- Hardcover: 306 pages
- Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf; First Edition edition (14 Nov 2006)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0307262995
- ISBN-13: 978-0307262998
- Product Dimensions: 23.9 x 16 x 3.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 137,164 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Observer
'Carl Hiaasen's latest screwball thriller ... is sometimes ludicrous but
always engaging and frequently hilarious.' --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
always engaging and frequently hilarious.' --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
Independent
`Nature Girl, the product of a deranged imagination, combines the comedic
energy of Molière with Mark Twain's lightness of phrase.'
--This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
energy of Molière with Mark Twain's lightness of phrase.'
--This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
If you're already a fan of Carl Hiassen's patented brand of Florida set light weight crime fiction Nature Girl will statisfy if not overwhelm you. If you're new to the author's work then this a reasonable place to start, even if he has written better books (his last, Skinny Dip for example). On the offchance that you've tried his work before and not found it to your taste then firstly, why are you reading this review and secondly, walk away because I doubt there's anything here that will change your opinion.
The usual mix of oddball and disfunctional characters, complex, coincidental plotting that works with swiss watch-like precision, gentle humour, mild satire and real heart, Nature Girl is light weight, agreeable stuff. Its not going to change anyone's world and you get the feeling that Hiassen can churn this stuff out in his sleep, but it remains a decent, likeable and amusing way to pass the time.
The usual mix of oddball and disfunctional characters, complex, coincidental plotting that works with swiss watch-like precision, gentle humour, mild satire and real heart, Nature Girl is light weight, agreeable stuff. Its not going to change anyone's world and you get the feeling that Hiassen can churn this stuff out in his sleep, but it remains a decent, likeable and amusing way to pass the time.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
What's not to like about a book by Carl Hiaasen? His prose is tough yet tender, his satire bites then provokes smiles, he's totally original, his offbeat characters are over the top, and, thanks to him, the State of Florida is revealed in all its steamy, seamy splendor. He won me with "Skinny Dip" and I haven't looked back since.
With "Nature Girl" we meet Boyd Shreave who is employed by Relentless, Inc. where he makes his living as a telemarketer. His mistress, Eugenie Fonda "who claimed a murky connection to the famous acting family" is in the cubicle next to him, a script is in front of him, and he has an assumed name for calling purposes - Boyd Eisenhower. He'll rue the day that he ever dialed Honey Santana's number.
Honey is a woman on a mission fueled by a rabid desire to rid the world of many adversities that have visited her, one of them being dinnertime sales calls. Her 12-year-old son, Fry, alternates between believing her to be tetched or the most wonderful Mom in the world. Her brother, Richard, is well aware that his sister "sometimes reacted to ordinary situations in unique ways." Nonetheless, he locates Boyd for her. Her plan? To sell him something he can't afford.
Sure enough, Boyd takes the bait and soon Honey is escorting the telemarketer and his reluctant mistress on a kayak tour through the wilds of Ten Thousand Islands. She just intends to teach them a lesson or three. What she hadn't counted on is Piejack, her boss at the fish market, following her. Piejack is the kind of guy who thinks sexual harassment in the workplace is acceptable, and the object of his attention is Honey.
Now, read carefully (this is Hiaasen) - Piejack is being followed by Honey's ex, Perry, and Fry. Dismal Key is a landing place for this parade, and it's there they find Sammy Tigertail, a half-white, half-Seminole former alligator wrestler who tried his hand at doing airboat tours. But, when his first customer died on board, he told his uncle "he wasn't spiritually equipped to deal with tourists." Precisely what he is equipped for is subject for conjecture.
Hiaasen's cast of crazy characters garner laughs aplenty. His meandering plot is a playful perplexity, and every page is a reminder that this author has no peers. Long may he scribe!
- Gail Cooke
With "Nature Girl" we meet Boyd Shreave who is employed by Relentless, Inc. where he makes his living as a telemarketer. His mistress, Eugenie Fonda "who claimed a murky connection to the famous acting family" is in the cubicle next to him, a script is in front of him, and he has an assumed name for calling purposes - Boyd Eisenhower. He'll rue the day that he ever dialed Honey Santana's number.
