Television Books

I have to admit I was fascinated by this book soon after I picked it up. Everyone knows Marvin Gaye's often hypersexed music, but it's intriguing to hear the story behind all of that music. His internal struggles and unstable life are chronicled in surprising detail.

A serious downfall of many music biographies is their inability to adequately tie the events of the subject's life with the music being made at the time. This book does not fall into that trap, maybe because Gaye's music was such a personal endeavor, or maybe because the author was a friend of the artist.

This friendship between author and subject is the one problem I had with the book. Many times, Ritz fawns over the genius of Marvin Gaye, at times sounding as if God himself could not achieve such wonderful artistry. Don't get me wrong, Gaye was a uniquely talented, one-of-a-kind musician. It's just a little much at times. Nonetheless, Ritz does not shy away from the many negative influences in Gaye's life, and tells a story of the man that is both inspiring and tragic.

I would consider this book one of the finer examples of musician biographies. Ritz's closeness to Marvin Gaye allows him to tell first-source accounts of a troubled person, and concedes that at times Marvin was a man that even he could not figure out.

I'm like a lot of people in the world, I think when it comes to Soul Music although there are many great and talented artist Mr. Gaye was the creme de la creme. His music seemed cosmic and he sung with such conviction and passion it makes you wonder where did he have to go mentally and spiritually to summon those type of vocal performances. Well "Divided Soul" reveals those places of pain and torment in Mr. Gayes life that artistically helped him convey some of the most brilliant music ever recorded but sadly contributed to his tragic death. "Divided Soul" was written Passionately but honestly by David Ritz who I can easily tell was a huge Marvin admirer. That aspect really makes the book compelling, because you always get the sense that David is truley trying to reveal and understand what made Marvin one of the most intriguing artist of our time.

Remembering the day when I brought the news of Marvin Gaye's tragic death to my mother, I watched the tears after she uttered the words "You just couldn't shake your demons, baby." The next day, she went out and purchased all of his albums.

Marvin was heaven and hell simultaneously, and David Ritz's candid account of this totrtured genius was tragic and beautiful all at once. With an insight like the gifted singer himself, he dissects each creation as if he were in the recording studio for every take. Flying high in those triumphant skies, I never wanted Marvin to leave his musical sanctuary. That he lived a life of continuous self-destruction brought tears to my eyes, and had me wondering how the leeches disguised as smiling faces that sold him toot could live with themselves. They were contributing conspirators to a tragic story. Like Caesar, he was surrounded with enemies.

But the pain he felt produced greatness in the recording studio, didn't it? The "What's Going On" CD is a Musical Sermon On The Mount, and the Let's Get It On and I Want You follow-ups are sexual masterpieces. After reading the biography. I now know why.

This is a must read for those who appreciate this talented yet troubled composer, yet serves as a cautionary tale to all who God had blessed with gifts.

William Fredrick Cooper
ESSENCE BESTSELLING AUTHOR of THERE'S ALWAYS A REASON

Divided Soul was a very fascinating book, though at times the author was editorializing a little much. I enjoyed the read.

It is obvious that Marvin was highly emotionally disturbed, yet gifted. I find myself disliking his weak willed mama as much as his vicious, lazy and disturbed father. Yeah, yeah I know making disparaging comments about somebody's mama is a no Mrs. Gaye is just as responsible for Marvin's death as the father. She did not protect her child. She allowed a nothing of a strange man to live off her and physically and mentally torture her child. A parent's job is to protect their child from those within the house and outside.

Must all extremely talented people be nut cases?! I can imagine being famous can cause some to go crazy to some degree. But what happens to a person who comes into the business already emotionally fragile.

I agree with some, I feel that he was tired of the struggle of living and he purposely provoked his father, knowing that death would ensue. This could have been avoided if his mama had kicked that lazy fool out of the house when he was a very young child. She was the was supporting the family. He was a leech, a parasite. So I feel that she too was emotionally disturbed to some degree.

