Television Books

Berg does a great job, and the subject is absolutely a fascinating one.

A. Scott Berg does an excellent job in capturing the life of one of the American cinema's first industry moguls. From his tough beginning as an immigrant to his phenomenal success as an independent producer, this entertaining and fascinating biography delves deeply into the man with the "Goldwyn touch." Berg also effectively captures the spirit of early cinema and its rapid rise in American culture. Along the way, we also learn about many of Hollywood's colorful personalites, including Charlie Chaplin and Mary Pickford. This book is a must for any fan of early American motion pictures.

What a story! A remarkably easy to read account of Sam Goldwyn's rags-to-riches life. Did you know "Goldwyn" was not his real name? Did you know he was thrown out of the MGM company after a few years?! Goldwyn worked at some stage or other with just about every famous name in the business, and also fell out with just about everybody he ever met. A cantankerous and perverse character who loved contradicting people. When people quit because he made their lives intolerable, he sometimes felt personally attacked and betrayed. The book is full of colourful characters, and Scott Berg has done a wonderful job of using quotations and dialogues to really bring these people alive: Gary Cooper, Marlon Brando, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Lillian Hellman, William Wyler, Billy Wilder, and the remarkable Hilda Berl. It reads like a movie! By tracing Goldwyn's history, the book also covers the story of many of the other famous movie companies that are still famous today: United Artists, Universal, Paramount, Warner Brothers, RKO and of course MGM. Goldwyn also came across many young actors and actresses before they were stars: Vivien Leigh, Laurence Olivier, David Niven, Marlon Brando, John Wayne, etc. And of course the famous Goldwyn malapropisms are here, though limited to the ones actually traceable (as far as possible) to Goldwyn himself: "Anyone who sees a psychiatrist should have their head examined! Include me out! A verbal agreement isn't worth the paper it's written on," to pick just a few.

A remarkably well-written and well-researched biography that brings this vigorous, infuriating, yet oddly attractive ugly duckling to vibrant life. This must rank amongst the best biographies, up there with Ron Chernow's book about the Morgans. Anyone at all interested in movies and movie history will enjoy this.

I picked this book up at the library not knowing what to expect and was amazed! Although it is indeed a biography of Sam Goldwyn, it is also a very well told piece about the studio system and Hollywood in the first half of the century (with an emphasis on the 20's) Not only insightful but entertaining; it makes for a read more gossipy than the trashiest celeb autobiography while maintaining class and style.

I recommend this book to anyone the least bit interested in the classic hollywood days. It is the best book I've read thus far on the era, and it will get you down to the video store hunting down old movies just to see the actors and actresses you've read about.

Great book! I enjoyed reading about a man who literally came from poverty to be on of Hollywood's pioneer filmmakers. He was a rough man to work with no doubt, but knew what worked and lasted in an industry that is hard to last in! A. Scott Berg did a wonderful job of writing a respectful book about this man!

I love, love, LOVE this play.

It is wrought with the same care and cleverness of the Bard Himself. It is a Cinderella story with a feminist twist, with oodles of authentic Shakespeare woven right in. It borrows from the best of Shakespeare's comedy, complete with a breeches role.

Every single character is absolutely hilarious and drawn with a deft hand.

Fabulous.

I love this play! I would love to have my students perform it, but alas there are one or two pages that are a little too suggestive for the innocents in our cohort.
I actually enjoyed this play more than I enjoyed Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. It is witty and clever with just enough tongue-in-cheek.

Two reviewers from HS drama clubs, and one comparison to Japanese anime. Don't let that mislead you into thinking this is some lightweight juvenile fluff. It is more in the line of Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead. As someone who has loved reading and watching Shakespeare's plays for over 35 years, I am delighted to see Ann-Marie MacDonald not only play with Shakespeare but do it intelligently. Amidst the linguistic and theatric whimsey there are some true and serious observations and the best explanation yet of why some characters in Shakespeare's tragedys are such idiots. Who says learning can't be great fun?