Honey is a woman on a mission fueled by a rabid desire to rid the world of many adversities that have visited her, one of them being dinnertime sales calls. Her 12-year-old son, Fry, alternates between believing her to be tetched or the most wonderful Mom in the world. Her brother, Richard, is well aware that his sister "sometimes reacted to ordinary situations in unique ways." Nonetheless, he locates Boyd for her. Her plan? To sell him something he can't afford.
Sure enough, Boyd takes the bait and soon Honey is escorting the telemarketer and his reluctant mistress on a kayak tour through the wilds of Ten Thousand Islands. She just intends to teach them a lesson or three. What she hadn't counted on is Piejack, her boss at the fish market, following her. Piejack is the kind of guy who thinks sexual harassment in the workplace is acceptable, and the object of his attention is Honey.
Now, read carefully (this is Hiaasen) - Piejack is being followed by Honey's ex, Perry, and Fry. Dismal Key is a landing place for this parade, and it's there they find Sammy Tigertail, a half-white, half-Seminole former alligator wrestler who tried his hand at doing airboat tours. But, when his first customer died on board, he told his uncle "he wasn't spiritually equipped to deal with tourists." Precisely what he is equipped for is subject for conjecture.
Hiaasen's cast of crazy characters garner laughs aplenty. His meandering plot is a playful perplexity, and every page is a reminder that this author has no peers. Long may he scribe!
- Gail Cooke
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I disagree with the first reviewer; if you haven't read Carl Hiaasen before then DON'T start here. This is a dull and lacklustre effort in a series of books that have been extremely entertaining and funny. I would suggest reading 'Lucky You', 'Sick Puppy' well in fact any of them but this. From start to finish this book feels like it's slowly running out of steam, but don't let that put you reading his other stuff, he's a great writer going through a bad spell.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A tropical tour de farce.
When Boyd Shreave, a telemarketing salesman, insults Honey Santana over the 'phone, she decides to punish him. Read more
Published 3 months ago by ADAM
Wacky and ironic but needed more zip
This is my first Hiaasen book and I picked it up as I wanted something funny to read in the cold dark nights, and while it does have its funny moments it does not quite get to the... Read more
Published on 3 Dec 2009 by Andrew Dalby
Fun, though formualic, Florida frolic
Back in the day Hiaasen's Florida-set comic thrillers were really unmissable. His first five, from Tourist Season to Strip Tease (turned into a poor film) set up his trademark... Read more
Published on 22 Nov 2009 by C. Young
Not his best book
I enjoy Carl Hiaasen's books but I agree with the reviewer here who headed his review 'disappointing'. Read more
Published on 4 Mar 2009 by Barmee
Is Hiaasen losing it?
Is Hiaasen losing it? Hiaasen strength is his ability to develop multi strand stories featuring plotlines and characters that are so over the top you just can't put them down. Read more
Published on 23 Feb 2009 by R. Lowther
Sticks to the Hiassen formula and delivers another funny romp through...
This book sticks to the (winning) formula of the author's previous works: larger-than-life (and sleazier-than-life) characters who get themselves into the most bizarre situations... Read more
Published on 3 Sep 2008 by Eamonn McGonigle
Zany as ever
Hiaasen fans are in for the usual heady mix of wacky characters brought together in bizarre circumstances. Read more
Published on 27 April 2008 by Mr. G. Battle
why would you read this!
I am always open to authors that I do not know BUT, this was an experience never to be repeated. The story line takes forever and goes no-where. Read more
Published on 4 Jan 2008 by Melanie Derrick
Another hilarious tale of American odd-balls, criminals and assorted...
The lastest in Carl Haasen's hilarious car-crash novels (no, they are not about car-crashes, but reading them is like watching one). Read more
Published on 22 Nov 2007 by A Common Reader
Extreme Satirical Jabs at Self-Satisfaction
If you are familiar with Carl Hiassen's earlier novels, you know that he loves to take an ordinary event that we pretty much ignore, whether it be watching someone littering or... Read more
Published on 25 Sep 2007 by Donald Mitchell
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