I’m fairly new to the Kindle experience, although I suppose we all are since the Kindle’s amazing “paper” digital technology hasn’t been around all that long. It’s impressive how much the digital screen looks like the printed page and that’s especially true of the illustrations. Of the books I’ve read recently on my Kindle which was a gift I only reluctantly accepted as it felt traitorous to even consider substituting the printed page for the glowing screen, very few had any illustrations. The Kindle has a type of title page that resembles an old etching style printed illustration that still shocks me when it magically disappears and turns to text as if out of some Harry Potter publication.
The books I’ve read on my Kindle don’t have any illustrations even when the story refers to an illustration as did Lewis Carroll's Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The Official Rock & Roll Rehab Member’s Guide by Neal Warner is one recent eBook that is as much fun to look at as it is to read. A satirical guide for members of a fictitious 12 step self help group for people wanting to quit the Rock & Roll lifestyle, each short chapter is headed by original art expertly crafted by the author, a former professional film and television animator and cartoonist. While the tone of the text is authoritative, knowledgeable and logical, the basic premise is comically absurd. While the author makes the point, repeatedly, that Rock & Roll addiction leads to a dead end in terms of career, for most people who become musicians, and is a huge waste of time and money for those who become fans, it is written with the attitude of someone using a complaint as a forum to boast. Rock & Roll is not a big waste of time but a tremendously happy and joyful way to spend time and the although the author is trying to save the reader from making the same mistakes he did, it’s clear he’d do it all again in a heartbeat.
The Official Rock & Roll Rehab Members’ Guide eBook is an abridged version of The Official Rock & Roll Rehab Handbook which includes a “member’s testimonial” that is the author’s personal story of his life long obsession with the Rock & Roll subculture. The eBook as well as the paper version of the Members’ Guide and the Handbook which are available in paperback from Amazon.com, are all part of the marketing campaign of an actual Rock & Roll Rehab organization which also includes a website (www.rocknrollrehab.com), a line of merchandise and even a live musical stage show.
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