Movies Books

Those of us who grew up with Mister Rogers will never forget him. He never talked down to us. He instead chose to speak to us as equals. He wasn't trying to sell us anything, make us "feel cool," or make us part of an "exclusive club." He told us always to remember: "I like you just the way you are." He was arguably the healthiest cult of personality ever produced by mass media.

This tiny book distills some of the wisdom that Fred Rogers shared with our now aging generation. As we grow up and social pressures have us fighting for prestige, fame, power, money, or imagined immortality, the simple stories, aphorisms and song lyrics in this tiny book can help remind us what's really important in life. Adults need this as much as kids. And like Rogers' television show, this book is never condescending, shallow, or cheesy. It contains nothing more than simple and concentrated wisdom.

Fred Rogers dedicated his life, and his unique ministry, to showing us that we're all neighbors. As the introduction by his wife Joanne shows, this attitude seeped into Rogers' private life: "He worked so hard at being other-oriented (not self-centered) that he'd often express himself by using the first person plural." His 1999 acceptance speech for the Television Hall of Fame, also included here, avoided all self-congratulation and instead urged us that "...we have the choice of encouraging others to demean this life or to cherish it in creative, imaginary ways."

Fred was a good neighbor.

The Birth to Five Book: Confident Childrearing Right from the Start

I love Mister Rogers' writing style; his straightforwardness which was also gentle. This book is written in the simple language that he's known for -- even younger children will understand. Read it to yourself and dare, as he did, to be yourself. Read it to your children to encourage them in the "important things to remember" in life.

We purchased this book for a gift to our preschool teachers. They really enjoyed it.

This is a very thoughtful book that includes the wit and wisdom of Mr. Rogers, in an easy-to-read format that is both interesting and educational. I can't imagine anyone who doesn't know who Mr. Rogers is. Like virtually all American Children of the '80s & '90s I grew up watching Mr. Rogers. Of course I didn't know it then, but looking back, Mr. Rogers was a very unique person. Mr. Rogers was perhaps the only man in modern pop-culture who was able to speak to kids in such an honest and intelligent way. Mr. Rogers taught me the importance of compassion and the importance of never taking anyone (or anything) for granted. I recommend this book to anyone with a heart and a mind.

A nice little book full of simple, innocuous sayings displaying a keen grasp of the obvious. But by and large, I didn't find anything that really grabbed me, anything that made me think "Wow!" I did find one or two exceptions to this. Rogers writes:

"Sometimes, though, I wonder if we confuse strength with other words - like aggression, and even violence."

I wonder what Mister Rogers would have made of politicians defining "strength" as "support for war."

If you've stayed up nights wondering about the inner workings of a Naboo N-1 Starfighter, or even occasionally contemplate the unconventional solid-fuel concentrate slugs that the strange society of the Neimoidian traders use to give their droid starfighters such powerful thrust, you'll want to read Star Wars Episode I Incredible Cross-Sections cover-to-cover. This handsome book - deservedly referring to its illustrations as incredible - shows us a vroom with a view; more than fourteen vrooms, in fact.

SW Episode I Incredible Cross-Sections is brought to us by the great people at Dorling Kindersly Publishing -- or DK for short - where just about any topic you might think of has already been turned into a beautifully illustrated right-brained adventure in learning. The illustrators for this masterpiece are Hans Jenssen and Richard Chasemore, arguably the two artists with the best job available in that field this side of Alpha Centauri.

Jenssen, who specializes in technical art, especially machines, lives in England but claims to spend his vacations on Tatooine (no accounting for taste in vacation spots) where he has been known to engage in "moderately disreputable pursuits (he goes all the way to Tatooine for that?)." Chasemore has worked as an illustrator in both the U.S. and Europe on a great variety of projects, one of which was another collaboration with Jenssen: DK's Star Wars: Incredible Cross Sections featuring intergalactic vroom-vrooms previously made famous by the vision makers at Lucasfilms. Chasemore says he enjoys "perilous sports involving boards and high velocities (now, maybe he's the one who should check-out Tatooine).

