be friends with Alina Simone than read her writing. "

" When I learned that author Alina Simone is also a Brooklyn-based indie musician, I thought "Hipster alert" and started reading carefully. My assumption was lame. This modest essay collection is equal parts travelogue, career blog, and identity search--with barely any traces of their annoying downsides. Simone travels to Siberia and Canada (plus some US cities) and the lack of "Hey, look at the wacky locals / I'm such a badass traveler" attitude was refreshing. Observant humor and wit are also woven into random conversations with music industry folks, family and friends, and even strangers on Facebook. "

" Clever, real, and at times so funny I laughed out loud. "

" why did Neil Gaiman blurb this book? Amanda Palmer. Who was Amanda Palmer's amanuensis? Alina Simone. Who went and won? toss up. "

" Enjoyed it but wanted to hear more about music rather than stories that assumed I knew about the lifestyle of a traveling musician trying to "break." "

" Covering thoughts on life, music, touring, Russia, othodox punk monks, obscure castrating sects, Britney Spears and a roadtrip with Amanda Palmer, this is a witty and tongue-in-cheek little book. Highly entertaining and putting some things into a rather russian perspective. I have quite enjoyed it. "

" Extremely funny a quirky! Recommend. "

" SO much more about Siberia and castrati than I'd expected. Thoroughly enjoyed every moment of reading this and suspect I will read it fairly regularly, just for the obscurity, excellent wording and cheery randomness. "

" Breezy memoir of a bohemian, intellectual Russian-American musician. "

" When I liked this book, I liked it very much. But I'm afraid I was most often left cold by it. So this is not so much a three star book but a four and two star book. "

" 3.5 stars. I really enjoyed her lightly self-deprecating sense of humor and the colorful Russian flavor in her writing, especially after reading The Tiger, which was quite descriptive of far eastern Russia/Russians but in a different way. "

" I don't know whether to give this book three stars or four. There were some parts that dragged, but there were some parts that were really funny, too. There was also an unexpected twist at the end that, in my view, improved the whole thing. So I'm glad I read it. "

" I liked the beginning when she was a struggling musician living in New York City, dealing with foreign journalists, crazy producers, boutique publicists, fleas, and back injuries. I lost interest in the middle and never found it again. "

" I really enjoyed the quirky nature of the author's personality, likes, dislikes, and life realizations. While not always funny, it's always engaging and interesting. "

" Enjoyed it but wanted to hear more about music rather than stories that assumed I knew about the lifestyle of a traveling musician trying to "break." "

" I don't know whether to give this book three stars or four. There were some parts that dragged, but there were some parts that were really funny, too. There was also an unexpected twist at the end that, in my view, improved the whole thing. So I'm glad I read it. "

" Covering thoughts on life, music, touring, Russia, othodox punk monks, obscure castrating sects, Britney Spears and a roadtrip with Amanda Palmer, this is a witty and tongue-in-cheek little book. Highly entertaining and putting some things into a rather russian perspective. I have quite enjoyed it. "

" why did Neil Gaiman blurb this book? Amanda Palmer. Who was Amanda Palmer's amanuensis? Alina Simone. Who went and won? toss up. "

" Great read, especially for artists, daughters, and anyone who has ever tried to find themselves by looking outside instead of in. "

" When I liked this book, I liked it very much. But I'm afraid I was most often left cold by it. So this is not so much a three star book but a four and two star book. "