The Dangerous Animals Club

Charming, human, inspirational.

It happens a lot with the way Tobo crafts a tale. There is an A and B story line and they always intertwine at the end with a great "youseetimmy" Which of course is the morale to a given story. The term is derived from the end of Lassie episodes. "you see, Timmy...."

His own experience. These stories are his own. He knows where to slow down, where to punch a line, where to pause. I can't imagine them told in any other voice.

I honestly feel like I am a better human being for hearing this book, not to mention his podcast. I giggle, I get misty, even with repeated listens. I have bought this book and the audiobook for family and friends, I suggest you do the same.

I've had one cyber run in with the author. My daughter who was 11 at the time, was auditioning for a play and subsequently got the lead. She was freaking out about a fast approaching opening night and worried about learning all her lines. I had been a fan of the Tobolowsky Files podcast and I shot a tweet to him.

Not only did he respond to my tweet, but he sent my daughter a long email spelling out different techniques for learning a script and preparing a part. Anybody in the industry that is as busy as he who takes that kind of personal time out for a fan who is thousands of miles away is a stand up guy in my book.

Cheers

This book is far more entertaining and meaningful than most books on tape. Tobolowsky is not only an intelligent and perceptive observer of the human condition, but is consistently funny as he relates stories about his childhood, romantic relationships, family, and movie and television career. As a comic, Tobolowsky reminds me of the Canadian comic, Stuart MacLean (of "Dave Cooks the Turkey" fame). Great stuff!

Its variety! Each story was truly something unique and different; there was certainly no predicting what would come next.

Mr. Tobolowsky's honesty, candor, and humor.

To choose a single "favorite" would be impossible because the book was highly entertaining.

The stories that stand out the most in my mind having now finished the book are the scene from the grocery store and the scene involving the stray dog. The aforementioned for hitting me with something I definitely did not see coming, and the latter for absolutely tearing at my heartstrings and making me cry in car.

Had that been a remote possibility, I wouldn't have ruled it out. Given that the book is almost 12 hours, that was not really going to happen.

A great listen.

YES! I imagine it reads very well, but what makes the book so incredibly powerful is hearing it in Tobolowsky's own voice. There are many personal moments, some uplifting, some heartbreaking, and to hear Tobolowsky tell the tale with such passion and emotion made the book for me. Needless to say that is lost in the print version.

The way Tobolowsky can make you laugh and cry and then laugh again, all in the space of a few minutes.

This is one of the few audiobooks that I listened to again within days after finishing it. Considering it is nearly 12 hours long, that is high praise indeed!

I just didn't want to be done with those stories.

The Dangerous Animals Club is a fantastic book, both in audio format, as well as hardcover. If you're familiar with Stephen Tobolowsky or The Tobolowsky Files podcast, you'll immediately recognize these stories, albeit in greater detail / length. He also spins the stories together in more of a single timeline than with the podcast episodes, making the book feel more like one cohesive story, comprised of many smaller pieces.

If you're not familiar with his stories, you owe it to yourself to give this a listen. I've rarely (if ever) found such well-told stories that can make you laugh out loud and tear up at the same time. The manner in which the stories are told endear the author to the reader, making you connect to the stories personally. While immensely entertaining, the stories are filled with innumerable life lessons.

Having the stories read by the author makes this infinitely better. If read by anyone else, these amazing stories would have fallen flat.

All in all, The Dangerous Animals Club is story-telling at its best. I don't feel that there's much else to be said about this wonderful book, which will be reflected in the brief nature of the rest of this review.

I'm not sure what to compare these stories to. Other famous story-tellers like Garrison Keillor and Baxter Black are fantastic in their own right, but considerably different in their delivery and content.

I've really never seen / read / heard anything similar to these stories.

Everything.

(see above)

Absolutely, if given the time to do so.

Be aware that, while most are completely family-friendly, a couple of the stories contain some language that may not be appropriate for younger listeners, specifically "A Wager With Freddy." Great story, but you may not want to listen with young ears around.

No, one time through is enough

When I heard that Stephen played Stu, Marcie's husband on Californication it increased my level of enjoyment. It struck me as one of those "close to home" characters.

No

There are several moving moments in the book

Stephen comes across as a very clever and talented guy and an excellent story teller.

An Artists life.

The stories of his life are woven in such a way in and out of time. The life lessons and universal themes were enlightening.

He is the storyteller of his own life as an actor. As good an actor as he is he is a greater storyteller.

Pooch.

Everyone knows Stephen Tobolowsky, even if they are not sure who he is. Try IMDB and you'll figure out who he is. This was not only a great set of stories about Stephen's life, but in so many ways a lesson on how everyone should approach their lives.

This book had me really laughing in places. Stephen tells great stories and I could relate to each and every one of of his stories.

This is a book that benefits reading by the author and I can't wait for the next instalment. Highly recommended.

Riveting Insightful Hilarious
This book was very enjoyable, from the inside stories of his acting experiences, to the mundane everyday occurences. He is a terrific writer, and I hope he has some more stories left for another book (or more!).

Tobo

No. I listened over several weeks.

Stephen Tobolowsky’s “The Dangerous Animals Club” is a charming, insightful, and often funny memoir delivered in the form of non-chronological stories that somehow make perfect sense in their seemingly random sequence. As to be expected, some stories are better than others, but the really good ones are so captivating that I had to stop everything else I was doing and just listen in awe. The not-so-good ones were still okay. And while I was bored by his many bible references, they were short enough to be bearable.

Stephen’s performance was funny and flawless.