Rounding out the gifted team taking us on intricate tours of Gungan Subs, Podracers, Coruscant taxis and Republic Cruisers, is Dr. David West Reynolds who earned his PhD in archeology at the University of Michigan. His background as a lecturer, veteran of field expeditions on three continents and as an author of scientific archeological publications should make one thing perfectly clear: you don't have to be a dullard denizen of the local mall scene to be a StarWars fan. If his background doesn't make it perfectly clear, the intellectual acuity of his copy will.

This must-have addition to the shelf of any die-hard StarWars fan is equally enjoyable to tot and teen as to tottering sage. It's a picture-book nonpareil or a detailed account of mid-power repulsorlifts and hydrostatic bubble projector units (if you do more than look at the pictures). It's even a trivia-hunter's true treasure. For instance (be honest now), did you know any of the names of Anakin's co-contenders for the Boonta Eve Podrace? Sure, you say - Sebulba. But anybody knows that! True buffs will want this book so they can win rounds of Star Wars Trivial Pursuit with answers like Ark "Bumpy" Roose, Teemto Pagalies, and the ever-impressive Clegg Holdfast.

If you like schematics (or even the word schematics - it's such a great one, isn't it?) you're going to want to pour over this book like hot fudge on a sundae. Featured is a dual fold-out center page affording a panoramic view of the Trade Federation's Droid Control Ship. The resultant artistry of this and the other detailed drawings was generated when the DK team worked directly with the film production art department at Lucas's Skywalker Ranch, mapping out the anatomy of each craft as it was being created. This book comes from the source, folks: from the source ... of the Force.

My ten-year-old loves taking turns with me reading sections of this book aloud and I can almost see his gray matter expanding (hasn't hurt his imagination too much, either) while we huddle by the lamplight. Only problem I'm left with now is what to do with all these detailed schematics of his own left lying about the house - outlandishly labeled creations from foreign worlds contemplating an invasion of Earth, no doubt. Hmm. Maybe I should call George Lucas.

This edition is devoted to the Spaceships and Craft from The Phantom Menace.

As with Star Wars Cross Sections it is very well detailed and even better with todays print technology. Great for children and first generation Star Wars fans alike.

I wouldn't call this the greatest technical book of all times. I wouldn't be suprised if this book wasn't nominated for any kind of award. But Episode 1: Incredible Cross-sections is captivating enough to stand on its own. I enjoyed it because I got to look through the insides of some of the film's most enigmatic ships and vessels like Darth Maul's Sith Infiltrator and the Gungan Bongo. It's good for those who were still puzzled about the ships after the end of the film.

One of the missing points is the Chancellor ship which appeared in the movie and it was not displayed in this book.

It is more complete than the former book, even considering it is only for one movie and the other is for all three.

Other missing point is the lack of a picture of the ship without the cross-section. It is important to compare.

I recommend.

I always wanted to see more and to be able to look inside of the vehicles more closely, and this book provides that information (and more more) in great detail. I really like the mini illustrations of where in the vehicles that events from the movies took place, it helps to "put a name to a face".

words cannot describe how infomative and wonderfully written this book is.It gives the reader a little inside look into thier lives and how they got there and what they go thru.It also gives a look into the culture of japan and makes you want to learn more about these women and their life style.A wonderful read.

This book was amazing! I loved it and learnt so much - you really feel as if it is a true story by the way it is written. Would thoroughly recommend.

Memoirs of a Geisha is an amazing Bildungsroman (coming-of-age) literature. When little Chiyo and her sister Satsu are faced with crisis in their house in their little fishing village of Yoroido, they both end up in different okiyas. While Chiyo in stuck in Gion, Satsu successfully gets out. Chiyo was going to be permanently resided in the Nitta Okiya, until she becomes an apprentice geisha, in which her name changes to Sayuri. Sayuri is faced with things that a normal teenager now days aren't faced with at all, but at the same time can still be related. You find that throughout this book, Sayuri is forced to go through life-changing experiences, whether she wants to or not.
As seen through Sayuri's eyes, life was about the same in the early 1930s as it is now except for the fact that it's about 70-80 years later, and we aren't faced with the same situations as Sayuri.
The author does an extremely good job in making the character realistic. At times, you actually think she is a real person. The author didn't do extremely well in describing background scenes, but you really don't need that when you have an amazing character like Sayuri to give descriptive detail on what's going on with her life, and not what's going on around her.
All in all, I would recommend this to everyone and anyone. On particular, I would single out people who are in need of a good read, but it's a fantastic book which I recommend to anyone.

