Funny Girl, Nick Hornby
Funny Girl, Nick Hornby
4 Rating(s)
List: $20.00 | Sale: $14.00
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Funny Girl

Bestseller

Author: Nick Hornby

Narrator: Emma Fielding

Unabridged: 10 hr 19 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Published: 02/03/2015

Synopsis

A brilliant novel from the bestselling author of High Fidelity, About a Boy, and A Long Way Down.

Set in 1960's London, Funny Girl is a lively account of the adventures of the intrepid young Sophie Straw as she navigates her transformation from provincial ingénue to television starlet amid a constellation of delightful characters. Insightful and humorous, Nick Hornby's latest does what he does best: endears us to a cast of characters who are funny if flawed, and forces us to examine ourselves in the process.

About The Author

Nick Hornby is the author of several internationally bestselling novels including High Fidelity, About a Boy, and A Long Way Down, as well as several works of nonfiction, including Fever Pitch, Songbook, and Ten Years in the Tub. He has written screenplay adaptions of Lynn Barber’s An Education, which was nominated for an Academy Award, Cheryl Strayed's Wild, and Colm Tóibín’s Brooklyn. He lives in London.Emma Fielding is an English actress who studied at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (now Royal Conservatoire of Scotland), and worked for the Royal National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company. Her movie credits include The Scarlet Tunic, The Government Inspector, and Pandaemonium. As a narrator, she lent her voice to Allison Pearson’s I Don't Know How She Does It and Nick Hornby’s Funny Girl.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Snotchocheez

Never before has the time-worn critic's trope "Show, don't tell" been more utterly ignored than by Nick Hornby and his ambitious, yet thoroughly lackluster (and curiously unfunny) novel about British televised comedy in the 1960's-'70s, Funny Girl. I admire Hornby's vision here; his drive to present......more

Goodreads review by Ron

Speaking at a college campus a few years ago, I joked about feeling like Lucy in the chocolate factory, and an undergraduate asked me when Lucy Hale worked in a chocolate factory. It was one of those moments when you suddenly picture yourself stooped and holding an ear trumpet. As a child, I watched......more

Goodreads review by Suzanne

I'm such a big fan of Nick Hornby and this book is such a disappointment. I'd almost prefer not to provide a review. I have looked forward to this book for months now and received it from Penguin's First to Read. Perhaps the problem is with the narrator providing such distance from the characters th......more

Goodreads review by Heidi

3.5— (read in 2018– typo fixed in 2023… 😎) What I love about Nick Hornby is that he really gets how messy people are— in and out of love. Step back 50+ years and you’ll find a cast of characters that will charm, confuse, humor and annoy you. Each and every one looking for love in 1960s London. I ador......more

Quotes

Praise for Funny Girl

“As befits a novel about a popular sitcom, this novel packs in lots of laughs, but it’s also got more heft than Mr. Hornby’s readers may expect." —The New York Times 

 "A smart comic novel that... induces binge-reading that's the literary equivalent of polishing off an entire television series in one weekend." —NPR

“Engaging...Hornby’s fictionalized evocation of the era is spot-on.” —Entertainment Weekly

“Funny and fast moving, perceptive and sharp.” —Los Angeles Times

”At its best moments, Hornby’s novel shows precisely the same quality [as the best television comedy].”  – The Boston Globe
 
"Hornby's fluency in script-like breeziness and crisp banter makes Funny Girl a pleasurable read. So does page after page of perfectly timed and delivered humor, the subtle and understated kind, that starts with the first line.” – USA Today

"[Hornby’s] most ambitious novel to date... he makes the reader care for his characters as much as he does.”—Starred Kirkus Review

“[A] light, fond, funny tale by the author of About a Boy…[a] fizzy delight about the likable oddballs who populate showbiz.” —People

“Theera and the theme (surfing the crest of a revolution, then getting dumped in its wake) are pure Mad Men, but the pulpy warmth and sprightly dialogue are classic Hornby.” —Vulture 

"Beautifully captures the thrill of youthful success and of discovering your own talent." —Daily Telegraph"Funny Girl may be read as Hornby's latest defence of popular entertainment against high-culture elitism. Funny Girl makes his case for him eloquently and entertainingly ... both hugely enjoyable and deceptively artful." —Spectator"I loved this hymn to the 1960s, their infinite creative possibilities." —Scotsman"Endearing, humorous and touching. Hugely enjoyable." —Sunday Mirror

“…As with any Hornby book, you’ll close [Funny Girl] thinking it’s his best.” —Metro 

“Hornby has transplanted us into an era where funny was also controversial. He allows us to see beyond the actors, but to the creation as a whole—the lives on screen as well as those off." —Books & Whatnot

“A sweet sojourn to 1960s London... [Hornby] has a knack for crackling dialogue and well-defined characters." —The Associated Press

"[Funny Girl] fits squarely in Hornby’s tradition of offering quality entertainment that respects readers’ intelligence without making novels feel like homework. Consider it comfort food, prepared by a master.” —Christian Science Monitor

“Fast, funny, and real.” –Lev Grossman for TIME
 
“[FUNNY GIRL] skips effortlessly like a stone skimmed across the water… it’s hard to put down.” –Newsweek




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