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"Don't Take Me The Long Way"; 30 True, Truly Outrageous Cab Stories
30 true, truly outrageous cab stories... Welcome to San Francisco and the nocturnal world of M.C. Mars, a cab driver with over 20 years experience...Here we meet the denizens of night head-on...a guy who just had sex with his best friend's mom, a fertilizer salesman looking for the ugliest hooker in town, a transvestite on the war path, a gay-bashing victim's boyfriend, a septuagenarian with a prosthetic penis howling in pain because he can't get it down...massage parlor girls and strippers...But there's more to this world than misfits and oddballs...From the heyday of sexual freedom, to the darkest days of the AIDS epidemic, through the boom/bust of the Dot.com cycle, to our Post 9/11 world--the city of San Francisco wears a personal face...
- GenresMemoir
208 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2005
3 people are currently reading
13 people want to read
About the author
M.C. Mars
3 books8 followersM.C. Mars is the author of DON'T TAKE ME THE LONG WAY, his memoir of driving a cab at night in San Francisco for twenty- four years. In 2012, he released his second book, BURNER. He’s also a rapper with three albums to his credit, and hip-hop roots that go all the way back to the late 70s. He lives in San Francisco, where he continues to perfect his free- style, and his spaghetti sauce.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 21, 2010
I read this a few days after my cab ride home with the author. We had an amazing conversation about teaching and hip hop and I was all too happy to buy the book off of him and hear more of his stories.
I was not disappointed. This writing was wonderful (and not in a "good-for-a-cabbie, look-at-the-dog-walking-on-its-hind-legs" sort of way) It was poetic without being overly so. It had a feverish pacing, but one you could follow. One thing rang out the most clear of me: This guy has a true command for the flow of narrative. Unlike a previous reviewer, I loved how he arranged the stories the most, weaving in and out of time, place, and emotion to create a whole image in the end that I think achieved exactly the feeling he intended.
I feel biased a bit, I will admit because unlike with other reads, I had his voice and demeanor in my mind to guide my reading. Maybe it was an essential, maybe not. But I will say one thing: MC Mars picked me up on a shitty dramatic night of my life and turned my mood around. His book continued to do more of the same, even reminding me why I love this cramped little city so much.
Isn't that all we really ask of a good read?
I was not disappointed. This writing was wonderful (and not in a "good-for-a-cabbie, look-at-the-dog-walking-on-its-hind-legs" sort of way) It was poetic without being overly so. It had a feverish pacing, but one you could follow. One thing rang out the most clear of me: This guy has a true command for the flow of narrative. Unlike a previous reviewer, I loved how he arranged the stories the most, weaving in and out of time, place, and emotion to create a whole image in the end that I think achieved exactly the feeling he intended.
I feel biased a bit, I will admit because unlike with other reads, I had his voice and demeanor in my mind to guide my reading. Maybe it was an essential, maybe not. But I will say one thing: MC Mars picked me up on a shitty dramatic night of my life and turned my mood around. His book continued to do more of the same, even reminding me why I love this cramped little city so much.
Isn't that all we really ask of a good read?
October 14, 2009
Book 2 of 3 taken on holiday to Trinidad...
Grabbed a signed copy of this book from the Friends of the Library (Berkeley) with the expressed purpose of having books I could leave in Port of Spain and not truck back home.
I picked it up because I love people telling their stories of what they do, and why they do it, and driving a cab has always been a vocational curiosity for me.
MC Mars, has 20+ years background driving cabs, so he knows his gig. Driving in NY and mostly in San Francisco, the book was good in bringing out SF in the 80's and 90's; but great in it's ability to take the funny and prurient stories, and embedding a personal narrative. MC MARS' autobiography comes out in sharing the realities such wild circumstances create and can cost the participants.
Heartfelt, the book was a fun surprise for the trip and now resides in the Gingerbread House, Port of Spain, Trinidad; where it will no doubt be enjoyed by another person!
Grabbed a signed copy of this book from the Friends of the Library (Berkeley) with the expressed purpose of having books I could leave in Port of Spain and not truck back home.
I picked it up because I love people telling their stories of what they do, and why they do it, and driving a cab has always been a vocational curiosity for me.