I loved this book. It was a very easy read. I learned so much about the history of a geisha. I never knew most of the things. I also loved how it ended. I totally didn't expect it. I would highly recommend reading it.

Women in japan aren't just considered woman if they are pretty they are considered business opportunities. for one little girl this was just the case. with stunning blue eyes she wasn't just an ordinary japanese girl her life was about to change forever for good and for bad. A geisha is the most renouned type of woman, they get to get all dolled up and go to special parties where they are paid to sing, dance, and entertain men who come in from all over the country. If you are a good geisha you get a danna which pays for everything, housing, clothes, anything you want. for Chiyo becoming an important geisha ment life or death. either she would become the best in kyoto or she would spend the rest of her life as a made in the Nitta Okiya.
This book is a great overview of the life of japanese woman who used their looks to overcome starvation and homelessness. even though their job looks so easy all the schooling and training takes years for them to become anything better than a prostitute. if you like history and enjoy learning about other cultures this book has it all, the life of a geisha how they survived, how they became geisha, and most of all how a little fishermans daughter was able to become so much more but want it all to go back so bad. i recommend this book for everyone it has everything and i think everyone would be able to enjoy this.

I gave this as a gift to someone who likes to read about the movies as much as he enjoys watching them. Because he has a collection of movie guides, this one caught my eye because it was different with a more unique take on film.

I have purchased other movie guides in the past but always end up getting the current Videohound. It's more concise than other books. Lots more information available. I love the catagory lists. Some of the catagory titles they think up are great! I would recommend this book for video lovers over any other that I've purchased.

i consider myself a movie buff, and this is my bible. this is the fourth edition of this book that i bought, and i will continue to buy one every year. it helps me to choose the movies i watch, and answers the questions that plague me. with the many options for reference (title, category, actor, director, composer, awards), i find this book very easy to use. not only does this book list actors, awards, directors, etc. a description of the film and a rating are included. i freaking love this book! 'nuff said.

The only short side is that it only produces info for on tape or DVD. Other than that it is a gem. When ever you don't remember an actors name, find the movie or the movie you remember them in and your there.

The bones critic of the film (ergo hound) is very good, a real persons review of the film.

Look for info by genre, title, actor or whatever.

This is a film buffs must and a great conversation starter!

What was Bogart's final film? What was Lizabeth Scott's first film? How many movies did Gregory Peck make? How many movies did Raoul Walsh direct? When did John Wayne die? And what was Vincente Minnelli's final film? Answers below! All this and considerably more movie information is included in the veritable encyclopedia "Golden Movie Retriever". There are fully 929 pages of movie synopses and ratings. Also included are indices on movie writers, cinematographers, composers and categories -how many Zorro movies are there? (13!). There are over 30 pages of major awards- and even a section on alternate titles! Apparently, "Summer Stock" may also called "If You Feel Like Singing"! It could easily take a lifetime to mine the nuggets here. The only possible weakness to GMR is the paper cover, which should be well worn very quickly. Answers to the questions above are: "The Harder They Fall" (1956); "The Strange Love of Martha Ivers" (1946); 49 (count `em!); 43; 1979 and "A Matter of Time" (1976). What's not to like? There is absolutely nothing for a movie fan to ponder here. Hit hat "Add to Cart" button now!

