Rating: 
Summary: Not as good as first two, but give this one a chance!
Review: I absolutely loved the first two books in the "Tales of the City" series. "Further Tales" was more difficult for me to get into and care about the characters. However, once I did get into it, I was rooting for the characters (especially Mary Ann, DeDe, Brian and Mouse). The last part of the book was very suspenseful, especially the "Bambi-in-the-basement" scenario. All in all a very entertaining and suspensful book which, like the second book, made me cry in some places.I'm trying to find people I can discuss these books with!
Rating:
Summary: weakest link in _Tales_ series
Review: I am an unabashed addict of Armistead Maupin's _Tales of the City_ series. That said, _Further Tales_ could possibly be the weakest link in this beguiling sequence of books. This one focuses more on secondary characters to the 28 Barbary Lane gang, folks that are materialistic, fame-mongering and just plain less interesting and hard to care about. That said, Maupin's less powerful stories are better than most other writers, and while the series can best be described as literary bon-bons, he has a strong narrative and great sense of characterization that "serious" writers like Don Delillo would kill for.
Rating: 
Summary: A bit over the top, but still good
Review: I enjoy the mystery aspects of the Tales series, but the mystery in this case was a bit too much. But the characters are still the people readers of the previous two books have come to know and love, and they remain loveable in Further Tales. I just want to give DeeDee (always a favorite character of mine) a big hug and tell her everything will be OK.
Rating:
Summary: #3
Review: If you could only get one of Amistead Maupin's Tales series, this is not the one to get. I've read all 3 of the Tales and this one was a bit disappointing. The characters seem so different that I almost found it distracting that he used the same names. Sure characters should evolve, but there just wasn't a smooth transition from the 2nd book to this one as far as character development. Michael is not as lovable and fey as in the previous 2 books, and his relationship with MaryAnn has all but faded into mere allusions. It's still a worthy read, and I would still recommend it, but not before the other two.
Rating:
Summary: #3
Review: If you could only get one of Amistead Maupin's Tales series, this is not the one to get. I've read all 3 of the Tales and this one was a bit disappointing. The characters seem so different that I almost found it distracting that he used the same names. Sure characters should evolve, but there just wasn't a smooth transition from the 2nd book to this one as far as character development. Michael is not as lovable and fey as in the previous 2 books, and his relationship with MaryAnn has all but faded into mere allusions. It's still a worthy read, and I would still recommend it, but not before the other two.
Rating: 
Summary: More fun with the tenants of 28 Barbary Lane
Review: MORE TALES OF THE CITY by Armistead Maupin
MORE TALES OF THE CITY is volume two in a 6 book series by Armistead Maupin. This second book picks up where the first book, TALES OF THE CITY, left off. The focal point is the apartment building located at 28 Barbary Lane, in the heart of San Francisco. The books depict life and love in the town that Tony Bennett left his heart in. The reader gets involved with a number of esoteric characters, and some ordinary ones too, that have somehow found their lives tangled together in the late 1970's. Mary Ann, who moved to San Francisco from the Midwest in TALES OF THE CITY, now sees SF as home. She and Michael (Mouse) have become good friends and they take off on a cruise together. Michael wants a lover, as does Mary Ann, and as they both happen to be two lonely adults they decide to hang out together and have fun in the sun. It's Mary Ann, however, that gets lucky on the cruise, although her new lover does have one problem: he has amnesia. Michael, in the mean time, is still pining away for his gynecologist love Jon, while Mary Ann and her boyfriend Burke get very cozy on the high seas. Back home, Mrs. Madrigal, the landlady of 28 Barbary Lane, has a big secret that is revealed early on in the story. Her connections to her favorite tenant, Mona, and a prostitution house in Reno, seem rather far-fetched but it is one of the big shockers of TALES OF THE CITY. Brian, another tenant, is in the midst of some weird love affair, where he makes contact with a woman in the building across the way while he spies on her with his binoculars. Who this woman ends up to be is another shocker. The story of Dede Halcyon continues, and the mystery of D'orothea is also revealed, with her story and her relationship with her family gone into great detail. The two women become fast friends in this book, with the promise of future appearances in successive books. The book comes to a bang of an ending with Mary Ann and her lover Burke trying to figure out who he really is, and this mystery leads them on a very wild adventure involving a cult! MORES TALES OF THE CITY is yet another fun romp in the lives of these quirky people from 28 Barbary Lane. I enjoyed it as much as I did the first book, and am looking forward to reading the third book in the series, FURTHER TALES OF THE CITY. Armistead Maupin has a way of bringing these eccentric characters to life, which is the reason to read the rest of the series. Two thumbs up for MORE TALES OF THE CITY.
