Biggest Elvis: 8

by P.F. Kluge

Book Overview

Part mystery, part love story, part mordant commentary on America's waning presence worldwide, this hugely entertaining novel tells the story of a trio of Elvis impersonators working out of a club... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0670869740
• ISBN13: 9780670869749
• Release Date: August 1996
• Publisher: Viking Books
• Length: 341 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.3" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Men will love it...

To be brief, this is in a class with Mustang Sally which makes it one of the funniest books ever written. I've bought copies to give to my friends. Make no mistake: it's a guy's book.

personally one of the most satisfying books I've ever read

Biggest Elvis was passed to me from a coworker in Berkeley, CA. I lived for a year in Guam and have a fondness for Elvis lore and that combination made my colleague think of Biggest Elvis. I am so glad she did. Kluge does a wonderful job describing Guam, the Micronesian Islands (especially Palau) and the influence that the US has on that area. I worked in a nightclub in Guam that catered to mostly Japanese and korean tourists and included karaoke and hokey celebrity impersonators. The stuff Kluge puts into Biggest Elvis was like literary chocolate, yummy and delicious, to the point that I kind of got a buzz from reading it. I've been searching the used bookstores for my very own copy because I do not like to shop on-line or at chain bookstores--Unfortuantely its quite hard to find, despite the popular reactions the readers seem to have and its contemporary elements--anyway, its a great book.

Biggest Elvis is thought provoking, poignant, and funny.

Three unlikely protagonists in an even more unlikely setting somehow manage to keep a poignant and often laugh-out-loud-funny storyline from ever getting lost in the absurd. Kluge creates lively, sympathetic characters in his triumvirate of Elvis impersonators, and the lush, vibrant settings evoke vivid sensations as the story weaves in and out of Kluge's wonderfully lyrical landscapes. This book puts US pop culture in a new and interesting light, one in which heroes are mocked, antiheroes are revered, and Elvis Presley is as big as America itself.

Almost a classic...

This is a thoroughly enjoyable novel, well written with right-on accurate descriptions of Olongapo and the Pacific Rim islands. It is a uniquely narrated, multi-faceted story that rides a roller coaster of emotions and reveals the love-hate relationship between the U.S. and the people of the Western Pacific. All this plus three Elvises! Who could ask for more?

Tear-jerker for anyone who has ever loved the Philippines

A book you won't be able to put down if you've ever spent time in the Philippines and fallen in love with both the country and its magical women. Clearly the author has done both and the conversations that take place will put the reader right smack in Ermita or Olongapo or any of a number of places where the music's loud, the San Miguel cheap, and the angelic faces of seemingly innocent bar girls will have you feeling that you are living some sort of "Miss Saigon" life. I could not put the book down, and finished it in one five hour sitting between L.A. and Honolulu. "Mabuhay!" to P.F.Kluge and here's hoping that he uses his insight to give us another story of the Philippines soon.