Great way to end the series! Its somehow related to the TV series and gives you a little perspective on things. A must have for any Roswell fan! =)

Several of the books in this series had a rushed feel to them, I thought the writing got better in this one.
The teens finally figure out a way to free Max from the collective consciousness and free the alien homeworld from it's grip as well. I'd expected the story to be pretty sloppy but was pleased to see it was better.
The Max/Liz and Michael/Maria romances even ran pretty much the way the TV series did with the exception that in this story Michael was going to return to the homeworld with brother Trevor and Isabel was going to go with him. Isabel decides to remain with her "family"and Michael, who had never admitted his feeling to Maria, decided that he too had to stay.
You do kind of get left with a "where's the rest of the series?" feeling as this is the last we see of the Roswell storyline.

OK, this book, in my opinion was the best at the end for romantic reasons. Michael and Maria both had a thing for the other, but, yes, Michael is a little dense, and once he fooled around with this evil Cameron (as you can probably tell, I hate her). Finally though, Michael and Maria admitted feelings, and it was so sweet! (I'm Michael-Maria crazy). The bad thing is that Alex and Isabel practically said (yes, they did) they only wanted to be friends, which totally sucks. Another thing: Max and Liz have always been totally corny in the books, but this time, they crossed the line. They act all lovey-dovey even after Liz's problems with Adam. If you ask me, they're too perfect a couple to be real. All in all, though, this book really came through.

Melinda Metz is a fantastic author. I loved her other Roswell books but this is, by far, the best one yet. I was jumping out of my seet from the first page. I love how Melinda ended the book, it was very twisty and tourney and almost made me cry. When I was done with the book I felt good to know what happens but I also felt sad to know that this was the end of Roswell. It's so depressing realizing somethings going to end.

The Salvation by Melinda Metz was truely a terrific ending to the Roswell High series. After all of the conflicts and terrors that Max, Liz, Michael, Maria, Alex, and Isabel had gone through in previous books, The Salvation needed a happy ending to calm the reader's nerves. And that's just what Metz delivered. If you've read the other Roswell high books don't even hesitate to read about their final battle in The Salvation.
The only thing I wish now was that she had written more!

Reviewed by Anne Marie Medema (age 12) for Reader Views (7/08)

Mary O'Hara is an excellent author because she ties in real things that happen into a fictional family. The breeds of horses O'Hara writes about are real and it is obvious she is educated in each horse's individual characteristics. O'Hara writes using authentic western language terms. In "My Friend Flicka" the story comes alive to the reader as O'Hara writes with much description about the farm, the horses and life out West. O'Hara weaves into her story punishment and reward in real times -- the reward of a boy's joy when he finally receives his filly.

Can you tame a wild heart? The cover states it well. This question explains "My Friend Flicka" to the reader. It is a book about taming both a young boy and a horse. The storyline begins with Ken on a horse ride. While riding, Ken loses many different horse articles. Ken's father had been an army officer and thus raised Ken with firmness and strictness. He demanded respect. Ken has always been dreaming of a horse of his own.

Due to poor grades in school and a missed assignment about horses Ken must repeat a grade in school. His father requires Ken to complete an hour of homework a day throughout the entire summer. Ken's brother gets him in trouble by asking many questions that Ken must answer and tell the truth.

One day Ken scares his father's horses towards a landslide. One horse cuts the other horses off so none of them fall off and are saved. Ken's mother encourages his father to give his son a horse. Ken's father finally gives him a chance to care for a colt or filly. Ken chooses a colt that is a yearling. Since there are many yearlings to choose from, Ken anxiously awaits to make a choice.

The doctor arrives at their farm because four horses need to be gelded. Gelded means the horse can not reproduce and is done to the stallions. The procedure was so horrible and so much blood lost that one of the horses dies due to the gelding. The colts act sad after the gelding. Ken is greatly disturbed by it. This incident means Ken will choose a filly for his horse.

Rocket is a wild horse who has a filly named Flicka. Ken sees Flicka and falls in love with her and wants her. Flicka is caught for Ken. One day Flicka falls sick. After she is sick, Ken finds Flicka in a river lying down ill on a cold night. By the morning, Ken is sick and Flicka's fever is gone. Ken's father wants to kill Flicka but decides against it. Flicka turns into a well-bred horse and a companion for Ken. Flicka and Ken grow up together and learn life lessons from each other.

