Television Books

I have been interested in shortwave radio for 50 plus years. This handbook is quite helpful when searching for information concerning a particular radio station. I have owned several of them over the years. I think the handbook would make an excellent addition to any one interested in shortwave radio. It would be a nice gift also, either to give or receive. Tom MI

The book provided the information that I was looking for plus additional information concerning other radio transmissions that was a bonus. An informative book containing a world of information.

WRTH has long been a very valuable tool for the broadcast professional who has dealings with the international industry. Details of the fifth estate of the world are clearly detailed, also including the different stations and organizations from all corners of the planet. But there are many more facets to this book. Reviews of shortwave receivers are clearly useful for the avid DX'er. Information about digital radio and TV also help keep one abreast of that's happening there. If broadcasting is your bag, or if you just want a good, up-to-date resource to help you find that elusive shortwave station, the annual issues of this fine book are your best choice.

The one and only book for a travelling short wave listener.

If you don't have this or the 2007 guide and Passport to World Band Radio, well, you have squat! Buy 'em NOW!

Now THIS is what I'm talking about! I don't know how the movie will be, but this book was great. If you love vampire and/or zombie novels, you'll truly enjoy this. This is the first book I've read by author Tim Lebbon, but if he writes this well in all of his books, it won't be my last!

This is probably one of the best movie tie-in novelizations I have ever read. Usually books based on the movies are rather watered down and pale in comparison to the movie. Strangely enough, the power of the written word in this case wins out. The novel moved at a fast pace and was difficult to put down; the author did a fantastic job of fleshing out the main characers and I thoroughly enjoyed it reading it within two days.

The story revolves around the sleepy secluded town of Barrow, Alaska, battening down the hatches and preparing for the annual 30 days and nights of darkness. Sheriff Eben Oleson and his estanged wife, Deputy Stella Oleson are struggling to keep the threads of their marriage together but soon discover that their marriage is not the only thing they are soon fighting for, because this time, something is hiding under the cover of the Dark, which begins with the mysterious arrival of the Stranger and his portent of an impending evil, then suddenly the Olesons find they are cut off from civilization and the townsfolk are being hunted and savagely and swiftly slaughtered by an evil horde of vampires who have decided to make this their feasting ground....can the survivors last the remaining days til daylight??? Great storytelling and better than the movie! Tim Lebbon has outdone himself!

I just want to start off by saying do not start this book unless you have plenty of time to finish it! This is the first book in a long time that I have actually read all the way through. I am very easily distracted and most books just do not have enough story to them to keep me interested. With this book once I started reading I could not put it down. I ended up staying up all night reading it. I was a little disappointed in the ending, but it also was because I did not want it to end. A great read for any fan of a horror/suspense.

Wow, this book is truly spectacular. Although I haven't seen the film itself, Mr. Lebbon does a fantastic job bringing the people and the fear of being hunted to life. Though these aren't your classic vampires, they are terrifying nonetheless.

I would recommend the novel to readers of vampire novels and fans of books based on graphic novel.

PARTY ON, DUDES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I could not put this book down. And, I don't recommend reading it at night, either! What a vampire book. Wew! Vampires that not only drink blood, but eat flesh. I was lifting my legs to help "the good guys" escape and run faster! I would have preferred it to end differently and that's all I'll say about that. Barrow, Alaska oh my...

Jean-Marie Potiez is, of course, from France. I knew him through ABBA fan clubs some years ago. He gives a good account of the ABBA phenomenon. Agnetha was born in Jonkoping, Sweden on April 5, 1950. Her father staged amateur reviews in the town, and Agnetha began singing in them at an early age. When she was 15, she left school to take a job as a telephone operator with a car firm. She was singing with a group called Bernt Enghardts. She left them when her composition, "Jag Var Sa Kar (I Was So In Love)" became a hit on the Swedish charts. Agnetha moved to Stockholm and recorded her first album.

Agnetha composed music. She did nine solo albums between 1968 and 1988. She recorded in Swedish, German, English, French and Spanish. Her label in the early days was Cupol. She went on to form Agnetha Faltskog Productions with Staffan Linde as her manager.

