Lobster Boy

By: Fred Rosen

Narrated by: Neil Hellegers

Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins

Publisher's summary

In his account of the sensational life and murder of Grady Stiles Jr., also known as the legendary carnival freak Lobster Boy, author Fred Rosen explains how Stiles' death was engineered by his wife, Mary Teresa, the carny known as the Electrified Girl. Rosen describes how Mary Teresa arranged for her husband's murder after years of physical and emotional abuse.

During Mary Teresa's dramatic trial, Rosen becomes a character in his own book. When both he and the prosecution are threatened by Mary Teresa's daughter, who Rosen believes was a co-conspirator although she was never indicted; the writer risks his life in pursuit of the truth and the evidence that leads to Mary Teresa's conviction.

©2016 Fred Rosen (P)2016 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Lobster boy

The sad story is fascinating. The narration leaves a lot to be desired. I am sill listening to it. At the beginning of a sentence the narrator slurs a couple of words which is very frustrating. I am upset at Amazon as they will not let me return books. I only return them when I cannot listen to them. I have been a customer for a decade. Now wondering if maybe some expensive ear phones would help. If your hearing is compromised in the slightest. Do not buy.

Fascinating history

Would you listen to Lobster Boy again? Why?

I would, I had heard of the story beforehand, and Rosen goes into great depth in tracing the events around the murder.

Which scene was your favorite?

I think one of my favorite scenes was when the author realized the difference the audio in home movie could make, and how one of the attorneys reacted to the authors decision to share the audio.

Hard to listen to

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The narrator. It was a fascinating story, but just having to listen to the bad film noir attempt at narration made it almost impossible to finish the book.

Would you recommend Lobster Boy to your friends? Why or why not?

Probably not. I would recommend to READ the book as opposed to listen.

What didn’t you like about Neil Helligers’s performance?

Tried to hard to be edgy. Bad Film Noir attempt. Very difficult to listen to.

Do you think Lobster Boy needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Nope. He covered all there is to cover.

Any additional comments?

Don't listen to if you're tired.

pleasantly surprised

at first I was a little bit concerned about the voice actor but it grew on me I thought it was some guy trying to be Batman but he was actually really really good I don't know why I procrastinate to get in this book I heard the authors interview on a couple of podcast and I thought this guy is on point I finally went and got it this might sound lame but the part I like the best was he actually use the word lectern correctly

Dark Dark Story

Give youself a few minutes to get used to the narrator- After that it all flows quite easily-
I had heard stories about his life but had no idea how tragic the entire situation actually was-
Good Book - Good Listen

p.s. I have a faint memory of possibly seeing him at a show but not sure if it was him or his extended family -

Good telling of the Lobster Boy murder

I found the narrators voice "true crime" appropriate and the accounting of the details from the author adequate. latter half of the book is focused on the topic of the resulting trials.

Good book to put you to sleep

Not as interesting as other true crime stories. Narrator's voice was harsh to listen to.