"My Friend Flicka" by Mary O'Hara is a great book I would recommend for young and old alike. Boys and girls who have a love for ranches, horses and the outdoors would particularly enjoy the storyline. I have read many books in my life time and I rank this one as one of the best. Break-in a book called "My Friend Flicka" and gallop away from the world.

I have to give this book 5 stars. Mary O'Hara wrote an incredibly beautiful story about a struggling family. Many of the details of the story are so true to life. As an adult reading this story, I found the details about the parents to be more interesting than the story of the horse and the boy. O'Hara really understands the concerns of a parent for a struggling child and it's very true to life in the book. Many important issues are touched upon in this book too; responsibility for our domestic animals, love for people and animals, doing our duty in our every day life are all there with out being mushy and sentimental. O'hara also paints a vivid picture of Wyoming and old-time ranch life. It makes me wish it was still like that, so I could visit it. This is another great book for a read aloud family time.

Although he made his audio book debut just two readings ago, stage, screen and television actor Michael Louis Wells is in full command of the metier with his narration of the classic My Friend Flicka. Many will remember the story as a film with Roddy McDowall, as a TV series or as a current film. Wells is on a par with all of the actors who have undertaken bringing this touching tale to life. The reason for the story's many incarnations is obvious - it is one of our best-loved books and well deserves its place among others that are enjoyed from generation to generation, such as Treasure Island and Mutiny on the Bounty.

Pivotal to O'Hara's story is Ken and his seeming laissez faire attitude. Where his mind is his father, Rob, certainly doesn't know. He's a young boy who would much rather just look out a window than study his arithmetic. He should have studied because his report card is so poor that he's doomed to repeat a grade. Rob undoubtedly wonders whether he'll even catch on the second time around.

Their home is Wyoming's Goose Bar Ranch and Rob is working hard to make a go of it. He doesn't need a son who seems given to daydreams. Then, along comes Flicka, a beautiful chestnut filly, with a wild streak inherited from her sire. Ken is certain he can tame Flicka, and so begins the unforgettable relationship between a boy and his horse.

O'Hara wrote a follow-up to her story, Thunderhead, but it never achieved the popularity of My Friend Flicka, a timeless story to be enjoyed over and over again.

- Gail Cooke

This is a very good book. My granddaughter really enjoyed it.

I am in the middle of lstening to this book. Its detailed descriptions of ranch life and horses are quite compelling. But what surprised me was the absolutely accurate description of a boy with ADD. This book was written some two decades before attention deficit disorder gained anyone's attention, but O'Hara's descriptions of Ken's behavior are absolutely consistent.

And then O'Hara answers the question of what to do about the condition: give the kid something he really wants to do and stand back. Of course, it helps that Ken has two wise and good-hearted parents; but then, maybe that is the start to solving most problems that children have.

A fine book on many levels, and a fine companion on the road for adult and child.

I am a huge Alias fan. I found this book to be a great addition to my Alias collection. The book is very interesting with details about the characters, actors, design sets, and just about everything. I was interested in how some of the actors and actresses have kind of created their own characters behind the "script". It was a very fun and exciting read. I would reccomend this to anyone who is a fan of alias. You will not be disappointed as this book is entertaining AND informative, which is quite hard to find these days. If you enjoy Alias, you will love this book.

This book was a great read. I think that all fans should have a copy! I couldn't put it down for hours!

People have been going on to me to watch "Alias" for some time, So having purchased the 1st 2 Season from Amazon UK, I sat down to watch them.
Nearly through Season 1, a friend told me about a making book on the first season, but had never brought it, so I search Amazon UK and it wasn't listed. I then came to Amazon US, and found it and took the plunge and ordered it.
It arrived within a Week and the book included the DVD.
If you like the series and wonder whats goes on behind the scences of a TV series like Alias, then this is the book to buy.
The DVD gives gives you some small interviews and breif look behind the scence, which is an added bonus, but it is the book that has the pulling power.
When do we See a Season 2 & 3 Book?

This is a great book for anyone that is hooked on the spy show, Alias. I didn't start watching until the second season, so I got it to give me background on the episodes, characters, and stories. There's lots of great behind the scenes info, and facts about the cast. It's a fun, must have book for everyone that's been sucked into the world of Alias!