Just finished a production of this at our school - absolutely halarious. Very, very much recommended for high school theater. Absolutely great

"Goodnight, Desdemona (Good Morning, Juliet)" is the funniest play I have ever read or seen. I am currently playing Constance in a high school production of the play, and the more we go along, the more we discover about the play. Upon first reading, it is an absolutely hilarious twist of Shakespeare's "Othello" and "Romeo and Juliet." But reading it a second, and even a third time will reveal subtle innuendos and wordings (warning: LOTS of sexual innuendos in this play!) that contain so much wit and humour that your respect for Anne-Marie MacDonald will grow with every scene. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. If you can familiarize yourself with the plots of both "Othello" and "Romeo and Juliet" before reading or seeing the play, then your enjoyment will increase, because you will have a basic understanding of how the characters have been re-interpreted. OH MY GOODNESS -- READ THIS PLAY!

This is a no-brainer. If you want to get a jump on video blogging and don't know where to start - buy this book. It's an easy read that is not that difficult to digest and understand.

Blog on!

Lionel Felix and Damien Stolarz take you step by step in their book Hands-On Guide to Video Blogging and Podcasting into the emerging new tools of a video blog or podcast.

[MORE INFO AT http:satisfyingsolutions.com]

Easy instructions make it simple to use and the book gives you the latest tools to quickly start video blogging and podcasting for your business.

Chapter one gives you an overlook on how to record and edit your video.

In chapter two the authors discuss the anatomy of a blog as well as a brief history of blogs.

As one reads on Chapter three discuss the main uses for video blogging and podcasting. In addition it also shows how mainstream media and corporate uses these two tools.

Chapters four,five, and six explain blogs and what kind of delivery should be given in this new technology.

Chapter seven incorporates the moblogging and podcasting and continues with chapter eight and one the go spaces and video.

Chapter nine fulfills the reader with essential tools for your computer as well as the software and hardware.

Chapter ten gives an insight on production and breaks down the recording, microphones, and editing.

Chapter eleven continues from the audio production and moves into video production.

Chapter twelve explains to the reader the pricing and hosting of band withs.

Chapter thirteen discusses how to go about assembling blog entries.

The next chapter discusses the important facts of licensing and copyrights.

Finally, chapter fifteen discusses case studies from websites such as ericrice and ryanedit.com.

Furthermore, this is a great hands-on tool to take you step by step in the process of blogging. Paul Gillin gives you the motivation to start your own blog and Felix and Stolarz give you the tools to make it your own.

This book supports Paul Gillin's ideas and the book The New Influencers by reiterating the fact that blogging and podcasting is the resource to business communications in digital media. It is so easy to follow along and not only helps with business aspects but entertainment and educational institutions too.

A. J. Baltes

If you want to get into Video Blogging and Podcasting this is the best book on the market today. Covers every aspect in detail while still making it all seem easy.

I work for Loyola Marymount University. We recently decided to make all lectures available via Podcasts. I went searching for books on the subject in order to find a solution for the school. This book was by far the best book on the subject. It even gave us some ideas for video blogging that we hadn't previously considered. Without the precise and coherent coverage given to Podcasting in this book I doubt we would have a solution even half as good. Thanks to the authors for their great book. It has been invaluable.

This hands-on guide is great for nailing down the nitty gritty of podcasting. Sure, there's nothing to it; you can make a podcast in a night. But then, once it's launched, there are SO many things to consider and so many ways to expand it. This is what makes casting a blast!

His nitty gritty on bandwidth, pricing plans, and especially the case studies of existing vidcasts and podcasts helped me a lot with refining my New Civilization Podcast.

Good stuff!

Zack

No one does medieval mysteries better than P.C. Doherty! In HANGMAN'S TALE, part of his "Canterbury Tales" series, Doherty relates the hair-raising tale told by Simon Cotterill, the 'Carpenter' character from Chaucer's classic, to his fellow pilgrims enroute to Canterbury. It's one great read!

Though a big fan of Doherty's work, I was blissfully unaware of the Canterbury Tales series, which began in 1995, until I purchased a remaindered copy of HANGMAN'S TALE from Edmund Hamilton. My loss!

