• Without Feathers

  • By: Woody Allen
  • Narrated by: Woody Allen
  • Length: 2 hrs and 13 mins
  • 3.8 out of 5 stars (692 ratings)

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Without Feathers  By  cover art

Without Feathers

By: Woody Allen
Narrated by: Woody Allen
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Publisher's summary

Now in audio for the first time, Without Feathers is narrated by Woody Allen himself. Here they are 16 of the funniest tales and ruminations ever recorded, by one of the great comic minds of our time. From "The Whore of Mensa", to "Fabulous Tales & Mythical Beasts", to "No Kaddish for Weinstein", old and new Allen fans will laugh themselves silly over these sparkling gems. A small sample: "Getting through the night is becoming harder and harder," writes Allen in his "secret" journal. "Last evening I had the uneasy feeling that some men were trying to break into my room to shampoo me."

Without Feathers delivers more of Allen's New Yorker-style humor. Worthy stand-outs include "If the Impressionists Had Been Dentists", a genius piece that puts oral surgery in a whole new, much more exciting light. Throughout, Allen grapples in his wildly inventive way with the targets that obsess him: death, God (or lack of God), women (or lack of women), intellectuals, the arts, and even wildlife.

There is a distinct romantic strain that runs through much of his writings, which the author describes as "either Byronic or moronic". Allen is forever at war with the universe and claims unequivocally that he is "at two with nature". His artistic ambition, as he puts it, is to "forge in the smithy of my soul the uncreated conscience of my race. And then see if I can get them mass-produced in plastic."

Woody Allen's short-story collections Without Feathers, Side Effects, Getting Even, and Mere Anarchy are available separately or together as part of The Woody Allen Collection.

©1986 Woody Allen (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Throughout my life, literally thousands of people have made me feel inadequate, but none more so than Woody Allen." (Larry David, Producer, Writer, Actor)
"Woody Allen brought modern comedy to the cinema screen." (Ricky Gervais)

What listeners say about Without Feathers

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

funny stuff

Brings back fond memories of laughing at Woody Allen movies with my dad when I was a kid. I especially liked Mythical Beasts - I think the animal with the head of a crab and the body of a CPA may be a relative.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Surprisingly good

What can I say- like pretty much everybody I'm a big fan of Woody Allen. And I was excited to find out that he teamed up with Audible to read and release this and his other short story collections. I admit, though, that I was a little apprehensive. Allen is great, there's no question, but he is getting on in years, so I worried that his narration might not turn out so well. Thankfully, I had nothing to worry about. This collection is largely jokes, and his delivery is fantastic. I'd tried to get through this in print format before, and had never been able- but listening to it, it's like an awesome late night monologue. I'm not sure I would recommend this if you weren't a Woody Allen fan already, but if you are, I think you'll really like it.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Dated, but in a good way

It's missing two one-act plays that were in the print version - "God" and "Death* - but it's still a great time capsule of Woody Allen humor.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

3 ½ stars. I laughed several times,

but not as much as I hoped.

I like to hear his odd weird thoughts. The biggest problem was W. Allen did not pause enough. I had to stop the tape frequently to think about what was said or to laugh. It’s like rushing from one joke to the next with no time to laugh.

DATA:
Unabridged audiobook length: 2 hrs and 13 mins. Swearing language: none that I recall. Sexual content: nothing explicit. Book copyright: 1975. Genre: humorous thoughts.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Early Woody Allen

I love this book. I read it years ago, when it first came out. Back then, I was enchanted with Woody Allen's non sequitur humor and witty phrasing. Over the years, I've found myself quoting bits and pieces from the stories in this book. Woody Allen's early work is, I think, his funniest - when he was a new and fresh voice in the entertainment industry.

Finding an audiobook form of Without Feathers was a pleasant surprise. The fact that Woody Allen himself reads his work, makes this a priceless addition to my library. This is Woody Allen at his best.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Starts well and then wanders off

Woody Allen has a tremendously good voice. Somewhat ponderous - but that's countered by simply speeding up the narration (I liked 1.5x). I found Without Feathers to start off with far more promise than Getting Even. Unfortunately most of the good stories are at the front, with the end of the book trailing off into what can only be described as either confused ramblings, or intentionally random flights of fancy. But if you like Woody Allen's style, you'll love these books - the narration is superb.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Hilarious, topsy-tourvey, Monty-Paytonish ... if

Where does Without Feathers rank among all the audiobooks you???ve listened to so far?

great light listen - high on the list of comedies

What did you like best about this story?

comic story, ever changing , situation jokes, play on words, but also some deep thoughts (as usual)

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

you need to like Woody Allen's voice

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Laugh

Any additional comments?

Hilarious stories sprinkled with Topsy-tourvy story line logic (or lack thereof ... :-)) makes these short books a great listen for all the fans of Monty Python-like humor. Well, you need to like the voice of the author, though.

Highly recommended as an interlude to your regular

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

same old Woody

Somebody on here said he sounded old. No, he sounded like he's always sounded -- nervous and a little nerdy. I could not detect any oldness in his voice in these recordings.

What was clear to me in his voice was his usual strange sense of humor. These are great recordings. If he sounds old, I suggest you upgrade your download quality from AM radio to mp3 or higher. Everybody sounds old on AM radio.

This is great stuff. Get this and lighten up for a while.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Excellent

A real good book, it is definitely recommended. Worth the money.You can enjoy this. MUST read

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Strange

Purchase only if you like disjointed humor. I listened for a short time and will delete. I like Woody Allen for his humor but this goes beyond my limited comprehension.

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1 person found this helpful