Stark - Ed Bunker

Advantages: First rate crime fiction from the man that knows
Disadvantages: None from where I'm standing

...There are a couple of things that are pretty remarkable about the book ?Stark?. Firstly, the author was a life long career criminal who?d spent the majority of his time in juvenile and adult prison. Secondly, it was written in 1962 yet in language and construction is as modern as it is possible to imagine. Thirdly, despite the writer achieving wide ranging acclaim and success as an author and some-time film actor this book went unknown and unpublished until after his death. For those steeped in popular culture the name of Ed Bunker will be very familiar, others may not have heard of him at all. To fill in the gaps let me provide a little background, as Mr Bunker is a very interesting character indeed and to know him a little better will greatly improve your appreciation and respect for his work. Born in 1933 Bunker?s early...

brereton66 28.03.2009 · Read review
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Review of Stark- Ed Bunker

Hail, Beldavid Eddings

Advantages: Well designed characters, epic story, just brilliant
Disadvantages: There's no book 6

...choosing which I had not read before, and present it to the rest of the students in my class. Due to the excited... and repeated... recommendations about this particular book from my girlfriend at the time, I decided to see what all the fuss was about. And I think it was at this point, sitting in the college library reading the blurb on the back cover, that my opinion on not only fantasy novels, but fiction in general began to change. Pawn Of Prophecy is the work of author David Eddings* and is the first of five books in The Belgariad series. I know that reading five whole books for a single story might sound off-putting to some people, but I urge these people to persist as they are some of the most well-written and gripping examples of literature that I've ever had the pleasure of reading. The Belgariad is a fantasy series which incorporates...

sprinklesUK 18.01.2009 · Read review
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Review of Pawn of Prophecy - Book 1 - David Eddings

Ed-cellent

Advantages: Fantastic script, acting, and direction.
Disadvantages: None

..., while it’s a faithful representation of Ed’s life at this point, the film is much more than this – essentially, it’s a buddy movie about the friendship between Ed and his most famous star, Bela Lugosi. When Ed meets the original screen Dracula early in the film, Lugosi is trying out coffins, a drug addict who is resigned to dying soon. Wood, to whom Lugosi is a hero, fuels him to attempt a comeback, giving Ed a star he thinks is bankable enough to propel him into the major league. Of course, as most people reading this will know, essentially Wood was a failure. He never achieved box office success, although he has become something of a cult figure in recent years, especially since ‘Plan 9…’ was voted the worst ever movie in a 90’s poll. Likewise, Lugosi’s morphine addiction stopped him...

jamesdean1981 08.05.2003 · Read review
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Review of Ed Wood (DVD)

Churchwood Financial Ltd

Advantages: None
Disadvantages: Very high fees, no debt management performed

...I have to agree with the other reviewer - please, please never ever use Churchwood Financial Ltd (or any of the other companies they trade as). I went to them because my repayments and interest were becoming unmanageable. When I finally left them almost six months later, I was simply more in debt than when I started. They promise to take care of everything... If only this was even half way true. They promise to liaise with creditors, set up repayment agreements that will stop your interest and charges. THEY DONT! One of the first things they tell you (\"advise you\") is to stop taking any calls or replying to any letters from creditors. Just give them all to them. They also say stop making payments. Although I was struggling, I was making all payments on time and had never been charged extra fees up until I contacted Churchwood...

ze104 10.12.2007 · Read review
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Review of Churchwood Finance Ltd

A typical Eddings book not worthy of a movie

Advantages: Straight forward fantasy
Disadvantages: Nothing new, long winded at times

...I have always been a great fan of Science Fiction and Fantasy, from the old classics such as Lord of the Rings, to new fun fantasies such as Harry Potter. Throughout my life I have literally red thousands of books, ranging from the superb to the poor. David Eddings first caught my attention with his Belgarion series, a slightly longwinded, fairly standard fantasy series that was interesting if not particularly new. Several years (probably 20!) have passed since I picked up a David Eddings book and thus when on vacation recently, while deciding to have a day by the pool, I picked up The Redemption of Althalus. <The story> Althalus is a wanderer, who really doesn’t have any alliances or any direction in life. Wandering between towns, looking to steal gold or jewels, his faith in the Goddess of Luck has so far kept him alive...

Simoncook1 19.12.2001 · Read review
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Review of The Redemption of Althalus - David Eddings

David Eddings first series

Advantages: great characterisation, well written
Disadvantages: 5 books long!

