Amazon.com

Critics seem to flock around Bob Dylan the way early photographers gravitated to New York's Flatiron Building: there's just so much to appreciate. Of all the scribes who have commented on Dylan's astounding contribution to music, Paul Williams stands apart as the person who perhaps best fit the criticism to the music.Much in the way that Dylan has created not just art but an entire genre, Williams, over the course of 30 years, has created his own unique style of writing about Dylan as a performer. Williams is not afraid to go out on a limb--some of his observations are eccentric, but he's lucid and never boring. Watching the River Flow collects the best of Paul Williams's essays about Dylan, from his 1966 comments on the classic Blonde on Blonde to his December 1996 concert dates (at which Patti Smith was the opening act and tributes to Jerry Garcia filled the air). ... Read more

Reviews (5)

The Leading Authority on Dylan's Music
I have enjoyed this book & the 2 others Paul Williams has written about Dylan's music & also the one he wrote on Neil Young's music. The "Performing Artist" volumes are more scholarly & well-thought-out (I'm still waiting anxiously for volume 3 in the series) but this book (& the Young book) are written more from a fan's viewpoint. But a fan who really knows his subject. Williams can be rambling & eccentric at times but his enthusiasm for his subject's work is so infectious, you find yourself caught up in his thoughts & feelings. He definitely makes you want to run to your stereo & play Dylan's albums. And that is what the job of a good critic should be. He makes you even want to run & play albums that he doesn't like, just so you can see what he's talking about. He writes these essays in a very excited enthusiastic manner. He is someone who really listens & studies & tries to get everything out of a recording that you can possibly get. And he makes you want to do the same. He makes you want to look at all kinds of art the same way - to really spend time looking, listening, reading & watching. He tries to teach you how to truly appreciate art. That is a hard task in the time that we live in, where everything has to be consumed in a half hour. We treat art (movies, albums, books, etc.) in a very impatient, cynical manner - waiting to be entertained, instead of putting some effort into it, to truly get all that can be gotten out of it. He points out that to appreciate art in a deep & lasting way, we also have to put some effort into it - not just the person who created the art. We're part of the creation as well.
I can read these essays over & over again - which I have. I truly wish there had been a lot more. As someone else pointed out, Williams' writing is like a performance itself. He doesn't worry much about saying something the correct way - he just unleashes his thoughts in a mad, rambling way (often repeating himself) that truly grabs you. It's nothing but a joy to read this man. And I really trust his opinion on Dylan's work. Like Lester Bangs, he really is a fan of music & his reviews & essays are as much about himself as the people he writes about. They are worth reading, even if you don't agree with them. But unlike most critics, Williams gives you his own personal opinion but doesn't assume that you feel the same way or that you should feel the same. I look forward to several more books on Dylan, Young or anybody else he may want to share his opinions about. Definitely get this book. It's a must for Dylan fans & an even bigger must for people who have never gotten into Dylan's music. If this doesn't get you to listen with "new" ears, nothing will.

A Little Too Much
I think Mr. Williams write beautifully. His style flows through the whole book, his concert reviews are rather unique, and, even though I have never had the opportunity to see a Dylan concert, I really could grasp a good picture of them. The only problem is: I think the reviews should have been made a bit less fan-ish. I cannot be sure about the concert part, but the album reviews have such an exaggerated tone that, more than once, I had to think if the album he had reviewed was the same I had listened to. I love Bob Dylan. But, come on, making no difference in quality between albums like Blood on the Tracks and World Gone wrong does sound more like a fan writting than a critic.

Buy it. . .
"Buy it, give your money to the rich as long as you have it, you're better off with the music." Williams on "Down in the Flood" (p. 34)

Superlatives? I'll give you superlatives. Paul Williams is as much a performing artist as Bob Dylan, only he uses a pen rather than a guitar. Like the great Dylan performances, the best pieces in this collection should be "heard" more than once; "Blood on the Tracks" (1974) "Dylan - What Happened?" (1979) and "The Supper Club Shows" (1993) are just three of the ones I return to again and again.

You should expect a mostly positive assessment of Dylan's output here. The author admits in the introduction that he prefers to write about performances which excite him ". . .because disappointment was not the kind of news I felt compelled to spread." (p.11) We'll have to wait (how long?) for volume three of Willams's outstanding Performing Artist series to read more about such "disappointments."