A would-be carpenter, Cotterill's life changes dramatically after he joins the band of Gloucestermen responsible for public hangings. When the crew hangs three witches who are part of a vicious coven preying on Gloucester residents, things go really, REALLY wrong and the hangmen find themselves facing the wrath of three not-so-dead witches. It then becomes a race against time as Cotterill & Co. struggle to break the coven and unmask its leader before they perish at the hands of that unholy group. The end result is a scary, spooky, page-turner of a tale. Great stuff!

If HANGMAN'S TALE is representative of the series, I need to read the other volumes asap! And so do you!

Paul Doherty was born in Middlesbrough and is the consummate professional when it comes to writing historical mystery novels. I for one do not know how he can be so prolific with his offering of books and yet make sure that each of them is well researched. Whether they be 13th, 14th, or fifteenth century they are always true to the period. He also writes about Ancient Egypt and Alexander the Great.

A group of pilgrims have joined together, both for company and also for protection, as the roads and forests are littered with thieves and rogues, only too willing to relieve a traveller of their purse and most probably their lives as well. What adds even more spice to the journey is that several of the pilgrims know their fellow travellers but are not letting the fact become public knowledge.

The pilgrims have agreed that at the end of each day's journey when they stop at an inn or other resting place one of them will entertain the others with a tale. Whether the story is true or not only the storyteller will know.

During their journey to Canterbury the Pilgrims stumble upon an execution. Hangings are a common occurrence in these times, but this one affects the carpenter very badly and leaves him in a dead faint.
That evening, he narrates the tale of a Gloucester hangman whose involvement in the secretive punishment of three witches unleashes a vicious spate of revenge killings. Is this just a tale drawn from the carpenter's fertile mind or is the tale true and he was in some way involved in the punishment of the so called witches?

I don't usually like period mysteries, because they often seem to have a certain self-consciousness about them in how they work to include period details, speech patterns, etc. Plus, I always wonder if the manners and habits of thought of whatever the era is would have allowed the characters to act as they do - it seems that often these book feature characters with quite modern ways of thinking that can seem out of place. So I'm glad I overlooked my prejudice and read this book. I find that the time period adds color and meaning to the tale, but it's the human interest that seems timeless, and caught my interest. The author's knowledge of the period allows him to integrate the characters' different habits and customs into the story in a way that reveals medieval thinking and ideas while pointing out the fact that human nature doesn't change. The mystery itself is fascinating - I couldn't put the book down - and I learned quite a bit about the society of the time without even noticing it! Very enjoyable, and it prompted me to look for the earlier titles in the series, all which are well worth reading.

Paul Doherty's Canterbury Tales of Mystery and Murder series is probably my favourite historical mystery series. I look forward to each and every installment and am usually very disappointed that, because he is a very prolific writer with so many different mystery series in the works, new installments in this particular series take a while to be published. For those readers who are not familiar with the series, I will attempt to paint in some background details about the series. The series is based on Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales;" the pilgrims are all bound for Canterbury and in order to make the journey more agreeable, everyone has agreed to take turns at telling two kinds of tales each day -- a merry tale or fable during the day, and an eerie tale of darkness at night. Doherty's series revolves around the mysterious tales of murder and evil that are told each night. Another gimmick involved that makes this series all the more interesting and intriguing is that the pilgrims are connected to each other in some way or the other. So far, there have been four books in the series. Each has been a truly absorbing and chilling read, and a real page turner. And "The Hangman's Hymn" (the fifth intallment) was no exception to this rule!

The pilgrims are now deep in the Kent country, when they stumble across the chief tipstaff to the lords of assize about to dispense justice by having a few felons hanged at the place of their crime. The law of the times demand that because the pilgrims have chanced across this, they stand witness to the deed. One of the pilgrims however, the cheerful dark haired carpenter is so affected by the sight, that he faints from the horror. That night, as the pilgrims take their rest at St. Bardolph's Priory, the others quiz the carpenter about his faint-heartedness; he in turn tells a hair raising tale of horror and pure evil -- about a poor carpenter, Simon Cotterill who comes to Glouchester for love's sake, who ends up joining the local hangman's crew, and who becomes involved in hunting down and killing a coven of murderous witches who are terrorizing the Glouchester country side. A tale of such darkness and evil, that the pilgrims are held completely spellbound, even as they wonder to themselves if the tale is a true one and if the carpenter is the unfortunate Simon Cotterill...

