Rating: 
Summary: nonstop funny Monkey
Review: When people say a book makes them laugh out loud, I'm usually suspicious, but after a friend gave me her copy of this book, I was giggling all the way through it. I really enjoyed spending time with this tabloid guy Tom, a fella who just can't stop himself from getting in one silly dating situation after another. There was a lot of interesting, and really funny, stuff about his life at the newspaper, called Tabloid (which sure sounded a lot like the New York Post)-"I'm good at this job," he writes. "Yes, I am the one who imported 'Wacko Jacko' from the British press. And I was the first headline writer to describe Hugh Grant as 'overblown.'" He also says, "We don't send serious journalists out to cover the ghetto. We are the ghetto for serious journalists" and "our newspaper was founded on the reasoning that if it took ten billion years for man to crawl out of the muck, then he's overdue to be dunked back in it." So that's where all those scandalous stories come from. My favorite character, though, was the woman Tom can't see is perfect for him: a sardonic, black-haired TV newswoman named Bran. The scenes where they fight/flirt are worth the price of admission in themselves. This will make a great movie.
Rating:
Summary: sparkling debut
Review: I had read a couple of newspaper articles about this book that made it sound like the man's version of Bridget Jones, and it really is one of the few books in the past year that has lived up to its billing. The scenes set at the tabloid newspaper are just alive with snappy repartee and full of wit, and the love scenes between Tom and his lady love Julia will make you squirm with recognition, and laugh a lot too. I'd hugely recommend this book to anyone who's been out there propping up a bar hoping Mr. or Ms. Right will walk in. A couple of my friends have already asked to borrow it.
Rating:
Summary: fabulous
Review: I totally loved Love Monkey. It was hilarious all the way through, as you root for this tabloid hack called Tom Farrell to finally see the light and get himself a girl he can love, but by the end there are scenes that are so sensitive and beautifully written that I actually cried a little. This is a book that has many of the same aspects as chick lit (a term I despise), but its themes run so much deeper. It's something special.
Rating:
Summary: Hilarious, moving, and so very true
Review: Kyle Smith's "Love Monkey" is truly an incarnation of the book men have always wanted to write, and women have always wanted to read. It is the brutally honest, brilliantly funny "memoir" of a Tom Farrell, a journalist for a tabloid in the Big Apple, and his unquenchable thirst for sex and exhausting battle for the woman he loves. Continously throughout the novel, Farrell reveals his feelings regarding his life as a "manboy"- a male who is physically a man but emotionally and socially a thirteen-year-old boy, his unsatisfying sex life, and his revelation that every woman he displays interest in has some flaw that makes her incompatible. Then he meets Julia...she's cute, sweet, smart, and sexy...and she's practically engaged. You will laugh and cheer as Tom reveals the inner workings of the elusive male mind.
Rating: 
Summary: Sex and the Single Guy: Love, Longing and a lot of Laughs
Review: Normally, I would not review Love Monkey because the author is an editor of mine. However, while opinions will differ, I was dismayed by a few suspect mean-spirited Amazon reviews. While I won't do so for the print media, I felt the need to add my thoughts online. What follows is my honest opinion.First of all, Love Monkey is laugh-out-loud funny, so to say there is no humor in it is, well, laughable. It's the story of Tom Farrell, 32, a "rewrite man" at a New York tabloid. Tom pursues women feverishly, like other "manboys" who think quantity makes up for quality. Several hot dates only accentuate the cold shower of reality: no one, but no one can live up to his dream girl Julia, a beautiful co-worker he is mad about. Julia is a bit of a tease, seeking solace in Tom while dealing with her own boyfriend problems. This five-month chronicle of Tom's love life has been compared to Bridget Jones Diary and Sex in the City. Though Tom discusses women with his male friends, his lifestyle is more believable than Carrie Bradshaw's in that he doesn't sport outrageously expensive fashion statements--unaffordable luxuries for the average writer/columnist. "The most expensive thing I own is this leather chair: $1,099 plus tax and delivery." He considers himself average: "the Gap of bachelors," and reveals the caddish side of his character as well as the likeable. Readers disinterested in witty tales about the single life won't enjoy this novel, but to say it is poorly written is as ridiculous as to say it lacks humor. The best of the "Lad Lit" so far, Love Monkey is a candid view of the dating scene. Aside from chasing girls, Tom is at heart a sincere, lonely guy, seeking what we all want: love. "I reflect for a moment about improving my relationships. About the secret sorrows of men and the stated needs of women. About longing and forgiveness and how wise people learn to love each other's imperfections." While there is a laugh almost every other line, the basic premise of this story is unrequited love and the heartbreak that's involved. This isn't some glib novel about a guy's rules for dating. It's about a man's soul laid bare. Despite his flaws, Tom is so honest the reader roots for him. Will Tom and Julia become a couple in the end? You'll have to read the book to find out.
