The Incomplete Tim Key cover art

The Incomplete Tim Key

About 300 of His Poetical Gems and What-Nots

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The Incomplete Tim Key

By: Tim Key
Narrated by: Tim Key
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You've got your greedy little claws on Key's audiobook. It represents the most comprehensive collection of poeticals put together to date. Whichever way you care to look at this, it is pretty much a wall of poems. There are lots of them. Too many maybe. If there's such a thing as too many poems, which in all likelihood there is.

These poems (by award-winning Key) are primarily about love, sex, dreams, death and fruit (strawberries, beans etc). This audiobook has come out as a sort of accompaniment to the actual book.

The two are quite similar, except this one's got snippets of music and the actual book is a bit heavier and can be burned in an emergency.

The release of the book, audiobook and ebook in no way tie in with things like 'demand' or 'clamour' but are more a result of Key having a full English breakfast with the right person at the right time. You shouldn't feel like you're taking the easy option by getting the audiobook rather than fronting up and buying the hard copy - some people like to enjoy poetry in the car and Key isn't the kind of person to suggest you jam the actual book against the steering wheel with your elbow and divide your attention between reading the lovely verse and narrowly avoiding a Prius. No, get the audiobook.

By all means, get the audiobook - ideally in addition to the actual book. Cue it up, and get it blaring out whilst you're doing other things.

©2011 Tim Key (P)2011 Canongate Books
European Poetry World Literature Witty Funny Comedy Feel-Good
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...And more like skipping down the street with a carving knife, singing sea shanties whilst eating a cream tea.

In other words, listen to these weird and wonderful and always darkly amusing little poems and you'll see what I mean.

God bless you, Mr Key.

Tim Key - the definition of 'off the wall'...

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I am an unashamed Key fan.
These poems will make no sense to anyone looking for meaning - there isn't any.
The joy is in the absurdity of the situations described and the feeling that these have just popped into his mind and have been committed to notebook, scraps of paper, playing cards, or whatever comes to hand, raw and unedited.
What makes the Audiobook version better than print or Kindle is Key's narration, always using the correct tone of voice, the emphasis on specific words, the occasional (deliberate) mispronunciation and the occasional piece of mid poem pontification.
The only very slight irritation is the use of very talented Joe Auckland to provide short musical stings in between sections. As much as I enjoy Joe's work with The Horne Section, I feel that this adds little to the listening experience, unlike the use of music in Key's Radio 4 shows.

I don't want to finish this review on a downbeat tone.
Key is a terribly unappreciated comic gem - Writer, Poet(!) Actor, One Man Show Performer, and from my own brief experience of meeting him, he is a really nice guy who clearly takes great pleasure from performing and from how much enjoyment his gives his audience.
I would love to see a collection of scripts from his radio and stage shows published one day.
Soon.
Please.

The Definitive Version Of This Book

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Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Tim Key's outsider observations and highly musical timing had me laughing in bed.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Mario. He tolerates only so much.

What does Tim Key bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

The asides

Audiobook version is a must

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Loved it, amusing, oddly thought provoking and passionately yet caringly read. Loved the music accompaniment too.

Nonsensical Excellency

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I have to agree with other reviews that suggest the mandolin/trumpet music is so annoying and somewhat spoils it. I have been playing the Lego Builder's Journey album underneath it and it is SO much better (random suggestion but try it!).

Funny but the music is so annoying

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