From the very first page, I was hooked. Yes, some of the plot twists were fairly obvious; but the charm of this series (and much of Doherty's writing style) is the manner in which he tells the tale. Paul Doherty has a fairly compelling and engaging prose style, one that keeps your interest and makes you read on in order to see how things pan out and what will happen next. I really love this series. Each and every installment has chilled; and I've looked forward to discovering which pilgrim is tied to the other and how. I have yet to be disappointed by this series, and cannot recommend it highly enough. (And if you have not had the good fortune to read any of the previous installments, the paperbacks can be easily purchased through amazon.co.uk. Unfortunately they are hard to come by in the US). My advice is to wait until it's dark, and then settle down to enjoy this creepy and superbly entertaining mystery novel, hopefullt without too many distractions!

Paul Doherty's Canterbury Tales series continues marching on to its path of medieval mystery success! In his latest episode, "The Hangman's Hymn," Doherty singles out the Carpenter to be the teller of these "tall tales"! In fact, so far in this series, this one, the fifth, seems to be the best written, although perhaps not the most suspenseful.

The merry group of pilgrims, numbering 29 in all if we recall our English lit days and according to Geoffrey Chaucer, are on their way to Canterbury to pay homage to their beloved Saint Thomas a Becket. These pilgrims have accepted the challenge by the host of the Tabard Inn, one Harry Bailey, to help pass the time by telling four stories each, two on the way and the others in return. All of this is to be narrated by Chaucer himself.

Doherty steps in to help "the father of English literature," some seven centuries later, by relating more of these tales and in so doing deserves much praise, not only for his abilities to capture the "spirit" of Chaucerian England but in presenting a modern version that easily holds the readers' attention.

The carpenter's tale is a tale of gruesome, frightening murders, of hangings, of poisons, of evil incarnate, of witchcraft, and even a little romance! On their way to Canterbury the group comes upon a legal hanging, which causes a quick reaction of Simon Cotterill, the carpenter.

As the pilgrims pause for the night, the carpenter begins to tell his story. This is no tale told by an idiot, but it is full of sound and fury, of deceit, of bravery-indeed, it's a story not easily put aside. In the story, three witches are hanged and, before their hanging, vow to extract vengeance on all who were involved in their execution. Murder and mayhem, as they say, follow. Doherty's story, of course, is a mystery and with his usual cleverness he's able to bring the culprits-the real ones-to justice.

The other pilgrims are uneasy over this story and even begin to wonder if it's true, adding to the mystique of this series! Doherty seems to work simultaneously with a number of historical mystery series, from Alexander the Great to Chaucer, and each is well worth the read!

Hillary Duff does rock and this book does so aswell rock, i am a huge fan of Hillary Duff, and this is the best book ever written about her. It's easy to read too.

There have been many biographies about Hilary Duff lately, and I must say that this one is very good. It doesn't exactly dive into the depths of her life too much (it does give you some basic autobiographical information, however), but there is a lot of great information about her movies, singing, album, and possible future. Plus, there are tons of great-looking glossy photographs that will satisfy any devoted Hilary Duff fan. The style is sophisticated and written well, but not in an annoying teenybopper-ish way. Whether you're a huge fan or just want to read more about Hilary with some good pictures, this is a fabulous book.

I am A HUGE-------- Hilary Fan and I love this book!!!!!It has great pictures and accuate facts and it is just great I Love it and trust me it makes a great gift for any Hil fan!!! :)

This book is absolutely rocks! The cover is the coolest picture I have ever seen of Hil! I wish there was a way to buy a print of the cover as a poster. I have Hilary Duff's 2005 calendar, which has some rad pictures, but this cover shot totally rules. Great book and lots of awesome photos.

this book is a must have for all hilary duff fans. it is really good and gives you loads of information. it is great for all ages and i love the front cover.

a great visual journey into john lennon's life with plenty of intimate photographs

All I can say is that this book is the best I've ever owned on any member of the Beatles. Jammed full of pictures and a detailed bio, this book is everything that you need to know about John Lennon's life, work, and social standings. I give it an A++++. Forwarded by Yoko Ono.

