Once upon a Time in Hollywood

A Novel

By: Quentin Tarantino

Narrated by: Jennifer Jason Leigh

Length: 12 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

Narrated by Jennifer Jason Leigh

Quentin Tarantino’s long-awaited first work of fiction - at once hilarious, delicious, and brutal - is the always surprising, sometimes shocking new novel based on his Academy Award-winning film.

Rick Dalton: Once he had his own TV series, but now Rick’s a washed-up villain-of-the week drowning his sorrows in whiskey sours. Will a phone call from Rome save his fate or seal it?

Cliff Booth: Rick’s stunt double, and the most infamous man on any movie set because he’s the only one there who might have gotten away with murder....

Sharon Tate: She left Texas to chase a movie-star dream and found it. Sharon’s salad days are now spent on Cielo Drive, high in the Hollywood Hills.

Charles Manson: The ex-con’s got a bunch of zonked-out hippies thinking he’s their spiritual leader, but he’d trade it all to be a rock ‘n’ roll star.

Hollywood 1969: You shoulda been there

©2021 Quentin Tarantino (P)2021 HarperCollins Publishers

Different from the film in a good way!

I loved the film on its own. This is also great. It expands the world and story in a new way. It even adds a new storyline that I found very entertaining. Plus it’s filled with many little details that’ll bring a smile to any cinephile. Get it!

Tarantino is a helluva Novelist

This book is surprisingly well written. Unlike most movie to book adaptations, it adds a much richer and thoughtful expansion of the characters and their world. It would be interesting to read/listen to a novel from the author that had not first been a movie.

Definitely Worth a Listen....

Many comments have disparaged Jennifer Jason Leigh's narration. Yes, there is a bit of vocal fry in her voice, but not enough to distract from the content, in fact, I didn't notice it after a few minutes. I actually liked the accents and inflections she was able to deliver. She is a terrific actor, I loved both the movie and this book adaptation. Tarantino certainly captures the late 60s ambience and since I was a teen during this period and living in SoCal, I remember the time period only too well. You can practically taste the dust in your mouth from Spahn Ranch, it's so accurately represented.

Fantastic expansion of the story

I absolutely loved the “filling in the gaps” feel of this book. It takes many different avenues and paths to frame the same story as the movie, all the while expounding on certain details that were perhaps too tedious for film. My only gripe was Jennifer Jason Leigh’s performance, her voice is (I’m sorry to say) like nails on a chalkboard at times. I love her movies and she’s been a fantastic actor for my entire adult life, but as a narrator, she’s a bit rough to listen to.

This is a masterpiece

I love this book and Jennifer Jason Leigh’s reading make me want more chapters of come after the last chapter I felt complete like I was there the whole time. I love the way she speaks and the characters she goes into. I highly recommend this book to anyone. Thank you for this Ride it made my day.

Once upon a time in Hollywood Amazing

It reminds me of how a QT movie has crazy time jumps. I just loved it.

JJL’s voice is perfectly fine

I was hesitant to purchase this title because of the negative reviews mentioning Jennifer Jason Leigh’s “vocal fry,” but it was a not an issue for me. Unless you have a huge pet peeve for women with a bit of rasp in their voice, her voice won’t distract you from the story at all.

As for the story, anyone that enjoyed the film should enjoy this as well. I would call it a companion piece to the movie as opposed to a novelization.

Tarantino style powers entertaining novelization

His ability with dialogue brings the characters to life. The story is not true to the movie but does provide a rich back story to the characters. Love his movies? Then enjoy this book.

JJL is the Icing on a Most Delicious Cake!

I listen to a ton of audio books and have never felt the need to review any of them until now. "Vocal Fry" my butt -- Jennifer Jason Leigh's weathered, subtly expressive voice wonderfully brings Tarantino's cast of hard-living knockabouts to living color. This casting choice is unexpected but brilliant. She adds a whole other layer to the book, which is in itself a most enjoyable college-level seminar on B-movie flim history. Tarantino's love and deep knowledge of his subject jumps off of every page.

Awesome 👌

Saw the movie I thought it was great, the book put meat on the bones of an awesome story, both the performance of the reading along with the story and it's characters made it hard to stop listening to.