At under two hours, this barely qualifies as a long short story - there have literally been New Yorker pieces that have taken longer to listen to. But I am rapidly becoming a Ronson audio book completest, as there is something about the way his confident prose meshes with his British tendency to understate, which is increased by listening to him read it, that makes these books go down so smoothly.

In any case, another amusing tale from the margins, which is, as he says in this very volume, where he has decided he lives now. Probably not worth whatever Audible charges when they are asking for full price, simply because of how short it is, but well worth a couple to four dollars. ( )

Not bad. Interesting little insight into the story behind the movie. But really, nothing special.

In fact, the part I found the most fascinating was a little side-trip that Ronson took in the writing with a section that had nothing to do with Frank. He talked about this strange band called The Shaggs who had never heard music, never experienced it. Then out of the blue, their father pulls them from school and demands they practice because he had a dream or vision of them being huge musical stars. Five years later, they record their one and only album, released in 1969.

And if you listen to Philosophy of the World, it's a surreal and awkward experience. This anecdote was the best part of the book for me. ( )

This is a simple little book, and I must say that while it added info to the film "Frank", the film is actually better than the book.

Jon Ronson's language is simple, he writes well and this is funny and entertaining, and Frank Sidebottom - the person whom "Frank" is based on - really deserves this tale. ( )

Too short. ( )

If you’ve seen the movie “Frank” you will (like me) have certain expectations about this book. (Actually, first question: if you haven’t seen the movie “Frank”, why not?! Go watch it now.) the primary smashing of expectations is that the movie is not based on the story of the actual Frank Sidebottom.

For those who don’t know, Frank Sidebottom was the alter ego of Chris Sievy. He became Frank when he wore a big fake head, pretty much becoming subsumed into the persona that was Frank. The primary appearance of Frank was the band Frank Sidebottom Oh Blimey Big Band. They obtained a bit of fame, playing around London to decent size (500??) crowds.

Jon Ronson became a keyboard player in that band, and that is effectively the story that is told in this book. (Note: book may be overstating what this tome is. The writing is an extended essay, and the book is only about 70 small pages. That does not take away from how good the story is. It is simply a case of caveat emptor.)

That story tends to go a little bit all over the place. While ostensibly the story of Frank, it is as much about Ronson as Frank. Throw in a little bit about the counter-culture music that was being produced at the same time, and the result is a bit of a meander. However, Ronson, as always, tells a good story. And this one is as entertaining and intriguing as any of his other works.

Now, back to the smashing of expectations. Again, the movie that was based on Frank’s life is not so much based on his life as the concept that was Frank. Ronson (among those other meanderings I spoke of) explains this as he describes how he and his co-authors decided to go from bio-pic to fiction, as well as some of the other aspects of the writing.

But that divergence from the facts of his life means that the reality is not as strange as that which exists in the move. Frank, in the movie, is a truly weird individual. The Frank of this book is also weird, just not as weird. But do not let that drive you away. He is still weird enough, and the story is still interesting enough, and the sidetracks Ronson follows to tell the story he thinks needs to be told are insightful enough, that the book is entertaining.

See the movie, but also read the book. Then you can compare, contrast, and just have a decent good time. ( )