booksbydorothea: REVIEW - Fahrenheit-182 (audiobook)

Fahrenheit-182 by Mark Hoppus (audiobook)

OVERVIEW

This audiobook had the good, the bad, and the ugly of Mark's life including lots of f-bombs and d-pick references. Mark covers everything from his childhood to his parents' acrimonious divorce to his cancer diagnosis and recovery.

I was hoping to love this audiobook, but I only liked it. I know that blink-182 is known for being the "naked guys", but the antics and language wore on me. I guess I am too old for their sh$t!

FULL disclosure: my daughter is a huge blink-182 fan! We do listen to their music and were even at the Los Angeles concert when Kourtney told Travis she was pregnant.

OVERALL REVIEW: 4.0 stars

Writing: 4.0 stars

The writing was good. Mark did have a ghostwriter, Dan Ozzi.

Narration: 4.0 stars

The narration by Mark is well done. As it is Mark's life and story, he relives it through the narration. Appropriately funny and emotional.

But again the f-bombs and d-pick references got old very quickly.

Character Arc: 4.0 stars

The character arc is Mark's life from childhood to the blink-182 reunion at Coachella 2023. The book is told chronologically in many concise chapters.

Mark is from Ridgecrest, California (a high desert town in Kern County, California) where his father worked in naval weapons at the nearby base. His parents' acrimonious divorce led Mark to San Diego where he met Tom DeLonge and co-founded blink-182.

The many tragedies in Mark's life including Travis Barker's airplane accident and his cancer diagnosis helped him seek therapy for his OCD, anxiety, and depression. As someone who suffers from anxiety and depression, I appreciate Mark's honesty about his mental health struggles and his cancer treatment journey.

Memorable: 4.0 stars

Mark tells so many wild stories about his life including his antics with blink-182 are insanity personified. But, the stalker, Robert Smith, and Saddam Hussein stories are WILD! Again, the f-bombs and d-pick references got old very quickly.

However, the best stories are when Mark talks about his wife and son and when I could totally relate to him and his life. Additionally, his raw emotions when blink-182 broke up are heartbreaking.

Entertaining: 4.0 stars

There were many sad, funny, and introspective stories in the audiobook. It was something!

There were a lot of pop-punk band references and performers that I didn't know and some that I did know. But, it didn't matter.

Book cover: 5.0 stars

Totally Mark.

Book title: 5.0 stars

Great pun!

DEFINITE recommend

STATISTICS

Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) borrow: audiobook

Fahrenheit-182 by Mark Hoppus

Little, Brown Audio