...The Belgariad is one of the most read fantasy series around, and it is also one of my favourite. The series brings to life a myriad of characters, locations and plots which you will fondly remember for a long time. The Author ----------- David Eddings was born on the 7th of July 1931 in Spokane, Washington, USA. He grew up near Seattle, and married Judith Leigh Schall on the 27th of October 1962. He has been a sales clerk, an English teacher and spent some time in the US Army. He had his first book published in 1973, it was called "High Hunt" and was a modern adventure story. Unfortunately this book didn't do too well, and it wasn't until he had "Pawn of Prophecy", the first book of the Belgariad, published that his name became more widely known. He has lived in many parts of America, currently he lives in Nevada with his...

SleepyDormouse 10.01.2003 · Read review
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Review of The Belgariad - David Eddings

Nikon Super Coolscan 9000 ED a design success.

Advantages: high quality scans, large files, robust and intelligently designed.
Disadvantages: None.

...The Nikon Super Coolscan 9000 ED is a brilliantly designed multi- format film scanner aimed at professionals but I would seriously recommend it for anyone passionate about photography. It is a joy to use. It scans 35mm, Medium format 120/220, 6x6, 6x7, 6x9 (cm) and 16mm size films. Excellent results with black and white, colour negative and slide film in all the available above formats. The price for the Nikon Super Coolscan 9000 ED is around £1800 to £2200. Compared to the Imacon range of Flextight scanners which can be anything around £5000 to £12000 the Nikon Coolscan 9000 ED price is instantly more attractive but what about quality? The Nikon Coolscan produces images that are certainly good enough for professional, commercial and archival uses and fine art exhibiting purposes. If you use Photoshop and have a good...

petermock 10.02.2008 · Read review
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Review of Nikon Super Coolscan 9000 ED

Ed Wood Movie Review

Advantages: Compelling, well acted and funny.
Disadvantages: May not be quite as appealing to the non film addict.

...I must confess that I had not really heard of the film director Ed Wood before this film was made but I wanted to find out about him as soon as it was. The only thing I now regret is that I didn't make the effort to see it earlier. This is a truly captivating movie that is genuinely funny. It's definitely one of those stories where you only believe it because it's true. The acting is simply outstanding and I actually found Martin Landau's Dracula to be truly chilling. Johnny Depp is once again superb and proved himself to be the great character actor he has such a large reputation for. I sensed that at some points during the film that Burton is drawing comparisons to experience he has had with Hollywood. Ed Wood's constant struggle to make a film as he intends it has to be admired. Thankfully Tim Burton also strive hard to make...

michaelcrook 15.10.2000 · Read review
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Review of Ed Wood

"You're the ruler of the galaxy! Show a little taste."

Advantages: It lives and breathes the old style of picture making.
Disadvantages: None for me

... ED WOOD DVD (2006) The film 'Ed Wood', released in 1994 is a biopic directed by Tim Burton, and starring Johnny Depp as cult filmmaker Edward D. Wood, Jr. The film covers Wood's life when he made his best-known films as well as his relationship with actor Béla Lugosi, played by Martin Landau. This film plays homage to the low-budget sci-fi and horror films of Tim Burton's childhood. The story was based on a novel by Rudolf Grey, "Nightmare of Ecstasy", and the screenplay was written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszowski. When it was released in 1994, it was a box office flop, but it has since become known as one of Burton's better - if not best, films. From the terrific use of black and white to the startling performances, I think that this is one of the best of Burton's film. He never darkens...

oldchem 23.10.2009 · Read review
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Review of Ed Wood (DVD)

Eddings does it again!

Advantages: An excellent start to a second series
Disadvantages: You really need to have read the first series to get all the 'in-jokes'

...If you have read the first series by Eddings - The Belgariad - then you will want to know what came next just like I did. This book is the first of the next series that answers that question. The Belgariad was a great series but finished kind of in the air - you know there was more but you had to wait. The Malloreon which is the name of this series starts where the Belgariad left off....you catch up with all the charectors from the first series and they are all just a little bit older and wiser. Eddings has some interesting ideas which could quite easily be applied to our own lives (no, I'm not really insane honest) but he takes them to their extremes. Garion - or Belgarion now has settled down to enjoy married life with his dimnutive wife Ce'Nedra and after a a little hassle manages to finally produce an heir to his throne...

philipjohn001 15.10.2003 (25.10.2003) · Read review
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Review of Guardians of the West - The Malloreon 1 - David Eddings