Insane City

The comic send-up of the wedding industry, the super wealthy, Miami club scene and the consumption of "medical" pot brownies.

Dave, Dave, Dave, I adore your work but you, like most authors, should NOT read your own books, please let the voice actors do the job. It makes for a much better experience for the listener and, in this case, would add much to the comic potential for the book.

I'm surprised at the criticism of Dave Barry as a narrator. I thought he did a great job. Anyway, it's a fun story.

I loved this book. Dave is great at writing humor, but his character development is excellent as well. He is a master at bringing together a zany group of mismatched characters and events and mixing them into a goofy but fascinating storyline. I highly recommend if you need some upbeat comedy in your life.

I had lost track of Dave Barry, so this was a pleasant surprise.

The BAD: You've read/seen/heard the bare outline of this plot a gazillion times before: the bachelor party just before the wedding that goes awry, the "perfect" wife-to-be, who isn't, the rich father of the bride who wants everything to be perfect for his beautiful daughter etc., and so the novel isn't all that surprising in that regard. These aren't spoilers: they just demonstrate that much of the structure of this novel is utterly predictable. And to some degree, the madcap antics in South Florida are reminiscent of Barry's fellow Floridian, Carl Hiaasen.

The GOOD: It IS Dave Barry, so when it gets funny, it gets VERY funny, laugh so hard the car is shaking funny. And more off-color than his newspaper columns, and appropriately so. I won't reveal the details of the funniest parts--they're what make it worthwhile. It's a bit like having a bunch of little Dave Barry newspaper columns that pop up unexpectedly in the middle of an ordinary novel. That's a good thing, And I would add that the stereotypical bachelor party novels/movies(and even Carl Hiaasen novels) don't feature an orangutan as a major character.

The DELIVERY: I don't know the narrator, but he's just right for this book.

Usually I try to buy audio books which last several hours - by several I mean more than 15, and if an audiobook is only 15 hours it better be really good. The first time I ever heard a Dave Barry book (Tricky Business) was almost 10 years ago, back when I still used CDs to listen to them. I was driving from Miami (that's why I bought the Dave Barry audiobook) to Iowa with my teenaged daughter.

I had no problem with staying awake while I was listening to it. There were very few minutes of that book which didn't have us crying with laughter. I never thought that I would find a scene with people throwing up so hysterically funny.

But of course, when you haven't listened to an author for a while, you're not sure if it was really as funny as you remembered. Also, they're REALLY short.

But last week I needed something new to listen to while I exercise. Drawing upon past experience, and having faith in Dave Barry, I bought it and listened to it.

Oh, MAN!

Nobody, nobody writes books which have incredibly complicated and unusual plots and situations as Barry. And he is wise enough to keep most of his characters basically normal. Sometimes I wonder if he writes these books because someone dares him to write a novel including an orangutan, an albino boa constrictor, helicopters and a pirate ship.

If you haven't heard any of Barry's books, mazel tov! Audible has several more.

Oh and speaking of mazel tov, he's included retired Jewish parents with only one son and no other children. If my husband didn't have a brother I'd think he'd met my inlaws (they should rest in peace).

But I don't think they'd eat the brownies.

This book reminded me of the Hangover movies, but with a twist. I laughed out loud multiple times. Really enjoyed it!

I love the way Dave narrates. It's always done tongue in cheek..

I've listened to all of Daves novels and most of his other books as well. To me, this is clearly the best.

Don't wait so long between books dave!

Boring, not at all Dave Barry's typical fare. He shouldn't try to write novels.

Dave Barry writes some great stories. They have a good pace, interesting characters and fun reads. But I have to agree with other comments that not having another narrator was a mistake. The reading was dull and monotone. A good narrator makes a good book great and I think this one could have used that push.

Way too much profanity for this ole' girl!!!!

Maybe not, if all of his books are like this one.

Less profanity and inappropriate content. Dirty talk.

The entire groom group.

I have read Dave Berry's work in Readers' Digest. I had no idea he wrote any other way.