Rating: 
Summary: A Must-Read for Women in the Dating Scene
Review: Meet Tom Farrell. He's single, 32, lives in New York City and rewrites articles for Tabloid, "America's loudest newspaper." When he's not working, watching cartoons or having cereal for dinner, he's dating and/or drinking. Both compulsively. Tom, whose "most time-consuming hobby is collecting ex-girlfriends," would like to have a relationship and regular sex. After all, "in Singleland, you hardly ever get to ask: did you just fart?" The problem is finding that right girl. Even if he doesn't have a serious relationship, he still has music. Every occasion in Tom's life, every mood, every memory is in some way linked to music. The frequent song references will appeal to the music lover, but may leave those who are not so musically inclined feeling a bit in the dark when they are not familiar with the songs and artists that make up the most meaningful moments of Tom's life. In spite of looking like "a redheaded Winnie the Pooh, an Oompa Loompa without the self-tanning lotion" or a "slightly elongated Teletubby," Tom seems to have no trouble getting dates with women whom he describes as "better looking for a girl, than I am for a guy." However, none of his dates lead to a lasting, committed relationship. Then Julia wanders into Tom's office and into his life. She is ten years his junior and also works at Tabloid. She immediately strikes Tom as the perfect woman when she can match him drink for drink, is "as addictive as java" and "her panties should carry a warning tag: Caution: The Girl You Are About to Enjoy is Extremely Hot." Despite her perfection, Julia is not without her faults. Take, for example, the fact that she has a boyfriend and a bad habit of standing Tom up or canceling dates at the last minute. None of that, however, is enough to mar Tom's absolute adoration for her. Julia leads Tom on a merry chase, leaving readers wondering where, when, how and if it will all end. Will Tom get the girl or will she flit away like a beautiful butterfly in a field full of flowers? In the meantime, he continues to date a variety of other women, all who pale in comparison to Julia. While Tom is living the life of a "man-boy," tragedy strikes his beloved New York City on September 11th and leaves Tom changed as it did all Americans. LOVE MONKEY is a direct, if somewhat scary, glimpse into the unvarnished, single male psyche of modern day. It's a must-read for women in the dating scene, especially those who wonder what really goes on in the minds of men. As they say, forewarned is forearmed. Tom Farrell is the creation of Yale graduate and Gulf War veteran Kyle Smith, who makes his debut with LOVE MONKEY. While there are some hilariously funny comments sprinkled throughout the book, Tom's outlook on life seems a bit skewed and the book left me feeling a bit unsatisfied. However, the wit and witticisms that made me laugh out loud --- and even sometimes uproariously --- will ensure that I am looking forward to and will read Smith's next foray into literature. --- Reviewed by Amie Taylor
Rating:
Summary: This monkey loved it
Review: I absolutely adored this book. Kyle Smith can turn a phrase with the best of them. Each page is chock full of snappy one liners that keep the reader engaged and wanting more. Smith's protagonist, Tom Farrell, might do well to keep his love interests wanting more as well, but his honesty is endearing and his mishaps -- hilarious!
Rating:
Summary: LoveThis Book For The Music It Makes You Hear
Review: I think the mention of great songs throughout and the hilarious description of a personality who finds loving the unavailable more fun than bathing babies makes this worth reading. November 11 recount brings tears. If an experience makes me both laugh and cry I am happy, (which is why I also pursue the rabbit that runs, like a naughty beagle). This book entertains. Kyle has gifted me with a happy time.
Rating:
Summary: funny dialogue, great stuff
Review: I really got into this book because it reminded me so much of guy friends I have who have lived around New York. (I live in the suburbs, on Long Island). For anyone who is singing the blues over Sex and the City, this covers the same embarrassing situations, only with a more clever, very male, take on everything. Some of the moments will stay with me for a long time, such as the way romantic scene set in this whispering station underneath Grand Central station in New York. Also loved all the funny one-liners! An enjoyable read for everybody who's ever been in love.
Rating:
Summary: a little bit Hornby, a little bit Sex and the City
Review: I laughed a lot at Love Monkey, especially at the take-no-prisoners romantic advice of the sidekick Shooter, and at the trying-hard-to-be-cool mistakes of the narrator, Tom. Tom struck me as more than a rapid-fire wit machine who makes you laugh with about 20 quips per page; he's also an evolved, deeply self-aware figure with a surprising core to him. From the opening epigraph by Ernest Hemingway through the many cites of Bob Dylan songs, Tom is a guy with soul. You hurt with him when he can't make it work with his dream girl, a ballerina named Julia. The scenes with the two of them alternate between steamy and frustrating, so it's just like life when you think back at your most awkward love affairs. What makes the book a standout is, it's a whole lot of funnier than the industry standard for this sort of thing. I've already recommended this incisive novel to several friends.
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