Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Dark Days at Disneyland, 2 Oct 2003
Disneyland must be a very depressing place to work. At least that's the impression I get from reading "More Mouse Tales", David Koenig's followup to his earlier, lighthearted, much more fun "Mouse Tales". Apparently, having depleted his store of lighthearted anecdotes, Koenig has turned to tales told by disgruntled former employees who cannot accept the fact that Disneyland is run by a corporation and is no longer the spiritual child of founder "Uncle Walt".
Any number of Disney hatchet jobs exist, even a monograph by journalist and novelist Carl Hiassen, and I know where to go if I want to read one of these anti-Disney tracts. In fact, I often do, just to gain a wider perspective; I am a Disney fan, but I keep my eyes open and my sense of reality polished.I was not expecting such a negative and depressing experience from reading this book however. Koenig focuses on tragedy, corruption, poor management and high prices here and only barely lets the reader up for air. No story is too sordid, no hearsay is too circumstancial to be included in "More Mouse Tales". Ironically, Koenig points out in his introduction that the sales of his earlier book and the resurgence in Disneyland attendance roughly coincided (don't be fooled, the comparison is bad science and bad mathematics) and, noting the recent poor attendance, suggests that maybe it's time for him to lend his assistance once again. Ladies and gentlemen, if this book is David Koenig's idea of assistance, don't ever let him change a flat tire for you. If you have a clear head and don't automatically leap onto a pro-Disney soapbox whenever someone criticizes, you may still enjoy this book. It includes plenty of insider info and lots of diagrams of beloved attractions. If you are a Disney-hater, you'll love it.
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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Bad follow-up to a dubious "best-seller", 26 Jul 2006
Whilst the author would argue that this book provides exactly what the inside cover would suggest, I personally think the blurb would be more accurate if it read "Roll up, roll up ... come read a selection of comments from disgruntled Disneyland employee's, the majority of whom the Corporation has gotten rid of over the past 50 years"
I am a big fan of Disney Theme Parks but it's not from any Disney-bias that I found this book un-entertaining. I happily absorb any inside knowledge of anything and everything to do with the Magic Kingdom, good or bad, however I expected more than a quick skip through the park's major attractions whereby mainly ex-employee's tell us all how nasty the Mouse really runs its House. The final few chapters randomly throw in expose's on several subjects such as the security in the park and some unsavoury tales from the poor folk who dress up as Disney character's day after day.
Over the last decade or so I've become extremely critical at how Walt's legacy seems to be rapidly fading and in fairness to Koenig it's this angle that he's focusing on with this book. However whilst his first book on Disneyland was entertaining to a degree, this time round you can tell he's really scraping the barrel. I'm certain his information was very well researched but name me any giant of a company with a 50 year history in an area where you won't find hundreds of ex-employee's waiting to "tell-all". I'm sure the majority have every reason to question the goings-on by Park Management that result in negativity but whether or not this makes for a good read is an entirely different matter. Add to this some ridiculously un-funny guest-quotes which are supposed to make you giggle and you're left with a Bumper Disneyland Edition of the National Enquirer.
In summary, there's very little behind-the-scenes info in "More Mouse Tales" that your average Disneyland fan won't already know about but if you do want to read "inside accounts" of some of the darker happenings in the park's history then maybe you'll enjoy it.
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1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A fascinating insight into the Disney theme park experience, 29 Oct 2003
Firstly, I must admit to not reading the first book, although I now own one and will be reading it very soon. However, I found this book, not only to be written in a concise and easy-to-read manor, I thought the stories of the early days of Disneyland with the tales of strange goings-on, attacks on characters and just downright unprofessionalism by the staff, quite amazing. One imagines the Disney corporation to be spot-on in everything it does - too much at times - that when you read some of the almost unbelievable entries of actual employees it almosts defies belief. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and look forward to reading the first volume.
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by David Koenig
by David Koenig
by Shaun Finnie
by Kevin Yee
