Customer Reviews
Music and Memories 
2008-01-02
It's a fact that people often associate certain music with events in their lives, and sometimes the most soothing music can be that which we associate with a pleasant memory or a time that we don't want to forget. For Rob Sheffield, the glorious schizophrenia of Nineties radio and alternative music provide the soundtrack to the life he had with his wife Renee, a life cut short one May day in 1997 when she suddenly died and left him a young widow. This book is an exploration of that loss, and how he managed to make it through.
Sheffield is probably best known as the snarky columinist of Rolling Stone, but here he shows his real gift as a writer. Through his brief-but-never-dull book, we get a glimpse into the love that changed his life. Anyone who's made a mix tape or CD for someone, or just had a favorite song to associate with that person, can relate, and it's music that helps solidify Rob and Renee's early marriage. And when she dies, it's music that helps him to overcome the crushing grief he feels.
I heartily recommend this book because even though there might be some flaws (one reviewer stated that there seemed to be a lot of padding, and I might venture to agree with them), it's a heartfelt and uncynical look at why music means so much to so many people. Pick it up and you won't be disappointed.
Unbelievable 
2007-11-07
An unbelievably good, funny, heartbreaking read. I loved every moment of it. I ache for the author's pain, and it made me appreciate my bride and my child so much more at the end of it. Terrific. If you love music, have ever made a mix tape, and are of a certain age, you will adore this book. Wonderful.
Beautifully crafted, heart-wrenching story of love and life 2007-10-22
You would have to be inhuman to not be touched by this book.
Rob had such respect and adoration for his wife, who unexpectedly died of a brain aneurysm at a young age. He tells their story through the different mix tapes that he made along the way, and how the music of his generation helped to paint the picture of his life with and without his wife, Rene.
As someone who also was always making mixed tapes as a teenager (pre-iPod years), I just connected with this book. I didn't always agree with Rob as far as his musical tastes go, but his insights on life and love will be remembered, as they were told in the best way he knew how: mixtapes.
Rob's writing style was seamless, to me. I prefer novels that are upfront and uninhibited, and this book was just that. Everything's out on the table, no B.S., jut raw feelings. It makes for one book that you just can't forget.
I'm going there 
2007-10-08
I will admit that I was skeptical when I picked up the book; Amazon told me I'd like it because I like Chuck Klosterman. I was only hoping that this book was not going to be a cheezy Klosterman wanna-be. Although it is a bit Klosterman-esque (He's thanked in the acknowledgements), it does have more heart and soul in it than the average Klosterman book. This is where I find that I couldn't enjoy this novel more. As a novel, this book is unfocused and disjointed, but if you broke this novel down, you have two very poignant and interesting essays (The love and loss of a wife at a young age, The importance and significance of the "mix tape"). It seems like Sheffield felt that the connection between these two essays was so strong that he could tie them together, but it seems like more of a segue between the two (I got my wife because of the significance of the mix tape). When Sheffield speaks about the mix tape importance in the book, he defintetly comes off as the dork he knows he is, and I felt that he just talked about the mix tapes because he felt he had interesting insights on the subject that would make him come off as clever and observant in a hip way (when it doesn't); but when he talks about Renee and his relationship with her, you do get some quality writing. That's the best part of this book, when he speaks about her and when he speaks about life AFTER her. He talks about these subjects in such an unpretentious, honest manner, and it's refreshing because you really feel the love he has for her and the despair and confusion he feels with the loss of her. I wish this could have just been two essays, but as a novel it just doesn't have that significant of a tie for me.
Nice idea, cute story, just not a great book. 2007-08-30
The story is of the power of music and one tragic loss. The author lost his wife unexpectedly and pieced together a book about their relationship in its before, during and after stages. Each chapter is headed by the tracklisting of a mixtape -- a customized amalgamation of songs, however random -- they had made. I was somewhat under the impression that the chapters would be more about the mixtapes they made together and less mile markers in the chronological tour of their relationship. The songs set the tone (somewhat) for the chapter to come, but there isn't necessarily any cohesion between the song choices themselves and the following few pages.
I understand how difficult it would be to pull that off, but I guess I had pretty high hopes.
Some parts of the book were beautiful in their tribute, but other parts just seemed like simple narrative. There were times when the anecdotes made Sheffield sound like he lived to a ripe old age and here he was remembering his early love. While I am sure we can get into how philosophically much more time passed in his life than ours after she died, he is still a young man. The book may have been cut down by a few pages, in fact all I really needed was some of the set up and the last chapter. In the last chapter it seemed like Sheffield finally let himself feel Renee's absence. Sharing in that, I finally began to feel for him.
For the most part, the book was enjoyable. I would argue that the inclusion of music into the story was a little over done (with countless references, name drops and lyrics spread throughout the book), but apparently that was how Rob and Renee lived. Those were the conversations they had.
The feeling I had the most while I read was that his story was a private one. I felt that he needed to write the book for his closure, to preserve her memory and to give himself perspective. While I am honored that he shared Renee with us all, I couldn't help but feel that I was intruding on something that was special to the two of them.
As previously mentioned, the final chapter could live and breathe on its own. The emotion that finally pulsed through those last few pages just about made up for its conspicuous absence earlier in the book. I never read achnowledgements, especailly when they are more than a paragraph but I read these. The last chapter spilled over into them and I couldn't help myself. I wanted to see the final goodbye and thank you written to Renee. After thanking everyone who helped write the book, I wanted to have my heart ripped out by a simple homage to Renee who will now live on forever in text. But while she was mentioned in the acknowledgements, she was never thanked. But then again, maybe that part was just too personal.
Its story, while sometimes buried under excessive music references, was sweet. The book was short; at 219 pages it is short enough to try it even if you aren't sure about it. All in all, Love is A Mix-Tape was a decent book.