The perfect coffee-table book for fans of John Lennon and his music. Lots of lovely photos and illustrations, plus commentary from Lennon & those closest to him. Includes a very useful chronology & dscography. Highly recommended, as is the film upon which it is based.

i bought this book after seeing the rave reviews it got, thinking it was a real reading book. turned out to be a HUGE, glossy pictorial account..... but it's just as good probably better. awesome rare photos and quotes by the man and friends, and packed full of priceless memories. get it.

This is really a great book. It gave me allot of facts. Not just about the working John but also the person John Lennon. The picuters are big and very well taken. It's pictures we have seen before from the Beatles time. But also pictures from his personal life with his sons and wives. It's a wonderful book and a great tribution to John. I loved it.

Joan Collins is a brilliant writer! I suggested in my literature class that we stop reading Hemmingway and turn to Joan's books. The teacher said maybe, but this was an American Lit course, and Joan is British. I could't put this book down. It was a page turner all the way with a plot that kept me on the edge of my seat. This is a great novel, one for the ages.

I am not a fan of romance novels, and I cannot read anything by Joan's sister Jackie. Joan Collins though taught me what great writing is all about. To live, to love, to eat gourmet food all while living a life of fame and secrecy...it blew me away. The words flowed like honey from the page and took my breath away. I could only hope to approach Joan's writing style with my own meager attempts at prose. All this, and the woman acts too! Joan Collins is a spectacular writer and one of the best we have writing today. Joan is so great, she confounds the experts. She is YEARS ahead of her time, which is why she had that trouble in court. They didn't get her and she didn't yeild...a true artist and a great inspiration to all writers.

a wonderful book from a woman who has learned from her years what life and love can be. I can think of no greater author this century than Joan for capturing life in a phrase, a smile in a word, or an experience in a sentence. Joan has written the way women long to live, full of passion and verve, always looking for the miracle man to sweep us away. Don't bother with Goethe for classic literature. He couldn't hold a candle to her. Joan captures the psyche of women like Freud never could. A must read for all.

Joan Collins has virtually made me give up reading. Her novels are so well written, everything else seems like a waste of time. Joan is a woman who has truely known love and knows how to capture it on the page. I can't wait for the next book in this series. "my little cabage", don't make us wait too long.

Joan Collins is to novels what Shakespear was to scripts. There has been little her sister has writen that has approached this brilliance. Joan hurls thunderbolts where other mearly write sentences. I culdn't put this one down. Why is it that this book was missed on the top 100 novels of the century? Chauvinism. Joan should do like Virginia Woolfe and dress like a man while having torid romances with artists like Rodam. I can't wait for the next book. Joan Collins writes life like I've always dreamed it to be! Ten stars! **********

The story draws you in. This book provides an inside view to the corporate world. I found his stories to be fairly accurate in what happens in corporate america.

I was entrigued by the main character in his entrepreneurial spirit. I recommend this book for those who think they want to be executives, and for those who are trying to start their own business.

Once you pick the book up, you'll have a hard time putting it down.

For his first novel, Mike Neal has given us an engaging and well-developed story. Interactive Novel describes the entrepreneurial spirit, company politics, and the good and bad side of venture capital funding. With all the hi-tech start-ups and dot-bombs, this book should appeal to a large audience.

Interactive Novel is a great book! I particularly liked the interaction between company leaders.

There were surprises in the book that left me wanting more. I couldn't put it down until I finished the book.

I find myself recommending this novel to all my friends for an insight into corporate life. Even though Michael Neal uses the setting of a start up, I believe these are the same situations that occur in larger corporations.

Mike Neal's Interactive Novel sweeps you up into the world of a high-tech startup and doesn't let you down until you've been through it all. I recommend this book for anyone who wants the adventure of a startup. For those of you who already have been there, you will find yourself nodding your head in agreement with each twist and turn. In either case, you will enjoy the ride of Interactive Novel.