MC Mars, has 20+ years background driving cabs, so he knows his gig. Driving in NY and mostly in San Francisco, the book was good in bringing out SF in the 80's and 90's; but great in it's ability to take the funny and prurient stories, and embedding a personal narrative. MC MARS' autobiography comes out in sharing the realities such wild circumstances create and can cost the participants.
Heartfelt, the book was a fun surprise for the trip and now resides in the Gingerbread House, Port of Spain, Trinidad; where it will no doubt be enjoyed by another person!
October 3, 2012
What I got from his book is this: telling a great life story is more than just connecting the dots -
it's finding the elegant curve from the countless interactions and stories around us.
I intended DTMTLW as a bathroom book - but had to take it with me to the cafe,
and read it all in pretty much a day.
MC Mars story is a wildly curious and wonderful homage to SF - those lovely visuals of familiar corners,
halarious vignettes of sf characters, all the while unfolding his own story ...
the phelan/ocean gas station will never be the same for me each time I pass it.
I wish MC Mars a lot of light in his life as a cabbie and with HIV.
I lost my godfather to AIDS in 1989 and I've been a volunteer at
Maitri Hospice at Duboce/Church for a little over a year now.
It's a good feeling finding a living connection to SF history through this cabbie/poet/rapper/hustler/ ...
Best book I've read in many years, and my favorite book about SF.
it's finding the elegant curve from the countless interactions and stories around us.
I intended DTMTLW as a bathroom book - but had to take it with me to the cafe,
and read it all in pretty much a day.
MC Mars story is a wildly curious and wonderful homage to SF - those lovely visuals of familiar corners,
halarious vignettes of sf characters, all the while unfolding his own story ...
the phelan/ocean gas station will never be the same for me each time I pass it.
I wish MC Mars a lot of light in his life as a cabbie and with HIV.
I lost my godfather to AIDS in 1989 and I've been a volunteer at
Maitri Hospice at Duboce/Church for a little over a year now.
It's a good feeling finding a living connection to SF history through this cabbie/poet/rapper/hustler/ ...
Best book I've read in many years, and my favorite book about SF.
December 2, 2020
This collection is far more than tell-all stories from the view of a cab driver. I was half-expecting a jumble of jaded recollections, but the book yielded exquisite prose, generous details, heartfelt personal narratives, and gritty, unpitying (for himself and his subjects) descriptions of life not only in a taxi but as a San Franciscan in general.
It's clear that Mars is a literary talent. He doesn't just rehash tales from his past; he puts them in context, adds insight, and weaves them with such craftsmanship that it's as gripping as a whodunit, even though it's a series of relatively (but not completely) unrelated tales. He obviously took the time to journal his time behind the wheel so he could accurately relate settings and dialogue. He doesn't romanticize anything, instead allowing the power of the truth and his writing chops keep the reader engaged.
This is a must-read for anyone who has ever loved San Francisco and any lover of great writing, period.
Edit
It's clear that Mars is a literary talent. He doesn't just rehash tales from his past; he puts them in context, adds insight, and weaves them with such craftsmanship that it's as gripping as a whodunit, even though it's a series of relatively (but not completely) unrelated tales. He obviously took the time to journal his time behind the wheel so he could accurately relate settings and dialogue. He doesn't romanticize anything, instead allowing the power of the truth and his writing chops keep the reader engaged.
This is a must-read for anyone who has ever loved San Francisco and any lover of great writing, period.
Edit
July 11, 2015
Yeee, M.C. Mars at his finest! An amazing diverse collection of short stories compiled from his cab driving days which started in New York but quickly migrated to San Francisco. From love to a near-death experience this book is a constant adventure and Mars' storytelling is as enthralling as comical.
July 10, 2010
Myoki bought this from the cabby that wrote it - intense book - amazing guy - sadness and happiness and the full circle.
December 12, 2009
This guys self-importance gets annoying. Also, he keeps saying he's "from the streets" because of his job. No. I don't think so. Love the SF shout outs, being from the bay, but I find it hard to believe that in 20 years of driving a cab, this is the most interesting book he can come up with. I don't like his style of jumping around and coming back to things. I see what he's trying to do but he doesn't pull it off.
March 12, 2008
This book is pretty entertaining. It's an easy read- a collection of short stories written by a San Francisco cab driver about the crazy people he picks up.
March 29, 2011
I liked the idea in theory, but on paper, it didn't jive as well as I has hoped.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews