How to Build a Girl
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Narrated by:
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Louise Brealey
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By:
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Caitlin Moran
About this listen
What do you do in your teenage years when you realize what your parents taught you wasn't enough? You must go out and find books and poetry and pop songs and bad heroes - and build yourself.
It's 1990. Johanna Morrigan, 14, has shamed herself so badly on local TV that she decides that there's no point in being Johanna anymore and reinvents herself as Dolly Wilde - fast-talking, hard-drinking gothic hero and full-time Lady Sex Adventurer. She will save her poverty-stricken Bohemian family by becoming a writer - like Jo in Little Women, or the Brontës - but without the dying-young bit.
By 16, she's smoking cigarettes, getting drunk, and working for a music paper. She's writing pornographic letters to rock stars, having all the kinds of sex with all the kinds of men, and eviscerating bands in reviews of 600 words or less.
But what happens when Johanna realizes she's built Dolly with a fatal flaw? Is a box full of records, a wall full of posters, and a head full of paperbacks enough to build a girl after all?
Imagine The Bell Jar - written by Rizzo from Grease. How to Build a Girl is a funny, poignant, and heartbreakingly evocative story of self-discovery and invention, as only Caitlin Moran could tell it.
©2014 Casa Bevron, Ltd. (P)2014 Random House UKListeners also enjoyed...
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Story
Twenty years ago, 16-year-old Tara Martin disappeared from a small town in the heart of England. Now, her sudden return and the mind-bending tale of where she’s been will challenge our very perception of the truth. For 20 years after Tara Martin disappeared, her parents and her brother, Peter, lived in denial of the grim fact that she was gone for good. Then suddenly on Christmas Day, the doorbell rings at her parents’ home, and there, dishevelled and slightly peculiar looking, Tara stands. It’s a miracle, but alarm bells are ringing for Peter. Tara’s story just does not add up.
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Extremely Well Done
- By Amanda on 07-11-12
By: Graham Joyce
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High Dive
- By: Jonathan Lee
- Narrated by: Doyle Gerard
- Length: 11 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Taking us inside one of the 20th century's most ambitious assassination attempts - "making history personal", as one character puts it - High Dive moves between the luxurious hospitality of a British tourist town and the troubled city of Belfast, Northern Ireland, at the height of the armed struggle between the Irish Republican Army and those loyal to the UK government.
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Humor? Not Funny.
- By W Perry Hall on 04-10-16
By: Jonathan Lee
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Kill Your Friends
- A Novel
- By: John Niven
- Narrated by: Joe Jameson
- Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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As the 20th century breathes its very last, with Britpop at its zenith, 27-year-old A&R (artist and repertoire) man Steven Stelfox is slashing and burning his way through London's music industry. Blithely crisscrossing the globe in search of the next megahit - fueled by greed and inhuman quantities of cocaine - Stelfox freely indulges in an unending orgy of self-gratification.
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Wicked and Wild Read
- By Abigail on 07-19-16
By: John Niven
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Your Voice in My Head
- A Memoir
- By: Emma Forrest
- Narrated by: Emma Forrest
- Length: 5 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Emma Forrest, a British journalist, was just 22 and living the fast life in New York City when she realized that her quirks had gone beyond eccentricity. In a cycle of loneliness, damaging relationships, and destructive behavior, she found herself in the chair of a slim, balding, and effortlessly optimistic psychiatrist--a man whose wisdom and humanity would wrench her from the dangerous tide after she tried to end her life.
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Great, quick read
- By Amazon Customer on 02-12-21
By: Emma Forrest
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The Guards
- By: Ken Bruen
- Narrated by: Gerry O'Brien
- Length: 4 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Still stinging from his unceremonious ouster from the Garda Siochana, and staring at the world through the smoky bottom of his beer mug, Jack Taylor is stuck in Galway with nothing to look forward to. He is teetering on the brink of his life's sharpest edges, his memories of the past cutting deep into his soul and his prospects for the future non-existent.