Benny Andersson is the only one of the four born in Stockholm, Benny came from a family of accordion players. It was natural for him to teach himself piano. From 1964 to 1969, his Hep Stars were Sweden's biggest group. They had a rougher image than Bjorn's Hootenanny Singers. When their career ended in bankruptcy, Benny came away with the idea that there would have to be greater economy in the future. It gave him incentive to become co-owner of Polar Music with Bjorn and Stig Anderson.

Bjorn Ulvaeus came from Gothenburg, Sweden's western port and second largest city, where he was born in 1945.

Bjorn was still in school when he formed the West Bay Singers, a folk group. Stig Anderson suggested the name, Hootenanny Singers. Stig was great at naming groups.

Bjorn is known for his business sense and studied corporate law for a term at the University of Stockholm. He meant to be a civil engineer. He was drafted into the Swedish military for the mandatory 10 months, a handy experience if you are going to write songs like Fernando.

Frida Lyngstad was raised by her grandmother in Eskilstuna. Her mother had died at age 21, and it was felt that little Frida would fare better in Sweden since her father had been part of the occupying army.

Frida started singing professionally when she was 13. She sang with a big band, and that is how she met her first husband, Ragnar Fredriksson. He played trombone. Frida had two children by him: a son, Hans, and a daughter, Lotta.

If you are an ABBA fan, then you will love this book. The book takes you into the lives for 4 very special musicans.

Abba remain hugely popular in Britain and many other countries more than twenty years after they disbanded. This book is not an in-depth study of the different personalities and their difficulties, but it gives plenty of information about the members of Abba and their manager, including their lives before and after Abba. And (at least in my hardcover edition) there are pictures - plenty of them.

Regarding the four members of Abba, three of them (Benny, Bjorn and Agnetha) were born and raised in Sweden, all apparently having fairly normal childhoods, only their musical talent setting them apart from others. All three became hugely successful in the Swedish pop charts, Agnetha as a solo singer, Benny and Bjorn as members of separate groups.

The odd one out was Anni-Frid, better known as Frida. She was born in Norway as the illegitimate child of a German father and Norwegian mother. Frida was mainly raised by her grandmother, who took her to Sweden, where her mother joined them but died of illness a few months later, aged just 21. Frida also found it much harder than the others to achieve success in music, but she did eventually have some big Swedish hits of her own.

The author presents the main years (1969 to 1982) on a year-by-year basis, explaining the different events that occurred in each year - records, tours, TV, their personal lives - in a semi-diary format.

As far as the music is concerned, the story is quite complicated and not always easy to follow, but that is no fault of the author. Before they became Abba, they were four separate acts, each with their own careers and signed to different record companies. Once they came together as Abba, different things were happening in Japan, Australia, Germany, Sweden and elsewhere with different records - even before 1974. That was the year that Abba won Eurovision and charted for the first time in Britain and America.

There have been many books on Abba and will surely be many more. Despite being a huge Abba fan, this is the first I've read. If you're only going to have one book on Abba, it might as well be this one.

Did you ever come across a favourite song and say, "I wonder whatever happened to....? Abba took the world by storm back in the 60's when a quarter bought you an afternoon matinee at the movies, and minimum wage in my home town was $1.00 per hour. If you earned $1.25 or more, you had it made!

Abba possessed a unique blend of charisma, talent, and originality. Who can forget the sentimental lyrics of ,"I Had A Dream", the gentle flow of "The Rivers of Babylon", the melancholy strains of "Fernando" or the upbeat dance-hit, "Dancing Queen"? The list of hits went on and on.

What I particularly liked about this book was the numerous photographs all depicting Abba at their finest. Many photographs are ones not often, if ever, published before, at least not on this continent. In addition, the book reveals a lot of factual, personal information about the individuals themselves. The road to fame and fortune is not an easy one as readers will discover through the pages of this book. Some facts have been printed before, but other aspects of their career are presented here in a more complete, in-depth light. Fans of Abba, will no longer need to wonder, "what ever happened to..." because the epilogue tells you just that. Of all the books on the group, this is one of the best in print.

