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Sylvie Simmons has long been an acclaimed music journalist, interviewing and reporting on some of the most outsized personalities in rock. Her fiction debut, Too Weird for Ziggy, is a darkly comic, coruscatingly observed collection of linked stories all set in the world of crass AandR men, fans mired in hero worship, and music stars perpetually on the verge of ego tantrum or outright crackup. You'll meet a rock goddess named Pussy who has a nervous break down, and is found in an East Village tenement obsessively hoarding her own hair and fingernail clippings. You'll watch cults utterly devoted to Karen Carpenter spring up after the singer's image appears on various buildings, including a London kebab shop. From a band of cock-rockers whose star making tour goes terribly wrong when their lead singer starts to grow breasts, to an MTV-sponsored séance to raise a dead rock god, these stories are hilarious and unforgettable. Like sitting in the front row at the circus of celebrity next to an expert commentator, Too Weird for Ziggy is devastatingly funny, punchy, and as hooky as a pop tune.
Customer Review: Connect The Dots Rock Starz
Second book I've read this summer, although I was some what disappointed with Too Weird For Ziggy it was much better than Lily Burana's STRIP CITY, however it now leaves me to find yet another book to satisfy my summer reading bug. What I felt was annoying was how the snippets would stop short, they never seemed to satisfy the juicy middles. It's a shame because the stories themselves were fab; each one was rich with intriguing plots, colourful personalities and believable wackiness. One chapter I skimmed was "close to you" I found it predictable and excruciating to finish so I skipped it and went on to the next chapter. What I found fun, exciting and a page turner, were the clues Sylvie gives the reader, to making the rock-star connections. What at first I thought were separate identities actually intertwined as the story progressed. Sylvie did such a great job building "pussy" that I sympathized and championed her character throughout the book. I can see this book being turned into a Hollywood Movie cast with well-known controversial celebs for a few quick EZ bucks but unless it was revised it would shortly after be sent to DVD. To the publishers, using the Sharon Osbourne blurb was a sly marketing device as it was what got me to check the book out from the library. All in all, I would recommend this book for a light summer read, it only took several days to finish which is good because I would have been highly upset if I spent more reading time on a book which I felt had quickly rushed endings.
Customer Review: Amazingly truetolife stories that only fiction can achieve
Terrific stuff. I loved the style, the humour and the thrillingly horrifying atmosphere of madness and chaos that (I'm guessing here), accurately reflects life in the music business. The book has particularly good similes, and has a great sense of comic timing. Naturally, I'm jealous of all these abilities - but not of the world it is set in. After reading the book, I was left wondering if anything would ever be Too Weird for Sylvie!


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