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This is literature, not just crime fiction
- By John on 08-09-13
By: Ken Bruen
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Before I Met You
- A Novel
- By: Lisa Jewell
- Narrated by: Helen Duff
- Length: 15 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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After her grandmother Arlette's death, Betty is finally ready to begin her life. She had forfeited university, parties, boyfriends, summer jobs in order to care for Arlette. Now she's ready for whatever life throws at her, and, since the will included a beneficiary unknown to her who lives in the city, she heads there to find the mysterious woman. In 1920s London, Arlette is starting her new life in a time of postwar change. Beautiful and charismatic, she's drawn into a hedonistic world, but then tragedy strikes, and she flees back to her childhood home....
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Awful
- By cristina on 08-13-18
By: Lisa Jewell
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Fragile Things
- By: Neil Gaiman
- Narrated by: Neil Gaiman
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Marvelous creations, including a short story set in the world of The Matrix and others set in the worlds of gothic fiction and children's fiction, can be found in this extraordinary collection, which showcases Gaiman's storytelling brilliance as well as his entertaining (and dark) sense of humor.
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Perhaps a different format?
- By Karen on 11-03-10
By: Neil Gaiman
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American Gods [TV Tie-In]
- By: Neil Gaiman
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 20 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Locked behind bars for three years, Shadow did his time, quietly waiting for the day when he could return to Eagle Point, Indiana. A man no longer scared of what tomorrow might bring, all he wanted was to be with Laura, the wife he deeply loved, and start a new life. But just days before his release, Laura and Shadow's best friend are killed in an accident. With his life in pieces and nothing to keep him tethered, Shadow accepts a job from a beguiling stranger he meets on the way home, an enigmatic man who calls himself Mr. Wednesday.
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Read other Neil Gaiman first
- By Robert on 04-16-11
By: Neil Gaiman
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Chelsea Girls
- A Novel
- By: Eileen Myles
- Narrated by: Eileen Myles
- Length: 6 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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In this breathtakingly inventive autobiographical novel, Eileen Myles transforms life into a work of art. Told in her audacious voice, made vivid and immediate in her lyrical language, Chelsea Girls cobbles together memories of Myles's 1960s Catholic upbringing with an alcoholic father, her volatile adolescence, her unabashed "lesbianity," and her riotous pursuit of survival as a poet in 1970s New York.
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fascinatingly skanky
- By Megon J. Walker on 07-15-16
By: Eileen Myles
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London Fields
- By: Martin Amis
- Narrated by: Steven Pacey
- Length: 21 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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The murderee is Nicola Six, a "black hole" of sex and self-loathing who is intent on orchestrating her own extinction. The murderer may be Keith Talent, a violent lowlife whose only passions are pornography and darts; or the rich, honorable, and dimly romantic Guy Clinch. As Nicola leads her suitors towards the precipice, London--and, indeed, the whole world--seems to shamble after them in a corrosively funny novel of complexity and morality.
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Big chewy novel, excellent narration
- By Sand on 08-21-14
By: Martin Amis
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Chanel Bonfire
- By: Wendy Lawless
- Narrated by: Wendy Lawless
- Length: 6 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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By the time Wendy Lawless turned 17, she'd known for quite some time that she didn't have a normal mother. But that didn't stop her from wanting one.... Georgann Rea didn't bake cookies or go to PTA meetings; she wore a mink coat and always had a lit Dunhill plugged into her cigarette holder. She went through men like Kleenex, and didn't like dogs or children. Georgann had the ice queen beauty of a Hitchcock heroine and the cold heart to match.
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Not an Engaging Listen
- By Sobriquet on 03-13-13
By: Wendy Lawless
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The Death of Cool
- From Teenage Rebellion to the Hangover of Adulthood
- By: Gavin McInnes
- Narrated by: Gavin McInnes
- Length: 7 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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This is his story, or, rather, stories - lots of them, and all gut-punchingly hilarious, from that first far reach into a girl's tight jeans to turning forty with a cataclysmic party. In between you’ll hear about acid trips, threesomes, Nazi skinheads, his band Anal Chinook (Inuit for “warm wind”), Martians in northern Canada, throwing pedophiles in jail, dinner with the Clash, what happens when you crash Bill Maher's show wasted, and the true story of Vice magazine.