Probably the best book you can get, if you want an ABBA photo book. In this case even better than "From ABBA To Mammma Mia", since there is pictures from a broader period . It is written in cronologic date-by-date, where each year, as well as "The Movie" and the concert tours got its own chapter. You don't have to be an ABBA fan to enjoy this book, everyone can enjoy this trip in text and pictures through the fantastic story of ABBA.

This is the best book about music that I have read, and my recent (fourth in 35 years) reading solidified this opinion.
The reviews here offer many insights, so I just want to emphasize that this is unlike any other music biography you will read. It is not a linear life history, nor does it focus primarily on musical quotations. It digs deeply into Beethoven's spirit and tries to grasp what made him so special. That is a fundamental bias of the book, so if you find Beethoven less a genius than Bach or Mozart or Mahler or Wagner, then you probably won't agree with Sullivan's conclusions. But, as a mathematician, he approached his subject without the standard musicologist biases, and that shines through in a work that is accessible to anyone who wants to think deeply about the ultimate meaning of great music, and how one person could create what Beethoven poured forth in his life.

This is not going to get many postive feedbacks.. HOWEVER.. this is just a note to say THIS REALLY and truly is a BRILLIANT BOOK.... and for anyone wanting to dive straight into the deep end as to what Beethoven and ART and Classical Music par se is and the mind of a composer and the struggle of a life between Art, creativity, God and love and genius is all about this is the one book to get. Yet, surprisingly not only all made very understandable but then clarity and inspiration and feel good factor was never made so good in a book on a composer, also made so enjoyable. A true and real learning journey in this book.Priceless. I felt myself on tour with the writer and the works and mind of life of Beethoven as though the man was his art and his work. Out of MUCH self taught reading on classical music. This book truly remains my ALL TIME FAVOURITE book about any single composer. Supremely well written and written with clarity and passages I underlined endlessly. It is one of those books. Just well researched, well written and written about from angles and insights that you really DID want to know and not written anywhere else and never realised you did want to know and it is a real journey. If you feel a journey with Beethoven`s music this is the best book ever written to get into his mind , and his art and the music and his life as one.... A real cherished classic. I hate the phrase. This book is one of 20-30 that I look back really does come under the heading "life changer" and can give a truer real insight into the mind of genius and ART in capital letters and an artist`s intention and the working of a mind and spirit..and it explains the music so well in relation to his life and genius. A seriously great gem , where every page is a page turning inspiration and delight. Seriously 5+ Not a normal book. Exceedingly well done... This book is special. Class of it`s own and essential reading on Beethoven. Trust me. And write your own review. I challenge anyone not to adore this book and give it a 5 having read it. I`m serious. Think about it compared to all the others on Beethoven and dull ill written biographies and over detailed stuff. This book really hits the spot and is very very well writen in style and content and theme and insight....and is concise. : ) I.e not only readable but also exciting and a a book to learn from not just factually but with real thinking and a journey and highly enjoyable read. The world it takes one too to the mind of the composer and the music and the journey it takes one too is first class. A really enjoyable mind expanding insight. Seriously good. i.e Great.

This book profoundly deepened my experience of music. It opened doors of appreciation for both listening to music and expressing myself musically. It inspires one to put the whole of themselves with ever increasing passion into their creative endeavors and by extension their lives. As Beethoven said, "There is no loftier mission than to approach the Godhead nearer than other people, and to disseminate the divine rays among humanity." Read this book. You will not regret it.

Why has Beethoven reached this special place in the music world?
First at all his music is fundamentally human . The organic feature of his works shows the timeless conflict between the will and the fate ; the horizontality of the destiny and the verticality of the irrevocable and untamed human character .
Ernest Newman has said : " The peculiarity of Beethoven imagination is that it raises over and over to heights since we can do a new appraisement , not only of all the music but the life , the emotions and the ideas".
Think in the Final of the last variation of his Third Symphony and will understand the message ; you have to fight always without expecting anything in change ; because the hero attitude is to make not to think . And you know this wisdom statement of Goethe: "We are what we do".
This book is admirably compelling and reveals unknown facets , interesting letters and even I do not agree with the value of the last stage of his life in which the transfiguration and the evasion would seem derivate making a simple analysis of the endings of his last three Piano Sonatas , the text is a must for any reader really interested in the life and work of this icon beacon of the mankind : Ludwig van Beethoven.

