Pitch Perfect: The Quest for Collegiate A Cappella Glory

First, I suppose if you have read other reviews you know this isn't a novelization, but the nonfiction book that was the inspiration for the movie. I found it surprisingly engrossing, actually, and I was pretty satisfied with it overall.I'm a retired high school band director, and my son-in-law is a high school choir director, so I have a passing acquaintance with the a cappella movement, but never to the extent of really getting into the collegiate competitiveness of it. Knowing the extreme care I took with preparing my instrumental groups for competitions, seeing how groups of college students did this with sometimes limited musical training and no "adult supervision" was very interesting.What was really impressive to me is that some of these groups really have alumni support going back decades. In their way a cappella groups were as big a part of collegiate life for the participants as any fraternity or athletic team, and I was impressed by the strength the ties alumni had to their groups.I've enjoyed watching "The Sing-Off," and I've noticed that in most cases the collegiate groups don't do very well in that competition - which is interesting, since the judges (except for Jewel this year) all had a background either performing in or supporting collegiate groups. Pentatonix, the season 3 winners, had members who were involved in the collegiate world, but they set out to do something very new, and in a way the collegiate groups almost never could. The same traditions and alumni ties that strengthen those groups also to a degree make it difficult for them to depart from tradition. This was clearly shown in Rapkin's book, as the Beelzebubs segments in particular showed.Overall, I recommend the book even to those who have just seen a couple of these groups on TV or somewhere and said, "what's this a cappella thing all about?" I think the book does a fine job of showing what a cappella *is* all about.

I am secretly obsessed with the movie Pitch Perfect, and I noticed in the credits that the film is based on the book by Mickey Rapkin. Even though I really like the movie, reading the book didn't seem incredibly appealing to me (let's just say the format lends itself much better to the screen). What I discovered, though, is that the book is a serious exploration of the fascinating world (subculture?), that is collegiate a cappella. While the movie is essentially a satirical musical comedy, the book dives deep into the politics, personalities, history and dynamics of the a cappella scene at the college level. It's an interesting read about a complex world of which I was only passingly aware previously. It's a relatively light read, although the author approaches the subject as an investigative journalist would, dissecting the issue and presenting it in an engaging and informative way. It's not the "feel good" experience that the movie is, but it's an enjoyable read nevertheless. Interestingly, while the movie is only loosely based on the book, it's obvious that the film's writers based certain characters in the movie on real-life individuals featured in the book (at least in part). Overall it's worth reading.

I've been a fan of a cappella groups since before most of the people in this book were born, so I had good reason to think this would be an interesting read.The book traces the ups and downs of three college groups over the course of a year, although there are many "side trips" to include stories from other years. The two male groups, the Beelzebubs from Tufts and the Hullabahoos from the University of Virginia, are so similar that it was difficult for me to remember which group I was reading about, especially with all the attention paid to "college hijinks" (i.e. drinking and irresponsible behavior, especially in the one scene in which the two groups meet and almost get into a fight). If I wanted to read about this kind of thing I'd read the screenplay for "Animal House" ;)The one group whose story piqued my interest was the "token" female group, Divisi from the University of Oregon. They seem to be in a different universe, concentrating upon their ongoing frustrations with a national collegiate a cappella competition and with problems in their lives that make the East Coast boys seem even more shallow by comparison. (The books' subtitle implies that it's going to concentrate on this competition, but in fact Divisi seems to be only one of the three that's participating.)For a book that's supposed to be about singing, not much time is spent showing the groups actually doing that, or on any meaningful analysis or criticism about how they do it. Fortunately there's a lot on online recorded material of the three groups, YouTubes as well as material on their websites, otherwise the book would have given me little idea of just how well they sang.And finally, I understand that this is a book about collegiate a cappella, but there are a number of references to pro groups, most frequently the imho overrated Rockapella ... but the most creative and individual group out there, the Bobs, isn't mentioned at all.*** for the Divisi chapters.Here's some of the music referred to in this book:Divisi ([...]):  Undivided Tufts Beelzebubs ([...]):  Pandæmonium UVA Hullabahoos ([...]):  You Found Me BOCA 2009:  Boca 2009 Best of College a Cappella The Bobs ([...]):  The Bobs Cover the Songs of...

Loved the film, and decided to purchase the book that inspired the film.Very interesting insight into the USA collegiate system and the A Capella competitions as well.Humerous and well written, very interesting.

Muito interessante e envolvente. Complementa os Filmes, intensificando as emoções sobre esta história fantástica dos Acappella Groups.Para o público brasileiro que não é familiarizado com essa cultura fantástica do College Acappela traz relatos surpreendentes.Aca-awesome!!!!!!!!!

I thought that this would be a book of the film however it gives more of a background with different characters, it was good in its own right however I found it difficult to get into and a tad boring in places.

Love the book

Excellent