Book Description
Anthony Lane on Con Air—
“Advance word on Con Air said that it was all about an airplane with an unusually dangerous and potentially lethal load. Big deal. You should try the lunches they serve out of Newark. Compared with the chicken napalm I ate on my last flight, the men in Con Air are about as dangerous as balloons.”
Anthony Lane on
The Bridges of Madison County—
“I got my copy at the airport, behind a guy who was buying Playboy’s Book of Lingerie, and I think he had the better deal. He certainly looked happy with his purchase, whereas I had to ask for a paper bag.”
Anthony Lane on Martha Stewart—
“Super-skilled, free of fear, the last word in human efficiency, Martha Stewart is the woman who convinced a million Americans that they have the time, the means, the right, and—damn it—the duty to pipe a little squirt of soft cheese into the middle of a snow pea, and to continue piping until there are ‘fifty to sixty’ stuffed peas raring to go.”
For ten years, Anthony Lane has delighted New Yorker readers with his film reviews, book reviews, and profiles that range from Buster Keaton to Vladimir Nabokov to Ernest Shackleton.
Nobody’s Perfect is an unforgettable collection of Lane’s trademark wit, satire, and insight that will satisfy both the long addicted and the not so familiar.
Customer Reviews:
Types unusually well........2005-03-24
I absolutely adore Anthony Lane's writing. He is one of the joys of my life - too bad he wasn't around when I was a teen!!!
Light, witty, great summer reading.......2005-03-15
This is a great collection of bitingly astute reviews from the New Yorker. In addition to a good selection of classic and contemporary films, books, and personalities, this book offers the writing style best read aloud in a voice dripping with humorous disdain. Reading this may also give you a list of films you may have missed, so it's doubly enjoyable. In short this book is a place to turn when you've read your New Yorker too soon -- again.
........2004-08-20
Anthony Lane's reviews' reviews alone probably wouldn't tell you much. Opinion on him is so divided-- I know a ton of people who hate him, but to me he's the most reliably clever reviewer at the New Yorker. If I had read all these love-hate reviews, I wouldn't have gotten the book. I did though, and it put a spring in my step, it was so good. Don't be overly put off by the bad reviews. Or by the abundance of good ones either, it's really not hype, his writing is really very charming.
best in bite sized reads.......2004-05-30
A big, bloated and immensely enjoyable volume of Lane's collected writings; mostly movie reviews and essays on pop culture. Eminently quotable - though not exactly the easiest volume to tote along to the beach. I especially enjoyed the essay on "The Sound of Music," and the two on the bestsellers of today and yesteryear (I admire him for slogging through all those books that did not age gracefully and even more for admitting that he just could not get through several.) Unlike Ebert - who is a potato chip kind of movie critic easily absorbed but with no lasting nourishment - Lane's reviews often sound a deeper truth about how absurd the movie business - and society - is. It is especially fun to watch him taking aim at sacred cows and cherished pop icons alike. Ayn Rand, James Michener, Robin Williams, The Bridges of Madison County, and many more - watch out.
a good writer; a lousy critic.......2003-09-18
Anthony Lane is an exceptionally fine writer; some of his sentences make you gasp, they're so evocative. The problem is he's a lousy film critic. His taste is dubious: he liked "Saving Private Ryan" among other overblown rot. (For a much better consideration of 'Ryan,' see Tom Carson's piece, "And the Leni Riefenstahl Award for Rabid Nationalism Goes to. . ." It's probably the best take on the film.) Lane has no aesthetic, and he's really the "pop critic" that Pauline Kael was accused of being. Frankly, I can't read him now. While I often (in fact, mostly) disagree with John Simon and Stanley Kauffman, their appreciation of film is exemplary, their intelligence formidable. Lane just sounds smart and it's probably the biggest con-job perpetrated in film criticism. (You can bet that the people who praise him haven't read Simon or Kauffmann.)
