Overall, Gourevitch’s hope that these interviews will stand “if not as definitive portraits of each artist, then as a significant contribution to such an ultimate portrait, with the added fascination that they are in large measure self-portraits” has been, on my reading, largely fulfilled.
Category: Non fiction reviews
A review of On Opera by Bernard Williams
This book will contribute something to your knowledge of opera but it will not be easy to read. The awkwardness of Williams’s English makes the book unpleasant. It baffles me that a man who obviously had such a love for music could have written so unmusically.
A review of A Writer’s San Francisco by Eric Maisel
In fact, I haven’t enjoyed a book on writing this much since encountering Stephen King’s On Writing some years ago. When I got to the end of A Writer’s San Francisco, I actually felt compelled to go back to the beginning and reread it immediately, such is its charm and inspirational qualities.
A review of The Freelance Writer’s Bible by David Trottier
Trottier helps his readers get over the initial hurdle of writing—into that place of feeling safe as a writer. If you have already written your first article or short story and have a few clips, this book may be more basic than you need, but if you are still trying to find your way into your own voice or the way to approach writing from the more creative side, this is a strong book.
A review of The Early Works of Dr. Seuss Volume 1
At £14.99, this book is cheap at the price, and an excellent introduction to Geisel’s work. It is a commendable mix of the silly, the sinister and the political, drawn from a wide variety of sources across advertising, newspapers and magazines. The relatively low production values, however, will mean that it will have limited appeal to the very people most likely to buy it or be given it: comic collectors.
A review of Decca: The Letters of Jessica Mitford, edited by Peter Y. Sussman
The funeral industry played into her hands beautifully through the inability of its spokesmen to keep their mouths shut. Each outburst of strained rhetoric from these provided Decca with endless material for subsequent articles in the most widely read magazines…
A review of Joyce’s Voices by Hugh Kenner
Any reader could multiply critical strictures, but this short book is in the Joycean’s path, may not be avoided, is constantly entertaining, and in many ways as enlightening as the more considered pronouncements of more conservative critics. Reviewed by Bob…
A review of Write, Publish and Sell Your Book by Patricia Fry
Throughout the book are anecdotes from Fry’s own experiences, sidebars, bits of humour, and re-useable templates for everything from queries to press releases. In some instances examples are taken straight from The Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book so…
A review of The Well-Fed Self-Publisher by Peter Bowerman
Bowerman has a particular strength in persuasion, and if you haven’t bought this book because you’ve already decided to self-publish, the first chapter will convince you why you need to. There are a number of other books on self-publishing, some…
A review of Jamie’s Dinners by Jamie Oliver
Clearly the impact of having a family has had a positive influence on Jamie Oliver and there is no hint of the dilettante about Jamie’s dinners. The food tastes superb, is easy to cook, is child friendly (really!), is nice…