If you are at all interested in the life of high tech startups or just want a book that you can't put down, then this book is for you. Michael Neal does a great job of grabbing the reader's attention from the very beginning and not letting go until you have completed the book. Along the way you will get some insightful perspectives on technology, the creation of a company, and the CEO. Dont pass this book up. I would highly recommend it!

"It's Not Easy Being Big," a Bright and Early book from Random House and the Children's Television Workshop, takes the basic concepts of big and small and puts them both in a fun, brightly illustrated tale for youngsters. Big Bird, obviously, reveals the perils of being too big. Elmo tackles problems on the other end of the spectrum. While big and small are the focal point of the book, similar concepts like high and low and up and down are also briefly touched on.

This is an excellent story to read to youngsters in the early stages of reading. Stephanie St. Pierre has kept it simple enough for some pre-K and Kindergarten kids to read this story with little to no adult assistance. John Lund's vivid active illustrations of Big Bird, Bert, Ernie, Elmo, Harry Monster, and other Sesame Street favorites will also help your child's reading development.

Overall, this is a fun book that children will love and parents will enjoy reading to them. Highly recommended.

This is such a cute book. My toddler asks me to read it to her all the time and I don't mind reading it over and over. It has a good message about the challenges we all face but is done in a light-hearted, very cute way. It also is a good teaching tool to compare things of different sizes.

The book Its not easy being big is a very good book for anyone no matter how old they are i think because to me it seems like it shows that no matter how tall you are or how big or small you are you can accomplish anything in this world. somethings that small people can do tall people cant..but there is nothing wrong with trying. and that is what they do in this book. try even if they dont accomplish they still try. They dont GIVE UP!!!

My daughter is nearly 19 months old, and we purchased this book for her around her first birthday. She loved it from the first time we read it, no doubt due to all of the balls inside. She loved identifying each and every ball. She still carries it everywhere she goes, and now she's old enough to point out and name a variety of objects in the book. I'd recommend this book to any mother.

In this story Big Bird tells his friends that it is not always easy being big. He tells how he is too big to swing, too big to ride on a bike,and too big to hide.
Elmo comes on the scene to share with his friend that it is not always easy being small. He tells him that he is too small to see above other people, and too small to reach somethings.
They realize that sometimes being big is easy and sometimes being small is easy, sometimes it's hard, but working together is the best of all. No matter what size you are, you are just who you are suppose to be.
Good lesson to learn.
Shirley Johnson

I found the book to be a great information resource into her life and career start. The only thing I didn't like about the book was the out of order details, found to much jumping forward then back, or back then forward, but other than that, I thought is was a great book and I still love jenny in a big way, she is the greatest.

When my boyfriend gave me this book as a joke for my birthday, I didn't find it very amusing! You see, up to this point, I was one of the hopefully few "Jenny-haters" out there. But I decided to give the book the benefit of the doubt and give it a whirl, and I have to say that I was more than just pleasently surprised! Jenny McCarthy is not only very down-to-earth, but she's witty, hilarious, and quite frankly...normal! It was so refreshing to read that she isn't perfect after all - that she had acne, and stretch marks, and bad hair days, and bozo boyfriends. This book flys by, and I really didn't want to put it down. I am so glad I decided to read this book, not only because it was 100% entertainment, but because it gave me a chance to meet the "real" Jenny McCarthy. I loved it!

It tells us secrets about Jenny never evealed before.It's a little costly but well worth it.

The title should tell it all: Jen X. It should read Jen O because she is a negative interger. Take away those breasts, and she is just another annoying self serving celebrity with little talent. This book is a must read for airheads, retards, mutants and crackheads. Enjoy!

I think the book was one of the greatest books i have ever read. i could realate so much to her. she is my like idol and i was so happy when i found out she had a book coming out. i bought it the very first day i saw it at the mall. one day i hope i can meet her but i know that will never happen but all in all the book was really good~! i think everyone needs to buy this book and see just how much she is like anyone of us!!! well if your out there jenny mccarthy i just wanna say hi and maybe i will be lucky enough to see you one day! i love you! you are so cool! well people i have said enough, now you need to go get the book that i am raving about!please buy it! it will make me happy! well cya people! hope you read this jenny!!!! from: Your biggest fan in the world!!!!jenny h