Naturally, I bought this book because I loved the show, and wanted to know more about what goes on behind the scenes of this underrated drama/action/suspense thriller. Every episode brings out an edge-of-your-seat feeling, and it makes you wish that the hour was much longer. This book was great, it even includes a cd-rom so you can watch a few extras. It also includes storyboards and costume designs (still, I wish that there were a few more examples). It also includes an episode guide on every show from season 1, including a few tidbits as well. Certainly a must for any fan of ALIAS, or even for those who appreciate great writing!

...particularly if you are one of those people who think Shakespeare is boring or too difficult (most of us remember the NIGHTMARE of getting through one play at school, right?). Well, kiss boredom goodbye, banish your nightmares and prepare for a TREAT! This is funny, intelligent, fast-paced and heartbreaking, all at the same time - rather like Shakespeare, in fact!

If you're a sucker for Shakespeare, like me, I would defenately bye this book. I had a proffessor who told me once that people go to the movies to escape from reality. This movie supports that statement. When I watch this movie or read the screenplay I fall into another time were love is the object your heart longs for most. One thing I like about this movie is how it brings facts into a fictional affair. The "actors" portrayed in this movie really did exist and they played in the very theatres dipicted; I love that! Marlowe, Shakespeare's "enemy" was really stabbed in a bar fight and there are many more factual things about the movie. I also like how the writers made it so that Will Shakespeare gave Viola the sonnet Shall I Compare Thee To A Summers Day and incorporated Romeo and Juliet into the movie. Sheer genious! And a great tear jerker! Wonderfully acted and written. It makes you fall in love with a time period almost forgotten. I simply loved it!

This movie showed us what true love really is. One person said "Ryan should have gotten best pic". Well, Red Line was way much better than that pic becuase it explored emotions and showed the feelings of each character. Ryan...good effects. Shakespeare In Love is well written and well acted. It is a love story that is never told. Just like our own lives.

I truly love this book! It shows passion,love,comedy,and history.The movie, Shakespeare in Love is my favorite movie, so I loved this book!

Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard wrote the screenplay of Shakespeare in Love. The film is marvellous and so powerful that no one can resist that love drama. The story of Romeo and Juliet is itself so frightfully emotional that no one can resist the charm of the tragedy and the pain of the love story. So many artists, in so many genres and arts, have tried themselves at adapting this story, this play, this tragedy to their stages or screens or canvasses, and all have been inspired so deeply by Shakespeare's story that Romeo and Juliet have become a true galaxy of masterpieces and stars. The latest ever produced is Shakespeare in Love and the screenplay is richer, more poignant and freer than the images of the film. The screenplay is enriched with stage directions that are so brilliant, so precious that the text, the dialogue, what is going to become the words of the actors, is enhanced and beautified by them. After a while we don't even know what is the gem and what is the golden bed that carries the gem. The screenplay is by itself a work of art, a masterpiece, and the film, if you watch it again afterwards, finds tremendous new meanings and undeemable finesse in the recollections you may have kept of all those lines that are not said, that are not shown, that are at best translated into images, settings, flying visual impressions that the words of the stage directions anchor in your memory, your heart and your brain with delicate tendrils that cannot break anymore. Any lover of Shakespeare, any lover of literature, any lover of love dramas and hate tragedies must read that screenplay to see how laughter and tears can intermingle in an unbreakable alliance. Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, Universities of Paris, IX and II.

The Soloist is a poignant journey into the harsh world of a brilliant and talented homeless musician whose story will pluck at your heartstrings.

Through the very compassionate and capable voice of Steve Lopez, the reader is led into a world of stunning surprises and shocking insights into the very real domain of mental illness and homelessness where doors are opened and scenes displayed with unrefined veracity.

This novel seems to beg to be read as a clever work of fiction...however it is far from fictional!

This is a true story of amazing strength and of the careful 'baby steps' required to navigate the delicate emotions that continually thunder inside the heads of the mentally ill... and to walk beside a man of enormous talent who is also afflicted with schizophrenia; living on the streets of Skid Row while creating beautiful music for all around him to hear.

