Biography Books

Advantages: Entertaining, authorised biography, informative
Disadvantages: Lacking some warmth

...have been a fan of Hattie Jacques for as long as I can remember. I loved the Carry On films since I was a young child and I also watched her in Sykes on TV and live on the stage twice in Lincoln and Blackpool. So when I heard that there was a biography out on her, I bought it as soon as I could. Hattie by Andy Merriman is an authorized biography too, so this isn't some gossipy, muck-raking kind of life story. It has been written by Andy Merriman ...
...and private life, but reading Hattie really brought out her personality and character. She comes across as warm, funny, generous, loving, caring and willing to help as many people as she could - whether by fund-raising for charity or offering a bed, a meal or a friendly ear for any friend who needed one. Her career is also detailed from her early days to her work with the Player's Theatre to her more famous roles on radio, TV and the stage. Along ... Read review

Advantages: Good amount of Information
Disadvantages: Too many quotes

...colour with a picture of Kylie dressed as a showgirl on stage with the title in pink / purple lettering at the bottom. The back cover of the book has a picture of Kylie when she has her short hair after her battle with cancer. THE BOOK The book consists of 18 chapters starting at the beginning giving us some details about where she was born and her family. It then moves on to tell about how she landed her role as Charlene in Neighbours and how ...
...a few new things about kylie which I did not know before reading. I would have liked the book more if it had in fact been written by Kylie herself as the book is filled with quotes from family and friends which I did find a bit off putting and I am never too sure whether to fully believe what I am reading. The book is very easy to follow starting at the beginning of her life and ending with her comeback after her fight with cancer. I did find that ... Read review

Advantages: A super read and useful too.
Disadvantages: None for me.

...man, I am careful with my brass!! My Life on a Hillside Allotment is Terry's own account of his life story from childhood to the current day. The Book. After an opening acknowledgement by the author, there follows a foreword by Jeremy Vine, which is brilliantly written and extols the virtues of Terry, his infectious spirit and enthusiasm for his passion and is a joy to read that alone. There is an introduction passage entitled 'The adopted allotment' ...
...reading that, I shall view my extremely large garden in a totally different light, thanks Terry. My opinion. A very interesting read, not merely because of the many interesting gardening tips but a man whose passion for his allotment is unending and this feeling is clearly expressed with the undoubted effort put into passing this to the reader. It is a book I would readily recommend to anyone who enjoys a biography of an ordinary bloke finding ... Read review

Advantages: Written as a user guide, wide audience, humour
Disadvantages: none

Author This book is written by Luke Jackson, a 13-year-old boy with Asperger Syndrome. He has also written another book, A User Guide to the GF/CF Diet for Autism, Asperger Syndrome and AD/HD. Luke has 3 brothers and 3 sisters. One of his brothers has AD/HD and another one of his brothers has autism. He writes this book as a user guide for other people with Asperger Syndrome and their families. Asperger Syndrome Asperger Syndrome is ...
...in which speech development and IQ are normal, but in which social disability can be compounded by depression or other mental health problems." Autismspeaks.org.uk People with Asperger Syndrome have difficulty: · Understanding gestures and facial expressions · Understanding jokes and Sarcasm - they take things iterally · Making friends Asperger Syndrome is complex and there are lots of characteristics, which affect people differently. Because ... Read review

Advantages: Interesting story
Disadvantages: Not always in chronological order

...of reading material. Platinum Blonde is the title of a portrait of Debbie Harry written by Cathay Che. It was written with Harry's full co-operation and when published in 1999 it was actually the first official book that had been published on the woman, which I quite find incredible considering today's current climate where flash in the pan celebrities from reality game shows have their own biographies and autobiographies and some footballers that ...
...new generation of performers. Platinum Blonde is the frank story of Debbie's rise to fame and draws heavily on the only Blondie biography that was ever written in 1981, "Making Tracks - The rise of Blondie. There are plenty of quotes from this book but this time around these quotes are analysed and elaborated upon by Harry in a reflective way that wasn't possible at the peak of the band's fame. It is quickly evident that even when this book was ... Read review