Sullivan's book has remained in print for over 70 years, despite not being a definitive source book for facts about Beethoven's life and work. Sullivan's achievement is different. Sullivan wrote one of the very few biographies, about Beethoven or anybody else, that captures and understands the level of "depth of life" that results from identifying one's life with the search for the meaning of life and of the universe, if there is any such meaning. Beethoven lived on this level and the particular path Beethoveen pursued and expressed in his music is uniquely understood by Sullivan. This biography is a masterpiece in its own right.

This is a beautiful and very informative book; I was very pleased with it. I really enjoyed all the behind-the-scenes pictures and the addition of the script is an added bonus.

If you're a Spider-Fan, you need this one. You will not be disappointed.

I think this book has excellent descriptive as well as graphic content which will help me with my coursework.

A comprehensive look at the making of the SPIDER-MAN legend, from comic-book to film. It's an excellent and interesting story to tell, although Behind The Mask didn't deliver in the graphics department. There just aren't enough illustrations, but there is enough to give the reader a feel of being on the set in the midst of the movie-making magic!

Mark Cotta Vaz is the best "Making Of" author in the world and Behind the Mask of Spider-Man: The Secrets of the Movie has everything a discerning film fan could ask for. Without the material entering the annoying world of overkill, this pleasing and informative book breezes along with its fascinating insights into how Spider-Man went from comic to silver screen. With enough inside info and graphic content to satisfy the most info-hungry geek, this is extremely satisfying and also is possibly one of the best film books ever written. It's that simple. Vaz has so many impressive book-writing credits under his belt already, but this is surely his best work. Containing info on the cast and crew, this never fails to interest and Vaz thankfully differs from other authors with a pre-determined un-pretentious standpoint. The early chapters focus on abandoned ideas about a team up of the Green Goblin and Doc Ock, and numerous costume changes for the first movie, where every little detail is spread out in a well-plotted format. Candid interviews with comic and film boys wraps up a nice package that keeps a very special place on my bookshelf. Highly Recommended.

BEHIND THE MASK OF SPIDER-MAN by: Mark Cotta Vaz is one of the best "making of" movie books I have ever read. Fair warning though, this book is so thorough that if you have not already seen Spider-Man then DO NOT READ THIS BOOK! Upon viewing some of the great color photos and reading the indepth information, you'll be completely robbed of any true movie surprises.

With that said...

In 205 pages, Vaz manages to provide tons of background on the characters, history, and production stages of Spider-Man. You'll find everything from pictures of original comic page art to step-by-step photos on the various concept sketches of both Spider-Man and the Green Goblin (Goblin in particuar is all over the place in the various designs). Vaz clearly did his homework as there are numerous interviews and sound bytes from everyone from Stan Lee to Sam Raimi to Willem Dafoe to producers, stunt people, and FX coordinators.

Rarely do "Behind the Scenes" books read as fast and as enjoyable as this one. Now granted, I am a HUGE Spider-Man fan, but I believe that anyone who enjoyed the movie will find lots of insight to be gained from this informative and entertaining book.

This was a very good read, masterfully told and researched. This is the only book that tells the COMPLETE history of indie movies. Highly recommended.

This book blew me away. I love the way it covers the whole spectrum of indie film, not just "art" but "exploitation" as well. The story of how these films came to be against great odds makes for great reading. I learned something knew on every page. Highly recommended for fans of non-Hollywood films.

This was a great read. Very well-written. It covered more than any other film book. I especially liked the exploitation stuff and how it mixed with art films: the yin and yang of indie cinema.