Nathaniel Ayers once had a brilliant career ahead of him in the music world and was a stand-out student at Julliard.
Everything changed as his slow descent into mental illness evolved and one day he found himself on the outside desperately seeking the comfort of the euphonious chords that sweetly sooth the scattered thoughts of his present-day schizophrenia.

Nathaniel worships Beethoven as he pushes his shopping cart full of instruments and his survival cache through the streets and tunnels in the slums of downtown Los Angeles.

The chance meeting of Nataniel Ayers and Steve Lopez is what makes this startling story and the friendship that is formed fills the novel with charity, empathy and grace.

This novel will change how you look at the mentally ill and homeless around you forever....Mr. Lopez has helped to shine a bright and fresh light on the 'stigma' of what we call madness.

With true compassion, we see how delicate the path to well-being can be and learn the deeper meaning of "There but for the grace of God go I"

Thank you Mr. Lopez...you really DID make a difference!

Having read each of the columns where Steve Lopez introduced us to Nathaniel Anthony Ayers, I wasn't surprised by most of the content of the book. Where I was pleasantly surprised was in Mr Lopez' admissions that he was unprepared for the depth of Mr Ayers' illness, and that he, at times, attempted to rush Mr Ayers' treatment. His growth ahd changes are unmistakable. Mr Lopez is to be commended for what he has done to bring awareness to mental health issues faced by many residents of LA, and specifically Mr Ayers.

Steve Lopez has written a moving story of a talent musician and, in the process, written an illuminating two-year autobiography.

Great story line. Towards the end, I began to read slower, then pick the book down for a few days, because I did not the story to end. I think this fall around October, November the movies based off this book is scheduled to come out, Starring Jamie Fox. Might not be a bad idae to pick this box up and read it before the movie comes.

"The book was better." Moviegoers are always saying that.
Back in 2005, *Los Angeles Times* columnist Steve Lopez wrote a series of stories about a homeless man who turned out to possess orchestra-level talent on several stringed instruments.
Lopez turned his columns into *The Soloist* -- and now it's being turned into a movie (an early Oscar contender, no less, to be released Nov. 21) starring Robert Downey Jr. as Lopez and Jamie Foxx as Nathaniel Ayers, the musician who suffers from paranoid schizophrenia.
So why not just wait for the movie? Downey Jr. is a great actor, and Foxx, having played another gifted-but-disabled musician in Ray, just might pull off the mix of inspiration and delusion.
Because books provide detailed, verbal pleasure, that's why. In real life, fore example, Lopez is married and very much involved in the life of his young daughter; in the movie, he's divorced. OK, so screenwriter Susannah Grant (*Erin Brockovich*) needed to streamline the narrative.
But scenes recorded for the movie won't capture the author's commentary. Movie directors can compel our focus, but they can't enter into the characters' interpretations. At one point, for example, Lopez decides to spend a night on the streets as a homeless person alongside Ayers, who demonstrates how he taps a stick on the sidewalk at night to scare off rodents. And Lopez observes: "He's a classical musician who has taken a great fall and now finds himself fending off sewer rats, but when I look into his eyes, I find no hint of regret, no recognition of this nightly collision between beautiful thoughts and ugly reality."
Most important, the process of reading through the months and months of coordination it took among several people to get Ayers off the streets and into treatment (tentatively, provisionally) -- the reader's act of setting the book aside, then returning to it days later -- mimics the one-step-forward, three-steps-back hassles that Lopez endured just to make Ayers' life a little better. Movies accelerate problems, then "solve" them in two hours.
Director Joe Wright allowed us a glimpse, in *Atonement,* of a happily-ever-after ending that's severely undercut by stark realities. Reader-viewers of *The Soloist* will anticipate an ending that offers the hope of continued treatment for Ayers, not a cure. Lopez's book ends with the question of whether Ayers will be able to continue attending concerts at Walt Disney Concert Hall, let alone performing in them. No sentimentalized Hollywood endings are welcome here.
If they intrude, then this Thanksgiving, you can stroll out of a cineplex somewhere and justly say, "The book was better."