Williams has resisted the temptation to tamper with the originals (he does, however, introduce and provide context for them) so in effect WTRF is a snapshot of two artists' work-in-progress.

So buy it. You'll be better off with the book.

Bob Dylan approximately
Spanning over 30 years of an incredible career, "Watching the River Flow" is a fantastically perceptive collection of Dylan essays and comment by perhaps the most e enthusiastic - and least pretentious - author/critic who regularly writes on Dylan. Rather than read it cover to cover like a novel, I like to return to it now and again and skip around, knowing I can still pick it up and read a review or essay that I haven't read yet. If you're into Dylan, I suggest picking this one up. William's passion for Dylan's music is contagious, and his insights illuminate the music. I heartily recommend Williams's 2-book "Performing Artist" series about Dylan as well. (And if you're looking to buy a Dylan album, I suggest "John Wesley Harding.")

A great book by the best commentator on Dylan's live work
Paul Williams is easily the best (and most pleasant to read) commentator on Dylan's live performances. This book contains reviews of Dylan's live work, plus other pieces of note. Contents include 24 essays. Of special interest to this reader are the review of Hard Rain, the essay "Who Pagan Became," an extended 72 page essay "Dylan - What Happened" dealing with Williams' impressions after the initial November 1979 concerts following Dylan's becoming a Christian, an essay "Those Talking Crazy, Spilling My Buttermilk, Not One More Kiss Blues" about Under the Red Sky, and reviews of World Gone Wrong, the Supper Club Shows, and the Paradise Lost Tour. Buy this book. ... Read more

Amazon.com

A coffee-table book that is more than just pretty pictures, The World of the Dalai Lama challenges the mind as much as it delights the eye. On one level, it is a gorgeous mosaic of Tibet, the Dalai Lama, and Tibetan Buddhism; on another level, it is a sincere introduction to the religion, society, and plight of Tibetan Buddhism. Gill Farrer-Halls, a long-time practitioner of the religionproffers photographs of the Dalai Lama at 3 and 5 years of age, of a soldier raising the Chinese flag over Tibet, and of Westerners studying in Dharamsala as early as 1970. More recent photographs are of child tulkus, religious rituals, and the Dalai Lama receiving the Nobel Prize.Farrer-Halls also includes a special interview with the Dalai Lama and excerpts from his writings and talks. The World of the Dalai Lama is a grand tour of a uniquely compelling universe. ... Read more

Book Description

Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen are widely acknowledged as the great pop poets of the 1960s, transforming the popular song into a medium for questionng the personal, social, and political norms of their times. They emerged at a time when the music industry was transforming the revolutionary sound of black music into something bland, homogenous, and fit for mass consumption. For many members of their generation, Dylan and Cohen were able to articulate what they were feeling and could not express: anti-establishement anger, angst, and despondency.

Dylan and Cohen is a fascinating political, psychological and artistic profile of these two iconic writers and performers. With reference to both biographical details and lyrics. David Boucher explores their similarities and differences, tracing the development of religious political, and social themes in their work and the ways in which those ideas engaged a new audience.

A must-read for all serious fans of either Dylan or Cohen, this book will also engage anyone interested in the North America of the 1960s, or more generally in the relationship between music, identity and politics. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Compulsively Readable
This is an excellent study of the music and lyrics of the 2 greatest rock "poets." Boucher explores whether or not their lyrics even qualify as poetry and keeps the subject interesting! He effectively delves into their psyches,as well, without getting hung up on personal, biographical details which have been over analyzed in other places. I found the final chapter "The Religious Experience" to be some of the best writing that I've seen on Dylan and Cohen's spiritual journeys. I highly recommend this to fans of either man's work.

Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands
The irate and intemperate person signing himself pepidude in a previous review seems incapable of being able to appreciate an argument or of understanding the nature of the exercise that David Boucher has undertaken. It is a thematic book with a wide range of references, not a book of facts about Bob Dylan.The author introduces us to the complexities of issues relating to the difference between popular music lyrics and poetry, between origins and originality, the poetry of imagination and inspiration and much more. Anyone interested in ideas and issues, and in theories as well as facts will find this book immensely stimulating and fascinating.

Poetry Always was the New Rock & Roll
David Boucher has written a book that examines in detail the contribution of both artists to the worlds of both literature and rock & roll. In his intoduction he looks at the progress of Cohen from serious poet to rock & roll recording artist and performer. This transition cost him status in the literary world but aided by the legendary "golden voice" and some consummate musicians it allowed him to reach a hitherto undreamed of audience.

Dylan, whom he refers to as "The Changing Man" in Chapter Three, was the chameleon-like performer who picked up, and discarded new personas and new musical styles at the drop of his very famous hat. The obvious example here is the infamous "electric tour" where Dylan was heckled and called "Judas". This abuse was, the book shows, not only for his perceived betrayal of the acoustic folk movement, but also a reaction to the contempt with which Dylan treated his audience. Dylan had always been a confrontational performer, and his response to such attacks was to become louder and less acoustic than ever. What David Boucher also shows is that this signified a shift from the community centred ethic of the folk movement to the excessive individualism and nihilism of the Beat poets who through the drug culture wanted, like Rimbaud, to experience the extremes.

In other chapters the myriad influences on both performers are examined as well as their involvement with political and religious organisations. Finally David Boucher gives us an insight into the road travelled by both men in search of their own personal salvation.

Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen are complex men and complex performers. To listen to, or to read the works of either man is always challenging. In this book the author has written an analysis that is equally challenging exploring, as it does, the anger and the angst of the 1960s and beyond. I enjoyed every minute of the challenge.

How lovely does it get...?
David Boucher's masterly work 'Dylan & Cohen' is essential reading, not simply for devotees of these 'Poets of Rock and Roll' but for anyone with an interest in the history of the radical cultural, political and musical changes in the last century.

It is clear from this eloquent book that neither Dylan nor Cohen wished to speak for anyone but themselves and equally clear that the strength of their work would be seized upon by a generation looking for a new direction. Thankfully they both continued to write through their tribulations and we have a bank of some of the most evocative music to continue to listen to.

I urge you to buy this book but with a word of warning: you won't want to stop reading once you've started.

Icons Of The 60's
This is a simply marvelous book, which has inspired me to go back to my old record collection, and re-play all the old vinyls. I recommend it to everyone interested in the political movements of the 60's and the music that characterised them. David Boucher recreates the mood and the excitement of the times and traces their careers to the present day. This book is a must buy! ... Read more

Book Description

Newly available and expanded, the diary of a 20th-century leader in the fight for social justice--Dorothy Day.

ON PILGRIMAGE gathers diary entries written by Dorothy Day in 1948 that intimately reveal both Day's spiritual life and the personal ideals that guided her tenacious pursuit of social justice. When Dorothy Day sat down to record her thoughts in diary form, she wrote not only as the leader of the Catholic Worker movement but also as a mother, a grandmother, and a deeply religious woman concerned for even the mundane facets of life. But whether describing day-to-day happenings or the writings of the saints, Day's reflections return to her abiding theme--the call to personal and public transformation. Her diary entries touch on numerous social and moral concerns still vital in our day: the disenfranchised poor, the benefits of meaningful work, the significance of family, the dangers of secularization, the decline of moral standards, and the importance of faith. Available for the first time since its limited printing in 1948, ON PILGRIMAGE is published here with a foreword by Mich! ael O. Garvey and a significant introduction by Mark and Louise Zwick that highlights Day's early life and her commitment to the Catholic Worker movement. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

The introduction justifies the price of the book
I would suggest this as the third book by Dorothy Day that you read-- after "loaves and fishes" and "long lonliness", however, the introduction to this book justifies the purchase for anyone. The introduction is lengthy (over 25 pages), and is written by two people that know the movement (they run Casa Juan is Houston). The book by Day is very touching.... but not an introduction to someone unfamiliar with her work. Often I suggest that someone new to Dorothy Day read the introduction, and then "Loaves and Fishes", and then returns to this book.

Bread for the journey
Many of Dorothy Day's sabbaticals from the Catholic Worker houses are chronicled in "On Pilgrimage," which was also the title of her long-running column in her monthly newspaper, The Catholic Worker. Ever the journalist, Day would record the most minute aspects of her trips--usually by bus and with a jar of instant coffee and prayer books in her small bag--and give her newspaper readers insight into the social struggle in the South, in Okie migrant camps or Indian reservations. Her compassion and observer's eye didn't conflict; she wrote about injustice with passion, but felt compelled to temper her anger at issues such as the mistreatment of black tenant farmers. Her distinctly Catholic perspective on poverty (indeed voluntary poverty was her lasting contribution to 20th century Christianity) and suffering as well as her feisty personality are evident in these essays detailing her trips. Even though efforts have begun toward Dorothy Day's canonization, she will never be a plaster saint...not as long as these warm and utterly realistic accounts are read. She comes across as a committed Christian who believes in the essential dignity of every human being, oppressed and oppressor alike. The only fault with her pilgrimage essays is their essentially hurried nature. Dorothy Day could be careless with punctuation and transitions in her efforts to get her thoughts on paper. The essays when she's visiting her daughter and attempting to help with the growing number of children are my favorites. Dorothy Day continues to be one of my prime spiritual mentors, precisely because of homey, faith-filled essays like those, where the grandchildren are climbing on her lap and preventing her from writing. The real woman--warts, moments of exhaustion and all--is in these pages. ... Read more

Book Description

A memoir of the author's 1981 documentary, The Song of Leonard Cohen. Harry Rasky filmed the wild trip that was the 1979Field Commander Cohen tour. Now he has delved into his personal archives and diaries upon which the film is based, and has woven them into this moving, powerful text. He includes outrageous and intimate interludes with the great Canadian singer-songwriter, including how he and Leonard were mistaken for Bader-Meinhof terrorists by soldiers with machine guns at a German Burger King

Included also are Rasky's never-before-published Bob Dylan Diaries, based on his notes and observations during the filming of a never-completed documentary. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

don't bother
I love Leonard Cohen and try to read whatever is available about him. This book was so miserable, I couldn't even finish it. The person who wrote it is a whiney sycophant. This horrible drivel isn't worth the paper it's printed on. It really makes the reader hate the person who wrote it. Don't buy this, not even used for a nickel. 'Nuff said...

Read Leonard Cohen NOT his hangers-on!
By far this is the worst book ever written about Leonard Cohen. To start with a good portion of the book is comprised of Leonard Cohen's poems and lyrics! The rest is badly written drivel about a man who made a fairly mediocre TV documentary about Leonard Cohen more than 20 years ago. Suffice to say that the book is nothing but a tool to vent off Mr. Rasky's anger at the world for not recognizing his 'talents' as a filmmaker. I did like the book cover but wait a minute that was taken from Leonard Cohen's last album cover as well. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

This is a fascinating account of the life of a great player.
This is a good book. I liked it very much.I recommend it to all families.The book is great for kids ... Read more

Book Description

 All the books written on Céline so far were biographies, with more or less reliable facts to support the life story of that mega-star. No book has really achieved to be precise, factual and reliable (except the English biography I contributed to correct).

    No book can be used as an ultimate reference tool for the facts around one of the most extraordinary careers in the show business history. No book can be picked up by a fan or a reporter on a deadline and serve as the reference for all the achievements of "la p'tite québécoise".

    That's the objective of that book I'm proposing. I want to create a book that will be able to serve as a reference and tool with confidence that the facts are reliable.

* A book for the average fan to get fully impressed by the achievements of Céline

* A book for the die-hard fan to check up and improve his knowledge on Céline facts

* A book for the collector to check out how to improve his collection with reliable reference numbers

* A book for the journalist in need of a unique and reliable source for his work

* A book for music professionals to do serious research work

* A book for record sellers to better evaluate the value of different items

* A book for the Awards fan to compare Céline distinctions with other artists

* A book like no one else has done for any artist.

* The concept seems to be ambitious, and when you see the page count, you'll think it's impossible to do... yet I have more than half of it already done and ready to publish.

    About the page count... who would consider seriously a "reference" book that is a hundred pages thick? Céline had a very rich career of 21 years, she started from nothing and ended as being #1 in two languages at the same time around the world. That cannot be related and expressed completely in a small book, at least certainly not with the factual reference it has. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Passion Celine Dion Lost On This Reader
I have many problems with this book. I am indeed a fan of Celine Dion's, yet, I feel too many meaningless boring books have been written about her life. I am not a huge Dion fan yet I have read most of the English texts on her life.

I do not understand why the Author goes on and on about his education, his affiliation with Dion, and the work he put into his self proclaimed "Best website ever on the singer". This indeed does not sell the book, it only builds up to what I have found to be a pointless factual boring book. This book is great if you are interested in chart performance and album sales. If you are looking for a great read on Dion's life stick with the Authorized Biography or the book that Dion wrote herself, much more entertaining. This book is much hype and leaves the reader totally dissapointed and confused about why they purchased it. Please don't waste your money!

Legend in His Own Time
Sylvain Beauregard has done what no other Celine Dion fan has, created not only an amazing website, full of facts and the only complete French/English Celine song translation option, but he also created a book for those who wanted to take this information home. Credit where credit is due.
Merci Sylvain!

Enough already
This is what you call "overkill." How many books need to be written on Celine? The only book you need to get on her is the official biography and maybe her autobiography. This book by Sylvain is a waste of money. He is widely known among the Celine Dion community on the Internet as an arrogant loud mouth who spreads rumors that turn out to not be true. I don't know how in the world he got this published. Trust me, if you want an accurate book on Celine buy one that is official.

The man knows his stuff....
I'd say he's achieved his goal... If you don't have this book, how can you say you're a Celine fan? Best book on Celine... Also check out his wonderful website; it's the only one I go to for news on Celine, along with lyrics and translations. ... Read more

Book Description

Alias Bob Dylan Revisited

Stephen Scobie

At sixty years old, Bob Dylan is still singing the songs which for 40 years have made him one of the most important artistic voices of our time. In this revised and expanded edition of Stephen Scobie's study of Dylan's work, Scobie covers all the stages of a remarkable career. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A Thrillingly Intelligent Analysis
I've read the first version of this book (Alias Bob Dylan) twice over the years. This version is a major revision of the first book with only some overlap (both versions should be read or republished integrating the text of both). Scobie is an admitted fan but this does not seem to impair his objectivity, particularly since he goes far deeper than the "is this album or song better than that one" type of criticism that often makes the work of lesser music critics fairly superficial. "Alias: Revisited" is not only one of the best analyses of Dylan's art, easily surpassing higher profile works like Michael Gray's "Song and Dance Man" or even Paul Williams' excellent "Performing Artist" series, but also one of the best works of literary criticism I've come across.

Scobie is an academic and the way he draws on the ideas of Derrida make the philosopher's work surprisingly accessible. I found one of the major chapters, an analysis of the text of "Visions of Johanna" absolutely thrilling. This is what literary criticism should be! ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Beautiful pictures unseen elsewhere
Book is printed professionally, just like the pictures. You will find over 100 pictures of Céline Dion, sometimes with stars like Carole King, David Foster and Peabo Bryson. Captions are succinct without needless verbose descriptions. I particularly like the last few pictures which were taking more recently as Céline truely looked much better in. Not to say she's ugly when she was young, but in fact she has grown to look more sophisticated and elegant. One of the most celebrated of our modern artists... Perhaps one look at her you'll know what her vocals are made of :o) Buy the book! It's worth more than US$7.99.

It was great!!!!
Thsi book is terrific. It has great pictures of Celine, and any fan of hers would buy it!!

This Book is the Best!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
OK if u r a Celine fan as big as me get this book it is so good! It told some interesting facts and the pictures i had never seen any so cool. Don't take my word for it just buy it it is well worth the money and the wait to recieve it. this is the best book i have EVER read!!!!!!!!!!!!! ... Read more

Book Description

"Anything Bob Dylan sings--and any way he chooses to sing it--is worth hearing. Anything Paul Williams writes about Bob Dylan--and always in his wonderfully unpretentious, conversational and heartfelt manner--is worth reading. "Performing Artist" immediately enters the canon as one of the few necessary books on Bob Dylan".--Jonathan Cott, contributing editor, "Rolling Stone". ... Read more

Book Description

"The most infectiously enthusiastic introduction to Dylan yet. A chronological study of Dylan's recorded performances, rather than just his music or lyrics, it convincingly argues that this is where his true genius lies".--David Sexton, "Times Literary Supplement". ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Terrific portrayal of Joe D
Unlike the Cramer book, this book relies heavily on firsthand anecdotes offered by people who knew Dimaggio. And it pretty much covers every aspect of his adult life. I loved it, and it allowed me to get to know the Yankee Clipper pretty well without author conjecture and hyperbole. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

I Shall Be Released....From This Book!
Tim Riley's commentary on Dylan focuses on the music rather than the man. This focus starts fairly well, aside from Riley trying to impress us with his vocabulary. Dylan's early work (from his debut until about Highway 61 Revisited) receives a fairly thorough treatment as Riley tries to "get inside" the mind of Dylan (which is probably not a very wise thing to do in the first place). Even if you don't agree with Riley, his ideas are interesting...at least for awhile. After reading the book, it seems that Riley believes that Dylan hasn't written anything worth listening to since "Blood on the Tracks." Unfortunately the author all but ignores some of Dylan's most significant contributions past 1975. (Riley spends nearly 250 pages on the period from Dylan's debut until 1975. From 1975 on only gets 50 pages.) This book was a super disappointment by an author who seems to have an axe to grind. The work is saved by giving a good bibliography and an even better discography.

One star is to many
This book is a waste of paper. You will find dylanoligy at it worst, hidden behind a small amount of credibility. "Tell Me Why" is a fine book (Riley's effort about the Beatles). Riley's commentary here is trite, Vision's of Johanna is not about Heroin, it's about the time I got loaded at my friends house and was thinking about my ex-girlfriend while making out with somebody else. Of course I'm not as old as the song but you should get the point. Dylan just writes 'em. You can not possible dissect Dylan's songs and pick only songs you like calling every thing after "Blood" trash ( that's not his words that's paraphrasing the last half on the book). Some things can not be defended "Knocked and Loaded" but if anybody else put out "Oh Mercy", Riley would have been singing their praises like he sings punk rocks in the last fifty pages of his book about Dylan.

The WORST Dylan book ever! BY FAR
I've read at leat 15 Dylan biographies (out of print and in print). and this one stands out by far as a huge joke, stay clear of this garbage!

ignore all previous reviews of this book.....
ouch! i can't believe the other reviews of this brilliant book. riley is right on target with most of what he says here, and he even manages to make a few old favorites sound new again due to his bold insights. (did you know that "visions of johanna" was about heroin? you do now!) if you're a serious dylan buff, you really need give this book a chance -- it's truly excellent.

Rubbish
There are so many things wrong with this book that it is not worth my time listing them all. I could rant on and on about the inaccuracies in information, especially in the second half of this piece of rubbish that just falls apart when it comes to covering Dylans eighties and nineties work. Notable albums like Infidels are boiled down to a few sentances (whereas albums like Planet Waves recieve whole chapters). Riley uses a large portion of this increadibly opinionated commentary to discuss "notable" non-Dylan albums that are examples of Dylans influence (ranging from albums by Neil Young to albums by Prince) with a "why couldn't Dylan do this in the eighties" attitude. It is very difficult connecting with Riley's understanding of Dylan because it seems as though he is simply talking to himself, pointing out "good songs" and "bad songs" and offering up cute little explanations and analyses, making this a very boring read. Does Dylan really have to be dissected in such a way? In a nutshell, the "commentary" in this book, like that of a similar waste of paper called "Behind the Shades" by Clinton Heylin, is that Dylan was once a genious and is now a hasbeen with little to offer. Why do all these very dated books end the same? Because,they were premature and, as a result very pointless, considering how much has been added to the Dylan legacy in the seven years since this book was puplished. Wait till he'd dead and then make assesments of his career. ... Read more

Reviews (40)

Entertaining, Incredibly Researched
Whoever says that this is junk is just blind to the real story behind Celine. Out of the half dozen bios on her which I've read nothing comes close to giving such a fair account. Bravo and congratulation to the author for providing us with such a well-balanced book.

If you see Ian Halperin
Tell him he is a hack. This fair tale of facts has nothing to do with the story. Iam Halperin is an amateur paparazzi desperate for a buck. This book is a waste of your money to support his drinking habbits.

Fun Read
There are good facts in this book, some of them are most interesting about Canada's wonderful Celine. I enjoyed this book as well as the other bios out there about her. I look forward to her return this year to music.

Strictly for entertainment
I would not recommend this book for someone who knows very little about Celine. I am a huge fan of four years and have done much independent research in both the English and French languages that can discount almost every "fact" Halperin claims. The inability to quote real sources just further takes away from Halperin's credibility. It is as much the truth as the Enquirer's claims that aliens exist.

Knowing that, I would recommend it to any fan with a real sense of humor, because believe me you will laugh your (...) off. Some highlights include the chapter about Michael Jackson (just the mental picture of Celine screaming out "He is too sexy for me!" about the plastic one is enough), another great story is about her and Rene getting it on in the hot tub with the video camera on. Just imagine Celine and Rene...or actually don't it's quite scary. Too bad his "informants" missed the time Celine tried to "commit suicide" by shoving a whole ball of wasabi mustard in her mouth while in Tokyo (official bio), that was a good one.

In short Halperin is [lousy] at writing the facts, but boy is he a terrific creative writer. Definately worth reading but take it with a conspiracy sized grain of salt.

Truly Entertaining
Great behind the scenes accounts of Celine's struggle to the top. This book is a must for any music fan. Celine is truly the greatest singer of our time. ... Read more

Book Description

"Wanted Man: In Search of Bob Dylan" is packed with articles and interviews offering insight into the poet laureate of the sixties generation and a man Life magazine recently named among the 100 most important Americans of the twentieth century.

This collection includes photos, many never before published, tracing Bob Dylan's entire career, plus interviews with people who have been closest to him-- such as Bonnie Beecher, the original "girl from the north country"-- and a number of major figures who have worked with Dylan and been influenced by him: Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Roy Orbison, Patti Smith, Ron Wood, and many others. The book spans Dylan's entire career, from his enrollment at the University of Minnesota in 1959 to his work with producer Daniel Lanois on "Oh Mercy", his most acclaimed album in years.

There have been many books written about this creative genius whose songs are the anthems of a generation-- especially during the fiftieth anniversary of his birth-- but only "Wanted Man: In Search of Bob Dylan" conveys the immediacy and humor which is so much a part of the experience of listening to his music. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Desperately Seeking Zimmerman
As a long time Dylan fan, I try to learn about him as much as possible. Rock's greatest poet (w/ apologies to Jim Morrison fans, Dylan gets the title hands down.) is always worth examination. Some of his lyrics rank as fine poetry. This is probably the most important song writer of the second half of the 20th Century. Unfortunately, this collection is out of print but it is worthwhile to seek out. It contains many articles and interviews spanning Dylan's entire career. It includes writing by Allen Ginsberg, Patti Smith, Leonard Cohen and Paul McCartney among others. It is a collection of Dylan lore by Dylan's companions and cohorts. It features homages paid by many who were influenced by this great bard. Fans of Dylan would do well to read this book. It is very imformative and lends some insight into the career development of Dylan. The interviews with Ronnie Wood, Roy Orbison and Eric Clapton are revealing. It is amazing when you consider the stature of the people who were influenced and touched by Dylan. Tributes by Johnnie Cash and Bruce Springsteen also highlight the book. It is a compelling look at a man ranked as one of the 100 most important Americans of the 20th Century.

Literary bouiliabaise (that's a compliment)
Wanted Man is a great song that Dylan wrote for Johnny Cash and an apt title for the book because Mr. Dylan has touched many lives in a deep and profound way. This book is a fun collection of articles, interviews, etc. that's often more fun and illuminating than standard biography writing. I have also looked for the 1st collection in this series, to no avail. If you like this book, also check out Bob Dylan: the Early Years, another fine collection of writings.

Worth reading for hard core Dylan freaks.
Edited by the late John Bauldie (killed in a helicopter crash in England after a soccer match in late 1996), founder of the popular Dylan fan magazine _The Telegraph_, this book offers some insighful comments culled from friends and acquaintances of His Bobness ranging from Bauldie himself to Ray Orbison, Patti Smith and Eric Clapton. Illustrated throughout, this book begins with anecdotes from Dylan's days at the University of Minnesota and follows his career through the early '90's. Includes fascinating "sermons" of Bob's from when he was in his Christian phase in the late '70's and early 1980's. According to Bauldie, this book is the second in a series. The first book is called _All Across The Telegraph_ but I've never been able to find it anywhere ... Read more