Syrup

Rating:
Summary: Overhyped Beach Reading
Review: I listened to the plaudits for this book--"clever debut satire" (Publishers Weekly), "a charming and hilarious send-up...a terrific comic novel" (Booklist), "rollicking" (Kirkus Reviews)--and the publisher's attempt to group it with Nick Hornby and Helen Fielding, and thus read it. Yes, it is moderately clever, and moderately amusing, and there's a touch of the romantic screwball comedy with a Gen-X angst twist. But the targets of the satire, namely marketing, corporate infighting, and Hollywood, are hardly difficult to make fun of (anyone who thinks the book has any penetrating insights probably hasn't thought very much about how the world around them works). The characters are all cardboard caricatures, which is a normal device in the service of satire, but not so handy if you're trying to make the reader care about your heroes. If you want lampooning of corporate marketing, find a copy of the magazine Adbusters. If you want to read something serious about the insidious pervasiveness of marketing, check out The Baffler. However, if you want an easy beach read, this isn't a bad choice.

Rating:
Summary: Loved it...
Review: You won't be able to put it down

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful!
Review: Isn't irony a *****! Could a more intelligent, witty and sassy book about the inside world of corporate marketing be marketed any more poorly? This has to be one of the 10 best fiction books released this year, yet as of this writing it's not even Top 5000 on the Amazon chart. Bad title, bad cover, too bad...more people deserve to enjoy this Coupland-esque romp through Hollywood business. I haven't enjoyed a book this much in YEARS!

Rating:
Summary: cola wars? who cares its still funny!
Review: This is a wonderfully witty, often smartarsed look at the world of Marketing. Our central characters are a bit stereotyped, but it is rollicking good fun. It shows how much of our world is built on perceptions not reality. A fine debut and proves once again what marvellous writing talent we have in Australia.

Rating:
Summary: SUGAR RUSH!
Review: Maxxxxxx, you are a superstar. (I love you) Even people who don't like reading will shotgun this book and burp loudly afterwards. (I love you) I didn't burp. (I love you) But I laughed a lot and my pulse raced. (I love you) *wiiiiink*

Rating:
Summary: Suspenseful, funny, and an all-around great book
Review: I never believed a book about corporate marketing could be so enjoyable! The constant twists and turns in the plot keep you guessing (and keep you reading!) The Marketing Case Studies intermingled throughout the book were hillarious. It had a great plot and characters who were easy to associate with, even if you have no marketing savvy whatsoever.

Rating:
Summary: READ THIS BOOK!!!
Review: This book was fantastic. It was funny and poignant and it made my own job seem boring as hell...which I guess makes it also a little depressing. Barry puts this story together in such a way that you actually feel like you are living as the main character. Every thought and emotion you experience yourself. A great book!

Rating:
Summary: FANTASTIC ADDICTIVE READ
Review: Syrup was a fantastic read. Rarely do I like the book from the first page. I LOVED this one from the first sentence.

Rating:
Summary: A really hilarious spoof of the big,bad marketing world.
Review: I really loved this book-as fresh and funny as Jonathan Baird's DAY JOB-both take gleeful swipes at the corporate world in which we're all entrenched.Let's have more of both these guys.

Rating:
Summary: A turbo-charged caffeinated fun ride!
Review: I had this book for a week before I started to seriously read it and once I got into Scat's attempt's to become rich, I was hooked. The action is fast paced with new suprises coming around every turn. Scat's funny, 6 is alluring, and you just want to take the aptly named "Sneaky Pete" out back and beat him. Maxx Barry has done an excellent job with this novel and I can't wait for more of his stuff to come out