This is the best book ever written on independent film. I wish I could give it move than 5 stars, because Celluloid Mavericks is a pure pleasure to read: witty, informative and always extremely entertaining. No other book comes close to its breadth and detail, especially in regards to the previously uncharted territory between 1896 and 1960. This is my all-time favorite film book, well deserving of its many raves reviews.

from the New York Press 3-29-2000 - copyright Matt Zoller Seitz

Merritt's book covers a century's worth of off-center cinema, including 1890s nickelodeons, 1940s chitlin-circuit black films, Sam Fuller's genre-busting work in the 50s and 60s, blaxploitation and hardcore porn in the 70s and the Sundance wave of the 80s and 90s. The central idea of free spirits bucking the system unifies waht might have been a too-broad historical text, and Merritt's tart wit enlivens the fact-packed narrative. His prose isn't merely amusing; it's lovingly polished, a real pleasure to read. He's honest enough to admit that most 70s blaxploitation films were garbabe, "rarely as much fun as their posters or soundtracks." He coins a wonderful new phrase to describe the hillbilly flicks that flooded rural drive-ins around the same time: "Whitezploitation." He describes Tom Laughlin's "Billy Jack" as a movie about pacifists who "come to worship a man of violence," and declares, "the real hoot is seeing the messiah take off his boots and kick the grins off rednecks."

This isn't one of those fuzzy, ruminative books where the author writes whatever strikes his fancy and crams it into a bulging thematic suitcase after the fact. The preface carefully defines "independent" to mean any movie "financed and produced completely autonomous of all studios," and "semi-indie" as a movie that received studio funding at some point. The definitions cast certain well-known American films in a fresh light. I didn't know, for example, that the Oscar-winning "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" didn't get a dime's worth of funding from any studio.

Chapter to chapter and page for page, "Celluloid Mavericks" is an indespensable book, as entertaining as it is informed.

David Robinson has written the definitive biography of Charlie Chaplin. It is largely the basis for the movie "Chaplin" because it was authorized by the legend himself and thoroughly explores his life to a greater extent than his autobiography. It is truly a moving and informative work.

Robinson begins his chronology of Chaplin's life in his childhood. He was largely orphaned by his alcoholic father and was only allowed to spend time with his mother while she was mentally healthy. It was through a failed performance of his mother than he got his first taste of acting as a child. From this point, he would devote almost all of the rest of his 87 years to entertainment. In his youth, he specialized in the stage productions which entertained England. He got his first taste of America on one of these traveling tours. On a later tour, he was offered a contract by an American film company. Chaplin agreed to honor his stage contract before beginning his film career.

The book documents with reasonably precise details the process of each film he released in addition to one the public never saw and the final project he never started. Through this filmography, we see the development of "the tramp" character. With each film, the character moves closer to the final product we know.

Chaplin's personal life is well documented. Unlike the autobiography all four wives are addressed, even the one Chaplin was not very fond of discussing. The fact that his first two wives were young is not avoided. However, it must be put in perspective that people did marry and have babies a lot sooner in those days. It is only unique in Chaplin's case because the husband/father is famous and much older. Despite his work for America during war time and a professed love for the country, the slanderous allegations of McCarthyism, also known as the 1950's witch hunt for communists, forced him to finish his life away from the country he loved. Truly the red scare is made to be a more terrible embarrassment to America by this result.

Today's cinematic audience has little appreciation for the roots of the art form. Charlie Chaplin was a revolutionary and founding father in the film industry. Reading about his life is only a step in appreciating his brilliant work.

Robinson is the premier researcher on the life of Charles Chaplin, and this book is the result - a fact filled, balanced book that allows equal focus on Chaplins films and personal life. Most books tend to focus on WAY too much personal life and innuendo, but Robinson avoids this problem, and makes a good book that truly encompasses the entire life of Chaplin.

Robinson's book includes a well detailed filmography, scripts from several early Keystone films, excellent appendices, and many rare pictures. My only complaint is that many of the pictures could be printed much better, and larger too.

Superb reading!

David Robinson's book is the finest biography extant of this indispensable genius of movies. I first read this monumental book 22 years ago and it has remained an indelible part of my understanding of movies and of the life and work of this complex, infuriating, somewhat naive but always questing and humanistic comedian, whose movies are finally being issued on DVD in luminous copies of his own carefully preserved originals.