I have read almost all of Hugo's novels and I feel he was a master beyond most as far as story telling goes. This particular books is ingenious with the various characters and the twists and turns and the tragedies and political statements. It broke my heart, while exciting me to cheer on the lead character in his efforts to right the wrongs of the parliament. I loved the characters of this books and the story line and I would strongly recommend it to any who are fans of "Hunchback" or "Les Miz" (forgive me). While I really loved Les Miz (and again, it broke my heart, as did the musical,which I thought was brilliant), this is the one that stayed with me. I read it many years ago and have a number of copies (some very old). When I bought this movie, I had no expectations, and I was amazed to see how much of the story was included. It was brilliantly produced, directed and acted. Even though it is a silent movie, it speaks volumes. I highly recommend the book and then the film. I also urge everyone to see the musical "Les Miserables" because it is all so wonderful. Hugo was a true master!

I come to the conclussion that The Man Who Laughs is the most descriptive, saddest, romantic and most beautifully written book that Victor Hugo has written. It is unfortunate that this book doesn't have the standing that Les Miserables or Our Lady of Notre Dame occupies. Also, it is a very hard to find book, specially in Spanish, which is my first language. The traduction is done extremely well (I have verified it with a Russian version I have). It is highly recommended.

This is a difficult and demanding read, but entirely worth it for those who want more from a novel. The story is of a confrontation of moral opposites set in England in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, as a deliberately disfigured outcast named Gwynplaine faces a powerful conflict between the simple life of a mountebank, with the love of a pure-hearted blind girl, and the power, glamor, and corruption of nobility, with the love of a depraved, self-loathing noblewoman. Gwynplaine's disfigurement hides his true identity from all, including himself; and out of the eventual revelation of this truth, Hugo constructs a magnificent and heart-wrenching symbolic drama that is as filled with meaning as anything you'll find in literature. Again, this is not light reading, and it is not made for those who prefer to breeze through an action thriller in an afternoon.

Hugo has much to say about the destructive nature of political power, as well as the envy and injustice that conspire to keep the high and low in their respective places. The Mohawk Club of the nobility exemplifies these themes through their vicious and destructive pranks, victimizing the helpless in the name of "fun."

Hugo's contempt for the period's institutions of power is evident throughout the novel; on the wicked Barkilphedro's rise to prominence, he writes: "He had crawled where he wanted. Flat beasts can get in everywhere. Louis XIV had bugs in his bed and Jesuits in his policy. The incompatibility is nil." Clearly this is a novel of ideas, written by one who had a great deal to say and knew how to express it. Even so, I must acknowledge that Hugo's expository passages, although witty, impassioned, and eloquent, occasionally become a distraction from the story.

Hugo's style is astonishingly lofty, in a way that just doesn't happen in the present day. It is an ambitious and demanding discipline, now so far gone that we scarcely even know to miss it. As such, it may strike today's readers as unnatural and overdone; or so it did to me, at first. But by the finish, I was fully seduced into Hugo's stylistic world, and left unable to choose what to read next -- for what is there today that is even conscious of this standard of craftsmanship? I can only imagine how much of the effect of this high language is lost in translation from the original French.

If you are interested in this book, I strongly recommend the Paper Tiger edition, with its afterword by Shoshana Milgram. This afterword was of great use in understanding the book's ending, which to me was difficult; it clarified how the ending was necessitated by the novel's overall theme -- and it made the extent of Hugo's achievement that much more evident.

I read this book as a teenager, along with "Toilers of the Sea," Ninety Three" and "Hunchback of Notre Dame."
I have re-read only "Toilers of the Sea" and found it as riveting now as were all of Hugo's book then. I can't imagine a library system not containing these timeless classics or their being out of print.

This is extremely well written and the story is easy to follow. The story had me smile and cry. The method that Victor Hugo collected the sections of this book is similiar to the style Ayn Rand used in writing Atlas Shrugged-my favorite book. The Man Who Laughs is one I think every Victor Hugo fan would want to read and read again--I loved it!