Marvin's trauma followed him to the grave yard.

Good read.

A great history of american popular music and a portrait of a man whose life
is hard to understand, but this book manages to drive you through a difficult and fascinating journey.

I watched THE NANNY and I like her performance a lot then I read this I know that show is the real her.

Fran Drescher is obviously an extremely talented woman. Sharp and witty, she was not only the star and co-creator of the '90s show The Nanny, but also served as one of its producers, writers and directors. Her book Enter Whining is a funny, gossipy tale of her ascent to the stratosphere of Hollywood stardom, but we're not talking Kitty Kelley here. Readers who already love Drescher will adore this book, as it's full of sweet, happy stories and profiles about the author's adventures as a struggling actress and her eventual success.

Drescher comes across as being very down-to-earth, still the starstruck chick from Queens who probably still has to pinch herself now and then, unable to quite believe how far she's come. She writes pretty much the way she speaks, with her occasional Yiddishisms and the trademark, "Meanwhile..." She offers an especially moving chapter about the rape she suffered early in her career, and while she refrains from providing the details, it's a harrowing read all the same. It's the only time in the book where she moves away from the lighthearted tone she adopts elsewhere, but she manages to seamlessly integrate it into her story without indulging in self-pity.

There's a lot of backstory about the making and filming of The Nanny, but readers seeking lots of behind-the-scenes anecdotes will be disappointed. This is Drescher's story -- and a good one at that -- so we'll have to wait for another book on The Nanny show itself, hopefully to be written by Drescher and Jacobson.

By the way, everyone knows that Drescher and Jacobson separated and then divorced in the late '90s, a few years after this book was published, so it does leave a somewhat bittersweet taste in one's mouth in the end. Drescher writes affectionately and lovingly about her husband, their long courtship and marriage; it's obvious they were devoted to each other and considered each other soulmates.

A great, quick read and a must for any Drescher fan.

This 1995 book tells the story of how Fran Drescher made it to the top of the TV sitcom business. Her humor and kindness come through very well in a writing style that evokes her very unique voice. Perhaps not as frank as her 2003 book about fighting uterine cancer, it still provides a lot of insight into what makes this woman tick. You feel that you would really enjoy knowing her.

This book is all about Fran Drescher's extremely interesting and unique life up to 1996.In it, she writes in a humorous vein about almost everything that happened in her life, from the highs like meeting and later marrying her husband, creating and starring in the hit tv show "The Nanny" and later meeting "God's gift to all little Jewish girls in need of a leader", Babs herself, to the lows like discovering a growth in her body.But with the help of family and friends, she didn't let the negative things get her down.We should all be strong enough to follow her example. She also provides some interesting tidbits like how "The Nanny" was produced and about talk shows and their hosts.Sure, she goes on quite a bit on her worries about her weight and her looks, but she's just human like the rest of us and a lot of people have the same worries.The book has some nice black & white photos of her, her family and her friends in almost all the chapters.I enjoyed reading the book very much even though it's short.I can't recommend this book highly enough to not just the fans of her work, but to all fans of comedy.

The book Enter Whining, by Fran Drescher, is a biography. To me this book was very entertaining, it told all about her life and how she got from being a little child to where she is at today. The book also has many pictures in it so you can see and picture what she is talking about while you are reading. The way it is written is like she was writing to herself in her own diary, but towards the end she addresses it to her mother.
How the book starts out is when she was little and how she first got started being on television. Fran started when she was around ten, she was in commercials at first then she moved up to be in the background of some movies. When she got to be in the background for the movies she always thought that she was actually in the movie so she got really excited, but it ended up that she was just in the background.She was still happy to be in the background though, intill one day when she was the actual star of the movie and that changed her whole life because then she got to star in any movie that she got a chance to. Ever since that first time starring in a movie then she moved on to being in a television show called ''The Nanny''.
Throughout the biography she writes about this guy that she has been seeing for a while now and she doesn't really mention his name at all intill she starts getting into detail about him. His name is Dave which come to find out, is her husband. Fran has been with Dave for most of her life now, she states that it is hard for her to have a husband and be moving all of the time. To me Fran has a very fun filled life and is happy with what she does for a living.