I was too young to know better 2008-04-14
It was 1988 and I was too young to know better. I picked up my girl from her pantyhose job at the mall and went to a Cheap Trick concert being held in the parking lot of a big box music store where the employees are more annoying than a one-hit wonder's self absorbed coke-head front man who's convinced he can do no wrong and that the world is hanging on every word the proceeds from his verbal-plenary inspired mouth. As soon as Cheap Trick hit the stage you could hear all the girls in the crowd ovulating in unison. Buford, who put the "freak" in "frequently drunk and belligerent" was there selling fake hits of `cid and looking for trouble in all the right places. That guy is Yacko, Wacko AND Dot. He'll smoke bats and bite the heads off drugs.
Toot toot
Beep beep
Footnote: Sheffield, Rob "Love is a Mix Tape" p. 1 - 224
I haven't read too many books in one sitting. "Love is a Mix Tape" is one of them. Not too many books have made me pump my arm and say "yeah!" This one did. Thanks Rob. You ROCK!!!!
This is how love feels 2008-04-03
This book made me realize how much I associate music with various points in my life. When I hear a familiar song, I am often reminded of who I was with at the time, what I was doing, and my state of mind. Sheffield's book succeeds in verbalizing a lot of this feeling.
This book is about love. Sheffield uses music as a way to evoke the feelings he had for Renee, his ex-wife, at different periods of their relationship. This book takes the reader from the beginning of Sheffield's relationship with Renee, through their marriage, her death, Sheffield's mourning, and his eventual new romance. If one is familiar with the music Sheffield and Renee listen to, the book might be more powerful. But to someone like me with no real background of listening to that music, it still evoked the powerful feelings love and loss can awaken. I felt Sheffield's pain when Renee suddenly died. To lose someone you love so much is a blow that few people can recover from. I was wounded when I read about the lonely and aimless way Sheffield makes his way through life after Renee's death, everything and anything bringing up her memory. To anyone who has dared to love, the feelings in this book will bring up a case in deja vu. To those who haven't loved, it might give some insight as to why people act so crazy when they love someone.
I can't recommend this book enough.
Sweet, sad, and yet full of joy 2008-03-08
I almost didn't read this book, despite the praise two people whose tastes I trusted gave it. For some reason I didn't think I would appreciate it since I'm not nearly as into music as I was when I was younger. I quickly found that it didn't matter. Sheffield's loving, yet never sappy or melancholy, descriptions of Renee - and his life and love with her - drew me in. Hell, I almost found myself falling in love with this lady! What a wonderful tribute to her. I could see and feel her sense of adventure, her love of life, her impulsiveness and sense of humor. How tragic for someone so full of life to die so young. But how lucky the two of them were to share what they did, even if for a short time.
Music was a deeply shared love of theirs, and I think we can all relate to the power of music to a certain extent. Who doesn't hear certain songs that evoke a memory or emotion, good or bad? I think we all do. I thought his unique approach in using his and their mix tapes to begin each chapter, and to tell the story, really worked. Maybe it wouldn't for all writers or all stories, but for Sheffield's story, I thought it was perfect.
Love Is A Mixtape 2008-01-14
This book is truly unique. Heartwarming and heartbreaking, Sheffield connects to readers by invoking reminiscent images conjured from mixtapes. By using such an intimate medium, Sheffield reaches readers through the method used for decades to serenade people with whom we've fallen in love, to create the soundtrack for a perfect drive, or to just string together songs we love to listen to. This book has played its way into my heart in a way that few other books have. I plan to keep this title on my bookshelf for years to come.
Hipster Grief Memoir Never Transcends the Genre 
2008-01-04
I don't generally care for memoirs, but several things drew me to this one and convinced me to try it out. I'm almost the same age as the author, and like him I grew up with indie music, made a gazillion mix tapes, and even lived in Charlottesville, Virginia for a few years, patronizing many of the establishments, and driving the same roads mentioned in his book. And I have to admit that when I saw that each chapter opened with a mix tape track listing, I was pretty sure this was my kind of book. Unfortunately, despite these positive indicators, it never overcame my distaste for the genre.
It's a pretty straightforward book: a paean to the author's dead wife, which basically boils down to "she was awesome" and "it hurts." Which is fine, and no doubt very therapeutic for Sheffield to express, but ultimately not that interesting. Theirs was a case of opposites attracting over mutual love of music -- he a shy Boston Irish-Catholic music nerd, and she an outgoing Southern quasi-punk chick. Sheffield outlines his life prior to meeting Renee, his eight years with her, and the aftermath of her sudden death.
This is all more or less done through the lens of the music they voraciously consumed. The mix tape track listings follow the chronology of their relationship, but don't serve any larger function, which was a bit disappointing. And even when Sheffield does write about the music, he never really captures it that well -- partly because he's wildly enthusiastic about pretty much every piece of music mentioned. This indiscriminate cheerleading for all pop music, ranging from his true loves, to so-bad-its-good stuff, to flip flopping on Pearl Jam (that's probably the moment he really lost me) make his love of music seem almost manic. Of course, to be fair, writing about music is really really really hard, and very few people are able to do it with any style and conviction.
In any event, I never really connected with Sheffield or his sad story -- which probably has more to do with me and my dislike of memoirs than it does of the book. If you like memoirs, this may well hit the right spot. It's not all doom and gloom, there are some funny parts, and when the book moves away from all the pretentious hipster-cool stuff, it can be quite charming and moving. In this sense, I was greatly reminded of Joan Didion's awful, overrated, self-indulgent grief memoir, The Year of Magical Thinking, which was at its worst when she lapsed into name and place-dropping.