At the time of Robinson's book, and for a number of years after, Buster Keaton was the preferred choice in silent comics. To take nothing away from Keaton, whom I regard as sui generis ("The General" is a masterpiece, and "The Navigator" is the funniest movie I've ever seen) this may have been more a reflection of the then-current attitudes of "cool," reacting against Chaplin's perceived sentimentality, than an argument for Keaton as the greater artist. Chaplin has recently become of greater interest, and at present his star seems much more firmly fixed, due in large part I think to the recent availability of his work on DVD. Robinson himself, in tandem with the silent cinema scholar Kevin Brownlow, is partly responsible through his access to Chaplin's mint copies of his own movies, which resulted in the superb Thames documentary "The Unknown Chaplin." In any case, it's much easier now to see and to recognize Chaplin's innate (yet painstakingly arrived-at) genius for mixing uproarious physical comedy and subtle pathos; if there is a more moving finale in all of American movies than the last moments of "City Lights," I'm not aware of it.

Robinson's approach is both scholarly and eminently accessible. And he dispels a great many erroneous "facts" that have accrued to Chaplin over the decades, many of them directly attributable to Charlie's own myth-making. The author also refutes some aspects Chaplin's late (and appallingly egocentric) memoir "My Autobiography," whose appearance in the 1960s shocked and saddened many of his former creative collaborators, who found themselves conspicuously absent from Chaplin's over-stuffed tome. If this book is not definitive -- and who can say what future writers may produce in the fullness of time? -- it is at the very least the one fixed starting point for all serious Chaplin research.

There are only two books necessary for the true Chaplin fan; "My Autobiograpy", by Chaplin himself, and this book by Robinson. While there are scores of other books on the market concerning Chaplin's life, Robinson's is THE definitive work.

If Charlie had been around to read this work, he might have amended his famous phrase from "If you want to know me, see my movies," to "If you want to know me, see my movies and read this book".

This book, though thicker than brick, is a swift and fascinating read. You'll wish you'd known old Charlie, you really will. Robinson doesn't care for those who don't care for Chaplin, and that's a little too evident. It's hard to blame him. Overall, a stupendous piece of work.

Cheese Chronicles is a faced paced, funny, and event-driven journey through the life of a rock band. The story, on its own, pales in comparison with similar stories such as Rock Scully's 'Living With the Dead.' Womack doesn't show us Government Cheese as a hedonistic troupe by detailing sexual exploits or bragging about the volume of drugs ingested. In fact, no one even dies in the story. Therefore, unlike comparable books, the greatness of this one isn't attributed to the incredibility of the band's adventures. Instead, the book is a great read because of Womack's unique writing style, which allows us to feel the intensity of his experience.

Womack is always willing to sacrifice his ego for the sake of getting the story across accurately. He is brutally honest, self deprecating, and throughout, he's insistent on making the reader aware of the lousy state of the human condition. It is funny to read that Womack's apartment was broken into, but the burglars didn't take anything and in a sense that was insulting to him.

Also notable, is that Womack has a skill for being completely frank but yet still being a southern gentleman. In the book, most of the judgements he passes are on himself. If he has a beef with someone or something they did, he is quick to defend that person or try to offset his disclosures by mentioning something good about that person. He creates almost no villians in a book packed full of nights gone wrong.

At the time of this review, Womack's web site had a collection of songs on it in mp3 format available for download for free. Among those are some songs that are mentioned throughout the book and hearing them (while I was about half way through the book) enriched the stories.

I wish this book hadn't ended but that's part of the story's theme.

Tommy Womack is a great writer! I too was a Cheesefan back in the day, but this book would be amazing even if I hadn't heard of them. I laughed, I cried...I could not put it down! Facinating and definitely a must read for any young bands out there.

I used to go see this rock and roll band you've never heard of when they played my Middle Tennessee college town. Although none of them would ever remember me, I've actually met and spoken with them on a couple of different occasions. So, reading this book was like getting in on all the shows I missed. For me, it was a funny bit of nostalgia. For those of you who've never heard of Government Cheese or heard their music...well, that's a real shame.

Tommy Womack's excellent book, Cheese Chronicles, is an essential read for anyone interested in the music business. The book is hilarious and at the same time, it provides a gritty look at what it's really like to be in a rock band. I cannot say enough good things about this book. BUY IT AND READ IT!

This is the story representing the 1,000 bands who didn't make it for every one that did -- and I'd MUCH rather read about Government Cheese's failures than N'Sync's successes.