My father-in-law bought this book for my 3 year old daughter and she just loves it! It teaches empathy in such a cute and fun way! When Gerald falls while trying to dance all of the other animals laugh at him and he walks away sad. Gerald however is determined to dance and doesn't give up. Finally he finds his inner music and is a fantastic dancer. All of the other animals come around and can't stop watching him dance. This story is told in such great rhyme it is so much fun. After reading this book I looked up the author and bought an alpahbet book which ended up being equally as fantastic..."K is for Kissing a Cool Kangaroo"

Do you like calm and weird books? If you do then is the book for you. The story Giraffes Can't Dance is about a Giraffe who is very clumsy and can't dance and gets teased a lot by other animals. Then he figures out that there is something called a jungle dance that will happen in a couple of days and all the animals practice some in groups more then two like the baboons and some just two like the lions. So then he practices but it's no help. So then a wise cricket helps him practice. I won't tell you the hole story but I will give you some more details like the setting is the jungle and some of the characters are the Giraffe, the baboons, lions and more animals that you will love. I thought the authors message was that just because someone or something can't do some thing doesn't mean you shouldn't be their friend or bail on them. So if you want to see what happens by the book I am sure you will like it.

My children and I love this book, especially the rhymes and the exuberant, joyful illustrations by Guy Parker-Rees. Gerald is such a wonderful character. The book has already become a classic!

This is a great story about how it's okay for us to be individuals that dance to a different beat. The illustrations are wonderful. Bought the book for our 3-year old son but everyone in the family enjoys reading the story.

I love this book! My mentor read it to her 8th grade class before they went off to high school and i bought it as a parting gift for a friend of mine who just went to college. It has a wonderful message of "dancing to you own beat" or just being yourself, no matter what people think. Seeing that i just had my first child, i will definitely be buying him this book and i will read it to him, even if he is only 3 months old because i don't think anyone is too young to be taught that they deserve individuality.

I bought this for my mom, who lives in Yuma, Arizona and hasn't a lot to do in 110 degree heat in the summer. She loved it, said it was a great, fun read, and that's enough for me.

I thought this might be cheesy. It was fantastic! After having loved Ian Fleming, this was a great substitute. I look foward to reading the rest of the series.

Listening to this tape, I was surprised by how much of it really had a timeless quality. The book was set back a ways (there's a way to find out exactly when, having to do with a character's age and the print date of a book, but I've forgotten...) and there were clues to the fact that it was not a contemporary novel - the political setting and the level of technology - but the characters really could have been plucked out of any time period. And this made it very enjoyable to listen to because I could picture Mrs. Pollifax and it really was easy to like her and root for her. Though I figured out where the microfilm went about, oh, two tapes into the six, there was enough story around the central mystery to keep me interested. I would definitely recommend it as a wonderful book to listen to (or read, I'm sure). I believe I will try a few of the other Mrs. Pollifax books...

Bored and in excellent health for a woman who is retired with nothing more to look forward to than her gardening meetings, Mrs. Pollifax decides that there are only two choices in her life. Take one giant step off the roof of her building in New Brunswick, New Jersey or pursue a dream that she has had since childhood. With the decision made she boards a bus for Langley, Virginia and decides to be a spy for the CIA. Taking place during the cold war, Emily Pollifax is sent to Mexico to retrieve important documents, that doesn't seem difficult until she is forced to outsmart Red Chinese military men with nothing more than a pocketknife and a Christmas tree. This woman could definitely give MacGyver and Forrest Gump a run for their money.

This is the second Mrs. Pollifax book I have now finished and I adore them. The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax is a delight in her adventures and this one is full of thrilling adventures. I am now hooked and will be reading every Mrs. Pollifax book there is. They are thoroughly enjoyable...

This book was interesting. It told of a lot of elements in the Phantom Menace movie like biographies of Anakin, Padme, and Darth Maul. It also went way beyond the movie and talked about things not mentioned in the movie. From shortened biographies on the Jedi Council members to looking inside a battle droid's head, this book has everything any Star Wars fan would ever want. The photography is great and the pictures are labeled showing a lot of the parts of machines and lightsabers. This book is the bomb.

The Star Wars Episode I- The Visual Dictionary is great. It has amazing facts about Star Wars episode I such as all of the members of the Jedi High Council (which I was amazed to find out that there is another one of Yoda's species on it, and her name is Yaddle, and she is young at 477), the species, name, and personalaty of the Trade Fedration leaders, every last detail of a Battle Droid and Droideka, Queen Amidala's dresses and makeup and the reasons she wears them, the sea monsters of Naboo, Gungan warfare, why Jar Jar was banished, Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, Mace, and Yoda's lightsabers, the Queen's handmaidens, Darth Maul's double-bladed lightsaber and speeder, and much more!

This is a great book and will provide hours of fun for any Star Wars fan (at least, it did (and still does) for me).

This book likewise its similar for the classic Trilogy, is a good buy for a Star Wars Fan. Depicts everything that appears in the movie, except the starships, the only thing I missed, but it is not a major problem.

We have a 4 1/2 year old daughter obsessed with the Star Wars girls (Shaak Ti in particular) and this is good because it tells all about the different charachters, places, vehicles and robots of the movie in easy to understand, yet complete language.

Very good for the little Star Wars fan or anyone who would like to go a little deeper, but not THAT deep.

Bought this book along with Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones, also by David Reynolds. The pages are falling out of both books. I've had this problem with a few DK books, even the children's books. The older DK books are more sturdy. I give this item only 3 stars, and only because of the content. A book with missing pages doesn't get 5 stars.

I laughed my head off while reading this book! I was actually sad when it was over! The characters are unique, hilarious, and impossible not to fall in love with. This is a dark comedy full of witty one-liners, zany situations, and a lot of sexual content. This book is not for the faint of heart.

You will laugh out loud, this book is truly hysterical. I am a new Tim Sandlin fan - Sorrow Floats and Social Blunders are just as good. Highly recommended!!

On the positive side this book was sometimes amusing. The story idea of two thirteen-year-old's experimentation with sex and resulting in a pregnant seventh grader was promising though poorly executed. None of the main characters are believable, not the narrator, Sam, not his girlfriend Maurey, and not his mother Lydia. The motivations and thought patterns of the adolescents especially lacked any power to convey belief. This novel should probably have stayed in the form of Mr. Sandlin's puerile fantasies, from which it sprung.

With "Skipped Parts", Tim Sandlin has assembled all the elements needed for a great book. Memorable characters, a good setting, tight pacing, a great plotline and wonderful dialogue.

The main character, Sam, is a thirteen-year-old boy. He puts me in mind of myself at that age, actually. Very prone to dreams and fantasies. He meets a girl, Maurey, also thirteen. Before long, these highly intelligent children are losing their virginities to each other. Not long after that, they discover that, oops, a girl can get pregnant before her first period.

This is the start of a series. I haven't read the other parts yet, but I really liked this one. I also enjoyed Skipped Parts, the movie based on this book, though bizzarrely they changed the kids to fourteen instead of thirteen.

This is a very good, sweet book recommended for pretty much anyone over the age of about eight or nine. Highly enjoyable!

In Sam Callahan, Sandlin creates one of the great characters of recent American literature. Equal parts Walter Mitty and Holden Caulfield, Sam is a hilarious narrator with a truly unique voice. If the book were nothing more than a series of comic misadventures of Sam and his irreverent Southern Belle mother, Lydia as they are transplanted from the good ol' south to rural Wyoming, it would be a great read.

However, Skipped Parts is far more than that. Beyond Sam and Lydia, Sandlin populates GroVont with no end of fascinating characters--almost all multidimensional and colorful--the kind of folks you only find in quirky places like Sicily, Alaska. In this book, its easy to imagine that folks like Dot,Hank Elkrunner and the old guys who populate the local diner have interesting lives and stories outside of the light they shed on the main characters and that they didn't just show up in the scenes to move the plot along. This gives the story an incredible richness.

Beyond that, the book has a heart as big as the Tetons and frequently wears it on its sleeve. Rarely is a book so laugh out loud funny also so poignant and touching. There are moments that are truly noble, truly sad and truly beautiful and its a credit to Sandlin that none of them seem contrived. If you can get past the stuff about precocious 13 teen year olds experimenting with sex, you find a great novel about growing up, dealing with family, redemption and the endless disappointments and possibilities of life. A wonderful, wonderful book.

I have this book since 1984 when Tetsuko Kuroyanagi became a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF. I was in 7th grade at that time. I have read it over 20 times. Every time, I found joyful, happiness, and touching. But I lost it when we moved. I did get an used one. And I have read it over and over again. This book inspired me to study Japaneses. I love it. GREAT BOOK for children and for adult. READ IT if you want to find your childhood and refill your imagination.

Honestly I read this book over 25 years ago and thought that this book has long been discontinued. I guess this proves what a time-tested treasure it is. The author, a TV celebrity in Japan, recalls her childhood and the unorthodox school she went to. Absolutely adoring in the simple story of how a concerned mother tried to do the best for her daughter and how a simple man did his best to give a bright and meaningful future to the few children who comes into his life.

It is the type of book that makes you wish that there were more teachers like him and that you had a teacher like him.

This is one of my all-time favorite books. First published in Japan in 1981, this beautiful book depicting the true story of innocent little Totto-chan, her family, friends, and above all, the innovating educationer she befriends in the years leading up to, and during the first years of WW2, remains a national best seller in Japan to this day. I don't have any children of my own, but if I did, and if Tomoe-Gakuen (the elementary school Totto-chan attends) existed today, I would immediately enroll my children there. Since there is not, I hope I have the good luck of finding somebody like Sosaku Kobayashi to help make my child the happiest and kindest child in the world.

It was due to this book's beauty that then UNICEF Executive Director, James P. Grant persuaded those working at UNICEF to appoint the author, Tetsuko Kuroyanagi (who is Totto-chan grown up), to UNICEF's International Goodwill Ambassador, enabling her to visit and help children in need all over the world.

For people who have read this book and those who have not, I also recommend "Totto-Chan's Children : A Goodwill Journey to the Children of the World" by the same author. It tells the story of Totto-chan grown up, still big-hearted as ever, striving to help children in need. Check it out!

In 1969 I was part of a group of teachers who created a school much like that featured in Toto Chan. We thought we were on the "cutting edge" of educational practices without knowing that a school in Japan had been delivering many of the same holistic, humanistic educational practices over a quarter of a century before. I'm sure many U.S. educators who thought/think they were/are in the vanguard of educational practices would appreciate this beautiful story of a dedicated educator and his students.

I have not read a better book which has made me laugh, cry, love, and ponder over is such a way! This book is awesome and worth much more than 5 stars.

I love this book! Of course, I love EVERY book about Leo! but this one was one of the first ones i bought about 3 or 4 years ago, so it'll always be one of my favorites :-) i recommend it

This book was really fantastic!! I love Leo. He is one of the most beautiful men on Earth. I love him more than any one of you wannabes out there.

this book is exelent! many pics (great ones!!!) and lots of info about his films, his life etc. also well writen with many quotes, his or his co-stars in several films. helps you descover many things about him. generaly great book..!!!! you must buy it!!!

i think the book was great, i learn so many things about leonardo, he seems to be such a wonderful person,very kind hearted,i love his pictures, anyone who is interested in leonardo dicaprio, i recommend this book, it's great.. ..

Although this is a good book for slavering preadolescent female fans who don't understand words more than two syllables in length, the book was unsatisfactory for anyone but the most devoted. Containing quotes, pictures and a short bio, get this one for your daughter only if you want to waste your money.

This is probably one of the few books you are going to find about Badfinger, who are another very essential but overlooked rock band. Sure they had hits, but they got screwed over. The book arrived in great shape and very quickly, so I was completely happy with everything.

I ordered this for my brother's birthday and he loved it! The book arrived in perfect shape. This is one of my brother's favorite bands from 'back in the day'!!! He was very happy with it. Thanks

A wonderful book. I knew very little about this band other than a couple of great songs I heard on the radio in the early 70's. By the time I finished the book I felt like I'd known them all my life. I couldn't help but get emotionally involved in their plight...Highly recommend

The most engrossing band bio I've ever read, and also one of the saddest stories in music. I find it funny that the two biggest debunkers of the author of this book are also two people who haven't read it! The story spans the very beggining, when they were known as the Iveys, to the ASCAP debacle in which Pete Ham and Tom Evans were utterly disrespected in front of an audience for their wonderful accomplishment of having written Without You. No stone is left unturned and unfortuntely some of the people involved should crawl back under theirs but haven't.

Dear Joey and Kathie: You can fool some of the people, but you haven't fooled me. At least Pete doesn't have a grave, or else I'm sure you would have been dancing on it quite happily. Why did you have to be part of the problem?

The "tragic" story of Badfinger couldn't be a better title for this book or this band. So much talent and ability and such bad management and naivete' destroyed not just a band but many lives in the process. I believe every young musician should read this book and learn from their mistakes.

Reading (or more accurately, experiencing) this elegant volume of memorabilia recalls dead ideals, not just of decorous celebrity behavior, but of the quiet conviction of deeds rather than publicized pronouncements from Hollywood's movie stars. This book captures a sense of a life lived in the limelight, but never blinded by it, and conveys an archetypal and emotional journey through a minefield of tempting superficialities, all the way to self-discovery and meaning.

It's moving to see and feel how Audrey Hepburn's roles reflected her best selves at every turn -- resolutely alert, attuned, engaged, yearning, striving, feminine, human -- and be reminded of how a life can really be exemplary, after all.

This is a wonderful collector's item for Audrey Hepburn fans. I opened the box, and, after looking through the pages, had no other words but "wow". There are 34 removable items of memorabilia. These include a partial script from Breakfast at Tiffany's, many letters to and from Ms. Hepburn herself, postcards, pictures, photo albums, tickets of movies and programs of plays she's done, and many many other items.

The book is done in a scrapbook format, and beside all of the removable items, has countless photographs with many of them having never been published or from her friends and family's private collections.

This book could have easily cost over $100, and I thank the ones who have put it together for allowing the fans to be a part of such intimate moments and items.

this is a very cute and amazing book about audrey hepburn.. it is a treasure,must have item.

With nearly thirty films tackled and under her belt, Audrey Hepburn is no doubt a household name, but how many really understood what went on inside of the personal life of Audrey Hepburn?

This stunning compolation of extrodinary copies of documents, family photos, playbills, and ticket stubs is a credit to her name. It shows her eloquence, style, grace, poise, and even some mystique as we get to experience a sliver of her private life, without invading the caverns of her mind.

Although not written from an autobiographical standpoint, it is easy to immerse yourself in her thoughts, because of the personal letters and dictations. Erwin writes about her beautifully, and lets the reader experience her life in the best way possible.

As a fan of Audrey Hepburn's, I read the information about this book and anticipated it's arrival. However, it arrived in a shrink-wrapped package with the corners dented badly. Since it is a type of scrapbook, the corners dramatically took away the beauty and quality of the book. The content of the book includes life-long pictures and memorabilia of Audrey's life and are a good representation of her experiences and choices. And so I would recommend the book without the mishandling.