Pocono Liar Michael A. Ventrella took a break from his fiction writing to team up with culture historian Mark Arnold to write a book about the Monkees’ music. It was released this week and spent some time at #1 on Amazon’s “Music Reference” chart. 

While other kids wanted to be astronauts or firefighters or nurses, Mike watched the Monkees and wanted to be in a band. He later did play in a few bands but for some reason, never had the kind of wacky adventures he assumed would be a part of it.

This book looks at the music, much of it written by some of the great songwriters of the day (Carole King, Neil Diamond, Neil Sedaka, David Gates, etc.) and gives all sorts of background information as well as the author’s opinions. Also interviewed in the book are some famous rock stars of the era (Tommy James, Peter Noone, Gene Cornish, etc.). “It’s not for everyone,” Mike says, “but people who appreciate the music of that era should find it interesting.”

Their web page discusses the book in more detail. It’s available in paperback or hardcover, and will soon also be available as an ebook.