Tommy is a fabulous musician, a clever writer and funny as hell. I grew up near where he did and have never read a more accurate expression of wanting to be a rocker soooo badly in a place that has NO desire to be rocked, thank you very much. Tommy has never grown out of the pure fun of jumping on your bed playing your tennis racket to "Surrender" or air-drumming Peter Criss' "God of Thunder" solo on Alive II. (Try it, I don't care if you're a 42-year-old accountant with a minivan. It will keep you young.)

I once chased Tommy across a bar to praise his book with beer-induced enthusiasm. The next day I sent a letter apologizing and received a reply that still hangs on my wall: "I'll accept no apologies for drunken behavior. I heartily endorse it."

You could read this book 50 times and never tire of it.

I satisfied with this book very much.

What can be better than taking lessons with Chopin? This book is very objective. The sources were his students' letters and the chapters are very well-organised.
The higher the level you are in playing piano/music, the more you get.

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R3V2VGA1KQTPLV Chopin book review that I bought for my mother...

AAA++++...a must have book if you are serious about playing Chopin. A wealth of valuable information. Very highly recommanded.

To the general public Chopin is famous for his beautiful piano music. However, in his days he also was a renowned piano teacher with some revolutionary ideas (at least for his time) about piano technique. His students included rich, aristocratic ladies (he had to make a living) and some very talented students.
Luckily many of the things Chopin told his students during their lessons have been preserved in various diaries and notes by his students and have now been compiled in this book.
Also, Chopin made a start with a piano method (which he did not complete). This method is also included in this book.
If you are a piano student this book is simply a must-have.
If you are not a pianist, but seriously interested in Chopin's ideas about (his own) music and teaching you also should buy this book.
JJ Eigeldinger wrote more excellent books about Chopin which unfortunately are still only available in French.

I am a big Larry David fan. So I bought this book to hear what he had to say about creating Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm. The interview with Larry was really great. The book is very well done.

This book blew me away. It's the single best book on television writing I've ever encountered. This should be required reading for every college course on television. The interviews with television's A-List are insightful, humorous, and inspiring. Anybody interested in breaking into television writing would benefit highly from this book.

I am a television writer who has seen a lot change in this business over the years. Because of the rapid popularity of reality television, it is harder than ever to break into the TV writing game. There are a lot of books out there that claim to show you how to get a job as a sitcom or drama writer. However, in my opinion this book is the best ever written on the subject. You get to hear from the TV show creators themselves how to write a spec script, rewrite a script, get hired on a show, pitch a network, market a show, hire talent, and much more. The author did his homework and rounded up some of the top TV show creators in this business. I found the questions asked and the stories told to be very interesting as well as encouraging. I tip my hat to the author. This is a must buy!

I had an idea for a TV pilot brewing for quite a while. I spent a few months working on the concept. Then I spent another few months writing and rewriting it...trying to make the script the best I could. Then, when I was done I had the realization -- How Am I Going To Sell It? That question has troubled writers since the beginning of the fountain pen. So, I began to read script writing magazines and bought some books on the subject. None were hitting the core or practical enough for me to relate to. Well, that was until I opened Created By.

I have to say that this book showed me "the light at the end of the tunnel." I started reading advice from industry professionals that seemed real. I learned that many of the top TV show creators were once just like me -- a struggling writer with a script and a dream. I got some good solid and priceless advice on how to get my script read. I have just sent my pilot out to some agents!!!!

If you have a script just sitting in your hard drive with no idea how to sell it this book is your resource. Wish there were more books like this out in the marketplace.

Created By is NOT just another one of those "how to" books that show struggling writer's how to go from crashing on their friends couch in Hollywood, to magically landing into the writers room of a top-rated sitcom. This book offers a lot more than that. It has depth and substance. It is a journey into the minds of some of the greatest television writers of our time.

Don't get me wrong, it surely gives you some great insight on how to make it. But it offers much more. I felt I really connected with the showrunners interviewed. I showed me that no one is an overnight success story. It also demonstrated that everyone has their own journey and road to success. It also taught me about what happens when the business side of the entertainment industry interacts with the creative side. Some of the stories made me laugh and some made me reflect. What a positive book!

I was not sure what I would get out of this book when I originally bought it. But I was pleasantly suprised and very inspired.