Incandescent rock star Jim Morrison doused his own fire by drowning, drugged, in a Paris bathtub 20 years ago. Here, on the heels of The Doors, Oliver Stone's major new film about Morrison, are two heavily illustrated, brief biographies of the singer- composer. In very different ways, each does a good job of re- creating Morrison's life. Jones, London correspondent for Rolling Stone, takes the more objective approach, presenting in clear, solid prose Morrison's rise and fall, relying on a wealth of interviews with those who knew the star; Dalton, a contributing editor for Rolling Stone, writes with poetic fervor that mimics Morrison's woozy, manic intensity even as it adulates. For instance, in describing Morrison's notorious performance at the 1969 Miami concert that got him busted for indecent exposure, Jones writes, 'Here was the vulgar poet in all his drunk and disorderly glory...belching, grabbing his crotch, gobbling the microphone like it was rapidly melting ice cream'; Dalton writes, '...today—now!— he could see the future...The thinnest of membranes separates us from it. Morrison would rip it open...wherefore wouldst thou concern thyself with such matters as personal safety, O my brothers, at this the eleventh hour?' Sixty-five color and 65 b&w photos boost the Jones; the 40 color and 75 b&w photos that accompany the Dylan were not seen.
Pub Date: April 1, 1991
ISBN: 0-670-83454-8
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1991
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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