Scan barcode
christian_jeanne's review against another edition
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
3.0
“You’re going to make it,"
all of this to get from one communist dictatorship to another.
~
You know how they say don't judge a book by its cover? In this case, don't judge a book by its title.
I thought this was just gonna be a fun, happy yet satire read. Its not... Not really.
Its about Communist Hungary-Romania, following the misadventurous exploits of Attila Ambrus, your regular Transylvanian Dennis the Menace.
grahamcifelli's review against another edition
3.0
Really 3.5 stars, story was amazing but the writing style was so fucking tongue in cheek! Tried way to hard to be clever, kind of annoying in the beginning but ended up enjoying it
kimskim's review against another edition
4.0
This was a great entertaining story. At first I despised the main readers voice but it grew on me. I also enjoyed the way they had different readers for different parts. The music was also superb.
chazzerguy's review against another edition
4.0
Listened to the audiobook. Really really delightful as it’s almost more of a radio show format with lots of extra readers and sound effects. Simultaneously funny, profound, heartwarming, and sad.
cameronkc's review against another edition
4.0
I determined that Hungary is crazy. Hockey players are crazy. The police force after the fall of communism left much to be desired. Interesting book.
wesleyboy's review against another edition
4.0
Somehow this book looks longer than it feels to read it. It’s not a terribly large looking book either, but dunno. I put off reading this for a while because I thought it would be a long read but it goes fast.
Good story, and reading now in 2022, I need to go see what The Whiskey Robber is up now that he’s out of jail!
Good story, and reading now in 2022, I need to go see what The Whiskey Robber is up now that he’s out of jail!
davygibbs's review against another edition
5.0
Far more than an entertaining heist story, Ballad of the Whiskey Robber is an engrossing and touching biography of an everyman with a good heart on the wrong side of history (and yes, ok, also the law). It's also an insightful commentary on the fall of communism and the brutal introduction of capitalism to the former Soviet bloc, as well as an oddly charming travelogue of Budapest and Transylvania. In fact, it speaks volumes about the Hungarian capital that even after reading about the crime, corruption, and chaos of the post-Iron-Curtain years, Budapest still sounds like a hell of a fun town. Rubinstein struck gold with the story of the Whiskey Robber, that much is obvious. It's got everything you could ask for in a gripping biography, or a thrilling crime story. Fortunately for us, he's an incredible writer, and the prose just crackles with enthusiasm. This is a really fine work of nonfiction that I hope more and more people encounter, even as we get farther and farther from the social and political contexts that allowed such insane events to happen.
lexy's review against another edition
5.0
A recommendation from a reader I highly respect and it. did. not. disappoint. I can’t recommend the audiobook version enough. This was entertaining, funny, and weirdly informative about several countries I could pick out on a map, but that’s where my knowledge of them ceased. Such good nonfiction and I read A LOT of nonfiction.
nsfinch's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
tense
medium-paced
5.0
Really good true-crime-but-not-murder book for those who enjoy a heist. A wild story that's unimaginable at any time except for the post-Soviet era.