The James Bond Bedside Companion (1984) - Plot & Excerpts
There are plenty of guidebooks out there to dissect and discuss the phenomenon that it James Bond. Some are fantastic and some are not worth the effort: this one is slap bang in the middle. If I'm totally honest the reason it rates only three stars is that it did not really tell me anything that I did not already know. Considering that I have read and re-read all the novels, seen all the films - including the unofficial ones - many times and read loads of these type of books it is clear that I am being biased and harshly critical.In fairness this is a decent reference book if you want to look up a fact or two: the glossary is a must for anybody that writes questions for pub quizzes. The problem is that it stops with the film The Living Daylights and after John Gardner's novel Scorpius, so the book is not exhaustive. To be fair, Raymond Benson could hardly be expected to review his own Bond novels.I have no real issue with this book in the opinions expressed by Benson - I disagree with the opinions expressed in plenty of other books that discuss Bond - but there are books that cover more of the genre to include Benson's own books and the films of Pierce Brosnan that make better reference books on the subject.
What do You think about The James Bond Bedside Companion (1984)?