It's hard to work out why Lane is a film critic; there's bound to be an art to which he's better suited - not just one he knows more about (his film knowledge is pretty thin), but one he has more passion for. You always got the feeling Kael was born to write about film; Lane is just doing a job in a smart aleck-y way. Hiring him was a significant mistake on the part of The New Yorker - it brought them more readers while it dumbed the magazine down. He's a fine stylist (he describes the opening segment of 'Ryan' as "speeded-up Bosch"), but there are a number of critics with much better taste. It must gall them that someone who pretty much came to film criticism by accident (and probably won't stay there) got the plum job in film criticism. It's also worth pointing out that Lane forgets appreciating art requires humility as well as intelligence. If you seek the best, read Kael's books, and if you want someone contemporary with better taste try Stephanie Zacharek, Michael Sragow, David Edelstein, Charles Taylor, or Terrence Rafferty.
Book Description
Kimberly Kirberger, co-author of the best-selling CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE TEENAGE SOUL books and a renowned expert on teen issues, addresses the topic of body image in LOVING YOUR BODY / LOVING YOURSELF. Many problems in girls' lives stem from a lack of self-esteem and self-love: eating disorders, depression, drug use, and more. Through powerful stories and poems from real teens, as well as personal tales and advice from the author, this book strives to help girls learn to accept, love, and appreciate their bodies--and, in turn, to love themselves.
Customer Reviews:
No Body's Perfect.......2006-01-11
I read the book No Body's Perfect. It was written by Kimberly Kirberger. It's written about teens and struggles with their everyday life, including eating disorders, boys, and learning who to hang-out with and who not to hang-out with.
This book gets points across to you, for example, "Accepting yourself just the way you are may seem like a pretty big challenge. It may even seem impossible. But it's not." This is one of the great quotes in this book.
This book would be very helpful and influential to teenagers struggling with these problems. I recommend this book to 12- 18 year- old girls. You will love this book!
Insightful and very helpful.......2005-03-27
I will admit; I have been struggling with body image and "looks" for about as long as I can remember. This book by Kimberly Kirberger helps me to realize that no body is perfect, and that you need to embrace what you look like and have. If you can totally accept yourself the way you are, then you are on your way to success.
After reading this book, I came to realize, and "saw the light" so to speak, about body image, self acceptance, and the search for my identity. I definently think that this book was very helpful in helping me to overcome the "stereotype" that you have to be 105 pounds to be considered beautiful. Now I know that I am perfect in every aspect of my life, and I now love and accept who I am inside...and who I am inside is all that really matters.
I definently strongly encourage those girls who are currently struggling with self acceptance, body image, and the search of who they are, to read this book, and also fill out the Nobody's Perfect Journal as well. This book is very helpful, and insightful, and it will get you back on the right track in life, and make you realize that life isn't all about looks and popularity...rather, it is a journey to love and acccept yourself for who you are!
This is an awsome book!.......2004-04-01
This book tought me everything a girl sturgels with and how to fix the problems! Every one should buy this book. It shows you how to handle your problems without exploding over every little thing. There are so many stories about girls who have had problems that i face in life and i learn from them mistakes instead of making them again. This book is the best book i have ever read. It talks about everything... including the serch for you intersoul and inner bueaty... ( seeing whats on the inside that counts) this book it tottaly worth your money!
Awesome!.......2003-09-23
This book is my bible! i love it to death. It shows you simple things you forget back into the light and can truly change the way you think about yourself. It makes you realise that you're not alone out there with either eating disorders, abusive relationships, heart aches, suicides, or any situations that are hard to held with emotionally and physically. I've never really got into the chicken books myself, but this book took only a second to love it! i recommand this book to everyone!
A disapointment.......2003-08-07
Well, I love the Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul books, which are coathured by Kimberly Kirberger, and so when I saw this book I lept at the chance to buy it. But I felt a bit let down; I think the Chicken Soup books were MUCH better. This book is filled with input and advice from Kirberger that at times seem too fake to actually appreciate. Yes, some advice is actually helpful, but I found myself gritting my teeth at the near cheesiness of Kirberger's words... I want to read OTHER people's stories, not Kirberger's souped up advice that isn't very original in the first place--most stuff I've heard time and time again.
AND... This book is pretty narrow-minded. Basically all of it is about weight problems. Either, the person was insecure because they couldn't stop eating, or they were fat and stopped eating all together. I can't really relate, because I'm UNDERweight and always hoping and wishing that I will gain some pounds. All these girls are blah blah crying about how fat they are... but not everyone is fat, what about them? They still have insecurities that need looking at.
Some of the stories were interesting, all by someone other than Kirberger. This book focuses on too much of the same thing though and I skipped a lot of Kirberger's blah pages. If you're an OVERweight teen and need comforting, go ahead and read this. If not, skip this book and try a chicken soup one.
Book Description
"She's practically perfect," Megan said thoughtfully. She repeated the new girl's name, practicing the way Ms. Endee had written it on the whiteboard. "Alexis Powell."
Megan has spent forever planning her positively purple birthday sleepover. She's even made glittery purple invitations for every girl in her class. Then a new girl, Alexis, joins their class. Alexis seems perfect: She's smart, pretty, and rules the soccer games on the playground. But no matter how hard Megan tries to be a friend to Alexis, the new girl is aloof or rude. At first, Megan thinks Alexis is shy. Then Megan starts to fear that Alexis is treating her differently because she's deaf. When the girls are forced to collaborate on a science fair project, Megan learns the truth -- and realizes that nobody's perfect.
Once again Marlee Matlin draws on experiences from her own childhood to tell Megan's story. In this funny, poignant book, readers will root for Megan, a spirited young girl who doesn't let anything stand in her way.
Customer Reviews:
Wonderful.......2007-03-08
This book is a terrific insight on the different ways people are viewed, I give it two thumbs up!
Nearly Purple-fect.......2006-07-07
Megan and her friends practically pop off the page. The hilarious descriptions of their prize-winning science projects are matched only by the true-to-life challenges they face in this charming book.
Excellent Book.......2006-06-18
I'm writing this for my son Spencer. He has dictated:
I'm six years old. I liked that Alexis played soccer. And how Matt played baseball.
A heartwarming story.......2006-06-01
NOBODY'S PERFECT
by Marlee Matlin and Doug Cooney
Simon & Schuster
ISBN-10: 068986986X
ISBN-13: 9780689869860
Ages 8-12
240 pages
In this companion to DEAF CHILD CROSSING, fourth grader Megan is busily planning her Positively Purple Birthday Party. Meanwhile, Alexis, the new girl in school, thwarts all attempts that Megan makes to befriend her. Alexis is pretty, smart, and a good soccer player; in fact, Megan thinks she's nearly perfect. She learns that Alexis has a secret --- a little brother who is autistic. Through trial and error, Megan finally realizes that Alexis is not the perfect person she appears to be, and that no one else is perfect either.
Alexis is aloof with everyone, but Megan takes it personally and assumes that Alexis doesn't like her because she's deaf. Megan has been deaf since she was a toddler; she wears a hearing aid, can read lips, and uses sign language. She's used to her handicap, however, and has adapted quite nicely.
Their teacher assigns Megan and Alexis to work together on a science fair project. Neither girl is at all happy about this; Alexis thinks Megan is a bit stubborn and outspoken, while Megan is rather touchy about Alexis's constant rebuffs. After much arguing the girls finally decide on a project that will involve the school hamster, Zippity. They create a cardboard maze out of shoeboxes and paint the little rooms --- one is red, one is blue, and, naturally, one is purple. Their goal is to run Zippity through the maze several times and see which room he prefers to be in. They assume he will like the purple room best.
When Megan's brother develops a nasty rash from handling Zippity, the science project gets moved to Alexis's house. She's very unhappy that her family secret is out when Megan gets a good look at Justin's unusual behavior. But a strange thing happens. Megan seems to be able to reach autistic little Justin and teaches him, using sign language, to communicate for the very first time.
NOBODY'S PERFECT will have readers chuckling over how much the color purple is a part of Megan's life. It will help you understand the many ways in which people can lead fairly normal lives by learning to adapt to their handicaps. Co-author Marlee Matlin, an Academy Award-winning actress, is herself deaf.
--- Reviewed by Carole Turner
Customer Reviews:
Misdirection Is Nine-Tenths of the Law!.......2003-07-29
Nobody's Perfect reminds me of the old story about how for lack of a nail . . . the kingdom is lost. Little things matter a lot in this story, so pay close attention!
As the book opens, Dortmunder is about to begin a defense against being caught red-handed with a stack of television sets he is stealing. As a twice-convicted felon, that's bad news. Suddenly, in walks one of the great criminal defense attorneys, J. Radcliffe Stonewiler, Esq., and in an hour-and-a-half Dortmunder is a free man. What's going on? That's what Dortmunder wonders, too, and he soon finds out that he has an obligation to fulfill to Arnold Chauncey, a society collector who likes to fill in the gaps in his income with payments from his insurance company for art that has "disappeared."
Although he's not excited about the caper, Dortmunder figures it will be pretty easy and the payoff is a large one. Then, while lifting a $400,000 painting, he decides to take just one or two other items . . . and everything begins to unravel.
This story brings Dortmunder into the full realization that the bad luck that dogs him has more to do with him than with Andy Kelp, who he has been blaming for the problems that arose in Bank Shot, The Hot Rock and Jimmy the Kid. It also marks the introduction of that large and easily angered tough guy, Tiny Bulcher, who is a fixture of many of the best books in the series. The Continental Detective Agency also makes another appearance, having been reassigned after losing the bank in Bank Shot.
One of the charms of this story is that Arnold Chauncey is one of the most larcenous rich people you will ever meet, aided by an indifference to the needs of others and a diabolical mind for finding ways to get what he wants.
Donald E. Westlake sets up one of the funniest complications for having a heist go sour that you will ever read as the gang splits up and runs into unexpected challenges when a wee bit of the dew is upset.
The story is filled with lengthy gags involving various aids that the criminals are using. You'll imagine yourself watching a very funny video as you read some of the sequences.
After you finish enjoying this fine tale, think about where wanting just a little more has caused problems in your life. Where can more moderation serve you better in the future?
Nobody's Perfect Except Westlake.......2000-11-02
Another laffer from the Sultan of Slapstick Crime. This time Dortmunder and the gang steal a priceless painting so the owner can collect the insurance only to have everything go wrong. No guards in the area-guess what. Nobody at the house will be using the elevator-guess what. And to top it off Dortmunder loses the painting and must make good before a hitman finds him. I expected to find that the owner had the painting all the time and was using the loss as an excuse not to pay Dormunder, but as usual, you can't outhink the master. The painting is lost and Dortmunder's attempt to cover it up is hilarious and brilliant. The final heist of the painting has Dortmunder and Kelp working with the owner and the hitman to recover it from Merrie Olde England. Great fun.
D. Westlake is a writing machine........2000-05-05
I mean that in a good way, of course. His hero Dortmunder is at it again, stealing a painting FOR the mark (to collect insurance, of course, naughty boy). What's intersting is to read as things go horribly, side-splittingly wrong for Dortmunder and crew. D. Westlake is one of the few authors who can have me laughing out loud, not just from his character descriptions, but writing out the action. One of my favorite lines of his is in this book. Kelp is driving Dortmunder around in a "borrowed" doctor's car (his favorite kind - doctors know how to pamper themselves). He has to hit the brakes suddenly. How would D. Westlake describe this? Easy. "The car stopped on a dime and gave him change." Eat your heart out Raymond Chandler.
Dortmunder overseas.......2000-04-01
Get this book from second hand bookshop, look for it in your uncle's basement! It isn't the best in Dortmunder series but it's worth the search. It features plenty of characters form previous books and a chilly scroupolous killer as Dortmunder's "faithful" shadow. You will read of old D on holidays (! ) and on a work trip in London as it used to be: still swinging and full of Mini Morris.
Average customer rating:
- great book for confused teens
- A great journal!
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No Body's Perfect Journal
Kimberly Kirberger
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ASIN: 0439426391 |
Book Description
Inspired by the issues discussed in LOVING YOUR BODY / LOVING YOURSELF, this journal gives teens the opportunity to explore their own feelings about their bodies, themselves, and other related topics in a unique, personal way. Author Kimberly Kirberger provides commentary, questions, and suggested writing activities to help girls use the journal to work toward loving their bodies and themselves. Body image is the #1 issue among preteen and teen girls. This journal is specifically designed to help them express and work through their feelings on this powerful, important topic.
Customer Reviews:
great book for confused teens.......2005-08-23
great book for confused and non-perfect teens.. you ask how do I know.. because I am one
A great journal!.......2004-02-22
This is a great journal for teenage girls to discover their personality, values and stuff like that. lol. It's really fun to fill in! I recommend this to every girl from age 11-16.
Book Description
Nella Covington can't believe she's agreed to marry the arrogant Samuel L. du Cannon, even if it is only a marriage for convenience. He needs a mother for his small son, and she needs to keep her beloved childhood home. But will she be able to stand his egotistical attitude? His domineering manner?
But Jake is such a darling little boy! And he's already captured her heart. What does she have to lose? If Sam's work keeps him on the road enough, she won't have to deal with him much at all. Maybe - this just might work.
All Sam du Cannon wants is a good mom for his son. He's had it with women. Doesn't ever plan to get involved with another woman again. That makes Nella perfect for him. He's never been overly attracted to plus-size women, so if Nella agrees to marry him, he won't have to worry about being tempted to have a relationship with her.
At least, that's what he keeps telling himself.
Customer Reviews:
Who knew I'd enjoy a romance novel?.......2007-09-06
A few years ago, the editor-in-chief of a well-known publishing house gave a speech at our chamber of commerce's annual dinner for women in business. She "confessed" that reading romance novels is her favorite form of stress relief. Her talk was so convincing, I vowed to give them a second look. Okay, maybe a third, fourth or fifth look. Let's face it. Romance novels do not have a good reputation among "serious" readers and writers. They're not "literary," whatever that means. And the covers feature shirtless Fabio look-alikes embracing beautiful women in various stages of undress. Our public library shelves them in a separate section and places hot pink stickers on their spines, lest a hapless browser pick one up by mistake. The stickers also identify them to their legions of female fans, who must know something.
I enjoyed that editor's speech, but I still didn't read romance novels, until I heard about Pat Ballard's books. She calls them "motivational romances" with Big, Beautiful Heroines. Curious, I picked up a copy of Nobody's Perfect and spent several hours intrigued and enthralled.
In the novel, the love interests are Nella Covington and Samuel L. duCannon. Are those perfect names for a romance or what? Nella is a young woman in her mid-twenties who has long since given up trying to be thin. She takes good care of herself, eats healthy foods and exercises. The women in her family were heavy and she is no exception. But Nella goes beyond just accepting herself. In this novel, she uses her size to her advantage.
We see her save a child from drowning by using her strong arms and skillful swimming. She helps a young wife frustrated by constant dieting make herself over with makeup, a new hairdo and clothes, without losing a single pound. When the woman worries she might go back to feeling discouraged about gaining weight, Nella gives her a gentle pep talk. "You see what you can be if you want to, and it's your decision whether you spend your days looking your best, or looking your worst. That's a decision we all have to make each day. You're no different than anyone else."
Of course, romance novels have a predictable formula. That's why so many women love them; it's reassuring to know the good characters will win. After a few adventures and problems, the heroine always gets the good guy, and this book delivers that, too. But first, we have evil in-laws, a family home in jeopardy and a little boy who needs a mother. Nowhere does Nella play the helpless female. She is strong yet vulnerable, powerful yet seductive.
And Pat Ballard sure knows how to write a good sex scene. Be forewarned: this story is definitely rated R, and the heroine's large size adds to her attractiveness. What a switch from the message aimed at women in magazines and television!
Although the ending was pre-ordained (remember, it's a romance novel), I didn't guess how the author would wrap it up. I lost myself in the story and thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. In other words, I had fun. If you read Nobody's Perfect, I predict you will, too. I also predict you will be left with some very thought-provoking ideas about what our society's ideal body image does to every woman's self-esteem.
(Previously published at www.storycircle.org)
Pat Ballard Does It Again!.......2006-04-05
..."You'll get to keep your home, Jake gets a mother, and I won't have to ever worry about being attracted to you." Those words, spoken by Jake's dad, Sam du Cannon, could not have been less true. Nella may not be a size 6, but she is proportioned and in great physical condition. "Nobody's Perfect" starts with Nella finding Jake on the beach by himself and ends with his father falling in love with her.
In the mean time, Nella saves Jake's life and teaches his dad a lot about love and about what being with a strong, confident, caring woman can be like. When you read Nella's conversation with a new friend, Amy, you will want to share it with everyone you know...even those women in your life who are a size 6. I won't spoil the ending, but it is one of the most beautifully written endings I've read in a long time. As with Pat Ballard's other books, there are unexpected twists and turns, introducing interesting people along the way and you won't want to miss any of them.
"Nobody's Perfect" is the best Pat Ballard book I have read so far. You will fall in love with Nella and be rooting for her to win from the first page.
Nobody's Perfect is now published by Pearlsong Press.......2005-02-18
Please note that the Writers Club Press edition of Nobody's Perfect is no longer in print. The book is now published by Pearlsong Press effective July 2004.
The Pearlsong Press edition has been newly copy edited and designed, and features a new cover.
If you are searching for Nobody's Perfect but are having difficulty finding the current Pearlsong Press edition, please use the extra fields in the more extended "Search" feature (click on "Search" in the toolbar above) and list Pearlsong Press as the publisher.
Thanks, and I hope you enjoy the new edition.
LOVED IT---READ it twice so far.......2004-08-02
I loved the story and how Sam the snobby business man lures Nella into falling in love with his child and ends up falling in love with her. Especially love the part where they end up in Kentucky for the winter. Great book read it in one sitting and than reread it the next day.
A charming, witty, and tender love story with a twist.......2004-07-17
Nobody's Perfect is an engaging novel about a marriage of convenience - or is it? A "plus-sized" woman needs to keep her childhood home, and a fairly egotistical man has had it for relationships, and just wants a mother for his son... a mother that, he hopes, he will not be physically attracted to and with whom he will not be tempted to share a relationship. Or so he keeps telling himself, but life and human hearts have unpredictable surprises in store, in this charming, witty, and tender love story with a twist.
Book Description
This innovative book's straightforward, easy-to-read chapters offer parents who have children with special needs a fresh, affirming perspective on the challenges of family life. Practical and nonjudgmental, this book guides parents through the process of adaptation. It describes specific strategies for success in balancing one's own life; developing a parenting partnership; and interacting with children, friends, relatives, professionals, and others. Candid, inspiring, and often humorous reflections of four mothers who are raising children with disabilities are included throughout. This book also provides an exceptionally sensitive portrayal of parenting and reaches across a wide range of special needs.
Customer Reviews:
Upbeat, supportive book for anyone affected by disabilities.......1998-05-09
I first read Nobody's Perfect a few years ago when I met Nancy Miller. I wasn't searching for a book on living with children who have special needs but once I opened the book and started reading, I realized immediately that this was a book for everyone. Not only are we all touched in some way by special needs, we are also faced with life decisions, unexpected changes, catastrophes, emergencies, losses, illness, struggles... the list goes on. There are tools in this book that are valuable to all of us, whether our struggle is parenting a special needs child, or handling an illness or a crises of any type. I remember settling in with the book and beginning to read the opening stories written by Nancy's co-authors: Susie, Diane, Janet and Stephanie, also known as "The Moms." How did they adapt? How did they deal with their emotions? (and there are plenty of them!) What stages did they go through? Admiration set in as I read on. I've been able to take so many treasures from this book and apply them to everyday life. And you will too...
Book Description
"'Nobody's perfect' is the line that most sums up my work," Billy Wilder told writer Charlotte Chandler. "There is no comedy, no drama about perfect people."
Film is the Cinderella Art of the 20th century, and Billy Wilder was one of its most legendary figures. When he died recently, Wilder left behind an incredible celluloid legacy. Sunset Boulevard, Some Like It Hot, Double Indemnity, The Apartment, Lost Weekend, Sabrina, and other Wilder films have become a part of our shared experience and collective memory.
In Nobody's Perfect, Billy Wilder speaks for himself, in what is as close to an autobiography as there ever will be. Charlotte Chandler, author of earlier authorized biographies of Groucho Marx and Federico Fellini, met Wilder in the mid-1970s and began a friendship that continued until his death. Over the course of more than twenty years, she interviewed not only Wilder, but many of the actors and other creative people who worked with him. The result is this remarkable book, a very personal look at one of Hollywood's true creative geniuses.
In a life as dramatic as his films, Wilder survived World War I and escaped the Holocaust, though his mother and grandmother both died at Auschwitz. When he arrived in Hollywood, he found himself a writer without a language, a man without a country.
Wilder's great gift as a screenwriter soon became apparent, as did his easy rapport with actors. As a writer-director, he worked with such stars as Greta Garbo, William Holden, Tony Curtis, Barbara Stanwyck, Marlene Dietrich, Ginger Rogers, Gloria Swanson, Audrey Hepburn, Gary Cooper, James Cagney, Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau, and Marilyn Monroe -- most of whom were interviewed for this book.
He gave Garbo her laugh, Swanson her comeback, Holden his stardom, Lemmon a career, Matthau an Oscar, and contributed greatly to Marilyn Monroe's immortality.
Actors from Wilder's films talk enthusiastically about Wilder. Danielle Darrieux, the star of the first picture he directed, remembers him from 1933. Ginger Rogers tells how The Major and the Minor paralleled her own life. Jack Lemmon reveals how wearing a dress affected him as a man. Tony Curtis talks about what it was like to work with Billy Wilder -- and under Marilyn Monroe.
Chandler's conversations with Wilder and the others began when he was still a working director and continued through the time he was retired but didn't know it. A man of the 20th century, Billy Wilder lived into the 21st century, alone from his time, a legend forever.
This revealing and vastly entertaining book is a wonderful, timely tribute to this great writer-director, a legacy of Wilder's wit, insight, and remarkable wisdom.
Customer Reviews:
Engaging story of one of the great figures of 20th century.......2004-10-06
Nobody's Perfect: Billy Wilder by biographer Charlotte Chandler is the personal and engaging story of one of the great figures of 20th century movie-making -- the legendary Billy Wilder (1906-2002). The great director perhaps best known for classics such as "Some Like It Hot", "The Apartment", "Sunset Boulevard", and many more, Billy Wilder narrates much of "Nobody's Perfect" in his own words, rendering it as close to an autobiography as any story of his life can be. A filmography complements this witty, insightful, life story of a creative visionary.
Charlotte Chandler is very, very imperfect.......2004-09-20
I read Cameron Crowe's book a couple years ago, and it is head-and-shoulders above this. What Charlotte essentially does in this "personal" biography is string together a long series of celebrity interviews into one barely coherent narrative.
One gets the distinct impression it was far more important for Charlotte to "get to know" these interview subjects than it was for her to write this book. What makes me think that? Perhaps it's the photos of Charlotte and several of her interviewees sprinkled throughout this book.
On the whole, "personal" seems to be shorthand for "lazy."
An Enjoyable Look at a Supreme Opportunist.......2003-04-28
My love of films came to fruition during a brief period when the "auteur theory" held sway in the 1960s and 1970s. Auteurist critic Andrew Sarris classified Billy Wilder in his "Less Than Meets the Eye Category," primarily because he was "too cynical for the more serious demands of middle-class tragedy (DOUBLE INDEMNITY) and social allegory (ACE IN THE HOLE). A director who can crack jokes about suicide attempts ... and thoughtlessly brutalize charming actresses like Jean Arthur (FOREIGN AFFAIR) and Audrey Hepburn (SABRINA) is hardly likely to make a coherent film on the human condition."
It was only as a result of seeing Wilder's films that I discovered what Sarris was really saying was that the director was both too versatile and too successful -- and it didn't help that his approach to directing films was as a writer rather than as a visual artist.
Reading Charlotte Chandler's oral history of Wilder's career, I was impressed with Billy Wilder's ability to be able to create iconic native masterpieces of film noir (DOUBLE INDEMNITY) and Hollywood Gothic (SUNSET BOULEVARD) without the benefit of growing up in the United States. While his later comedies (such as SOME LIKE IT HOT) owe much to his collaboration with Lubitsch, Hawks, and Mitchell Leisen, Wilder developed his own style of comedy and retained his ability to make good films well into his eighties.
In the chapter on SUNSET BOULEVARD, actress Nancy Olson makes an astute comment: "Billy said, 'Every character in SUNSET BOULEVARD is an opportunist.' It seemed to me that what he is saying is that this picture is not only about opportunism, but about ... the consequences of it."
A little light bulb went on in my mind. Wilder's films are all, in their own way, about opportunism. Walter Neff and Phyllis Dietrichson take advantage of each other for their own nefarious ends in DOUBLE INDEMNITY. In picture after picture, I see a pattern of characters using one another with interesting results, with the ultimate example being Kirk Douglas in ACE IN THE HOLE.
Chandler's interviews are mostly interesting, though the intrusion of plot summaries in the middle of each chapter is intrusive: These should have been relegated to the Filmography in the back of the book. I was disturbed that Chandler did not see fit to add any of her own observations about Wilder except insofar as to provide a segue for the many quotes. Still, it is both a useful and entertaining book and a valuable addition to the literature about this fascinating filmmaker.
A WILD, ENJOYABLE READ ABOUT A MOST PERFECT DIRECTOR.......2003-02-09
There is no one wilder in Hollywood than Billy - Billy Wilder, that is. And the new bio of him, "Nobody's Perfect: Billy Wilder: A Personal Biography," is as close to the "perfect" non-critical, fun history of a man and his movies. Written by Charlotte Chandler (whose previous works include "I, Fellini" and "Hello, I Must Be Going: Groucho and His Friends"), the tome is based on interviews she conducted with Wilder and his friends over a period of years. The result is a wonderful kaleidoscope of movies, politicians, actors, geniuses and louses. From Sigmund Freud to Louis B. Mayer, from Richard Strauss to Joan Fontaine, from Prince Yussupov to Walter Matthau --- Wilder knew them all. He is the man who put Marilyn Monroe over a subway grate, Jack Lemmon in a dress and Gloria Swanson in the most famous close-up of them all. The great beacon shining through the entire book is, of course, the wit and humor of the man. Wilder is certainly one of the great comic directors of all time, and his legacy is astounding. By structuring the book around the subject's work in a strictly chronological manner, Chandler creates a picture of Wilder that is at once true and wildly engrossing. The early stories about journalism in pre-war Berlin are as fascinating as the later tales of success in glittering Hollywood. That the last 20 years of his life, arguably the most creative time in an artist's life, were spent without a single film project is the underlying tragedy of this book, and Chandler doesn't exactly dwell on it, but the painful reality is certainly there. We like to think of him as this way: Billy Wilder, Somebody's Perfect. (Submitted by staff member Stephen J. Finn)
Highly Entertaining.......2002-12-19
Billy Wilder made some of the greatest American movies such as Some Like It Hot, Sabrina, and Sunset Boulevard. He was also in charge of filming the liberation of Nazi concentration camps in the 1940's. This interesting and informative book covers his life and career, and behind-the-scenes stories of each major movie he made are in here, too. Whoever said "they don't make movies like that any more" wasn't kidding! I highly recommend this book.
Product Description
Most people thing being good leads to eternal life. Find out now what's wrong with the most popular theory about heaven -- and what it really takes to get there.
Customer Reviews:
Thoroughly thought provoking.......2007-10-06
"How good is good enough" is a very easy read yet it manages to explore and answer life's most important questions; the ones that will have an eternal impact.
SHARE JESUS.......2007-09-14
This little book is my way of sharing and saying "We NEED Jesus". . . and we need to DECIDE if "my good works and behaviour" surpass His death and resurrection, or they don't and what really will count is my FAITH in what HE came here to do for our salvation. If we say we could have done it by being "good", then we're saying Jesus' sacrifice was "WORTHLESS"!
How Good Is Good Enough.......2007-09-03
For your family and friends who say "I'm a good person, I think I'll go to heaven" - this book (in a back door fashion)leads the reader to realize that Jesus Christ is the ONLY answer to eternal life - you just can't be "good enough". Awesome
How Good is Good enough.......2007-05-14
I was shipped the books in a timely manner. Thank You
EXCELLENT book!!!.......2007-04-09
Very clear presentation of the Gospel message in an easy to share format. Quick read, good balance of humor and truth. Highly recommend it!
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- Raising a Modern-Day Knight: A Father's Role in Guiding His Son to Authentic Manhood
- Ready, Okay!
- Reflections on a Gift of Watermelon Pickle
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