Rating:
Summary: More fun with the tenants of 28 Barbary Lane
Review: MORE TALES OF THE CITY by Armistead Maupin
MORE TALES OF THE CITY is volume two in a 6 book series by Armistead Maupin. This second book picks up where the first book, TALES OF THE CITY, left off. The focal point is the apartment building located at 28 Barbary Lane, in the heart of San Francisco. The books depict life and love in the town that Tony Bennett left his heart in. The reader gets involved with a number of esoteric characters, and some ordinary ones too, that have somehow found their lives tangled together in the late 1970's. Mary Ann, who moved to San Francisco from the Midwest in TALES OF THE CITY, now sees SF as home. She and Michael (Mouse) have become good friends and they take off on a cruise together. Michael wants a lover, as does Mary Ann, and as they both happen to be two lonely adults they decide to hang out together and have fun in the sun. It's Mary Ann, however, that gets lucky on the cruise, although her new lover does have one problem: he has amnesia. Michael, in the mean time, is still pining away for his gynecologist love Jon, while Mary Ann and her boyfriend Burke get very cozy on the high seas. Back home, Mrs. Madrigal, the landlady of 28 Barbary Lane, has a big secret that is revealed early on in the story. Her connections to her favorite tenant, Mona, and a prostitution house in Reno, seem rather far-fetched but it is one of the big shockers of TALES OF THE CITY. Brian, another tenant, is in the midst of some weird love affair, where he makes contact with a woman in the building across the way while he spies on her with his binoculars. Who this woman ends up to be is another shocker. The story of Dede Halcyon continues, and the mystery of D'orothea is also revealed, with her story and her relationship with her family gone into great detail. The two women become fast friends in this book, with the promise of future appearances in successive books. The book comes to a bang of an ending with Mary Ann and her lover Burke trying to figure out who he really is, and this mystery leads them on a very wild adventure involving a cult! MORES TALES OF THE CITY is yet another fun romp in the lives of these quirky people from 28 Barbary Lane. I enjoyed it as much as I did the first book, and am looking forward to reading the third book in the series, FURTHER TALES OF THE CITY. Armistead Maupin has a way of bringing these eccentric characters to life, which is the reason to read the rest of the series. Two thumbs up for MORE TALES OF THE CITY.
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful journey goes further on
Review: Reading the 'Tales of the City'-Series was such a wonderful experience I could easily repeat it as much as I could. Maupin's style is so great and terrific, it's strange I hadn't heard of him that much, before I read it. The characters are surely some of the best ones ever created in literary history. The developement of the storyline is so surprising and unexpectable it's breath-taking. The twists and turns are so effective, because you seem to know the characters so well, and never had thought... well, you have to explore the secrets by yourself. I have never seen such a developement of characters. The same persons are totally different in the last book than in the first one. It's great. I won't rate every book differently, although they are very different. But they are so great alltogether and so well-connected it's hard to tell them apart. This is wonderful stuff!
Rating:
Summary: Further Tales of the City...
Review: This book started strong but couldn't continue. In my opionion, the ending was week and unpolished. It was as if the writer rushed his ideas and didn't take the time to come up with a creative ending to complement the beginning. However, I did like how the author created the various story lines. The reader doesn't constantly read about a character(s) because Maupin breaks them up by reverting to a new chapter that introduces a the storyline by which in the end they are all connect somehow.
BEWARE: This book does contains adult situations and material. Ex: marijuana smoking characters, homosexuality and lesbian relationships, reference to the Jim Jones and Jonesburg situation, kidnapping of adults and children, ect...
Rating:
Summary: The Best One In The Whole Series!
Review: This one is the best book of armistead maupin. i have read all of his books, and this is the best. it is the most gripping tale of them all. it is intresting, scary, funny, sad, and touching all at the same time. once you start reading you dont want to put it down. highly recomended!
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