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if you don't buy this book, the terrorists win
- By Kelsey Gholi on 04-03-17
By: Gavin McInnes
What listeners say about How to Build a Girl
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- camakay
- 01-01-18
loved it
Ah, the 90s when the only way to figure out if someone could be a new friend was asking, 'what kind of music do you listen to?'
this story nailed it
and the narrator/ voice artist was fantastic! every voice, conversation, expression... she brought so much to the performance. she really made the characters and personalities stand out. I haven't heard another audio book that felt expertly acted instead of just read.
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- Rgreen
- 09-26-15
Caitlin Moran, where were you when I was a teen?!!
One of the best audio productions I've heard in a long time. Second only to Ms. Moran's narration, this book entertains, educates, and leaves one wanting to hear more about Johanna Morrigan. I nearly drove off the road while driving to work and listening. I was laughing so hard and trying not to pee my pants.
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- J.G. Brandt
- 02-26-15
How very English.
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
To the right friend, yes. I don't think this book is for everyone but I really did enjoy the story.
Who was your favorite character and why?
It might have been Kenny (her boss). He just seemed like he didn't give her what she wanted to hear but what she needed to hear.
What does Louise Brealey bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
She did the Irish, English and Scottish accents very well. It really made the story come to life.
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
It had a few moments where it made me think "Come on Johana. You're better than that" or "poor girl has zero self esteem" and "Ha! I have no idea what kind of food they are talking about but it sounds vile."
Any additional comments?
If you're in the mood for a teenager reinventing herself and going about it in the London music scene....this is your book.
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1 person found this helpful
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- HOLLINGSWORTH
- 12-07-21
I loved every moment ❤
loved it. Very good. Every woman should read this book. We've all been there.
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- Paulaer Amateur Editor
- 08-24-15
Incredible and Honest
Would you consider the audio edition of How to Build a Girl to be better than the print version?
I didn't read the print version so I don't know.
Who was your favorite character and why?
The main character was incredible. She was so funny and honest.
What does Louise Brealey bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Her accents and character voices were superb!
If you could take any character from How to Build a Girl out to dinner, who would it be and why?
John - he seemed like a fun guy to know.
Any additional comments?
I loved this book. It was so poignant and the time period was when I grew up so I got it. I thought this was one of the best books Ive read in a long time.
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- KMC Artworks
- 10-03-16
Brilliant!!
This is a brilliant, very well told story! I was a little apprehensive (Being a Big fan of the other books) about the voice work being done by someone else... but it is so beautifully written, and told, that I felt as if I personally knew the characters individually. Spectacular read! Loved it!
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3 people found this helpful
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- T's mom
- 03-25-15
Love Caitlin
It was a bit of a drag, but she's such a great feminist writer... I'm not mad.
I might even read it again.
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1 person found this helpful
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- BigShoes
- 09-03-15
Loved it
The narrator was fantastic. Did a great job on all the different voices. The story was a fun, smart romp through a teenage mind and bad decisions with an optimistic ending. Very well- written.
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- oldmanwagner
- 12-02-14
When you see yourself in print, and its okay
What made the experience of listening to How to Build a Girl the most enjoyable?
The humor and compassion with which the entire story was conveyed made it always approachable, and easy to return to. And speaking as a woman who was a young teen in the 90s, the portrait of the time (even though it is in England) and place (lower middle class with a worthless but somehow not useless father) was hopeful and though simpler, on the cusp of great change was perfectly crystalized and presented. Reading this was to be transported back to look at a younger self, and realizing that though that younger self is an absurd creature, she is also splendid.
What other book might you compare How to Build a Girl to and why?
How To Be A Woman. This book expands on the Caitlen Moran character in HTBaW without being a simple retelling of Moran's life...it imagines a slightly more breathless approach, one in keeping with a teenage narrator.
What does Louise Brealey bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
The nuance of spoken British slang.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Yes.
Any additional comments?
Buy this for the young (college-aged) women in your life. It'll help them realize that you need not be perfect to achieve dreams. In fact, flaws can be memorable.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Brandy
- 07-16-16
Wasn't expecting to like it, but I loved it
I read this for a book club and by the description thought it would be depressing and that I wouldn't relate with the characters. Instead I found it funny, inspiring and a brilliant riot of words. I really loved it.
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1 person found this helpful