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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
Exactly what I needed right now: funny, silly, with just enough old school comedy/music/history/poetry references to make me feel slightly smarter after.
emotional
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
sad
slow-paced
I'm a huge Python fan so I was really looking forward to this one, but this book should be a lesson in how not to write an autobiography. It was one long series of name drops and casual chat about Idle's rockstar lifestyle, jetting to the south of France and luxury Caribbean boltholes, partying with his celeb friends. Ironically I came away knowing more about George Harrison and Robin Williams than I did about Eric Idle. I actually stopped several times and moved on to other books, because I was so bored. Hugely disappointing.
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
As far as autobiographies go, this is a damn funny one that offers a lot of insight behind the scenes of an icon troupe.
This book was absolutely wonderful, I gotta say I loved seeing what he had to say about before, after, and during his python time, but also his time on other BBC/ITV shows same with Michael and Terry, the tour with John later on....this book was well done. Think I'm going to read Gilliam's book next.
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
It turns out that Eric Idle has met many famous people.
This is mostly a collection of anecdotes and other recollections, perhaps loosely framed through a recurring theme of occasions on which the author had an opportunity to sing "Bright Side" and the recurring quest for revenue. There is an awful lot of name-dropping, but then again, as he himself notes, the general public is generally more interested in hearing anecdotes about people they've already heard of – rather than ordinary unfamous folk like themselves.
Overall, I enjoyed it. I haven't really read anything about or by the Pythons before, so there was much new to me here. I'd never have suspected that he was friends with George Harrison, for example – but then again, I suppose the individual Beatles had to socialize with someone, didn't they? I particularly loved his fight to receive every penny of the 1£ the International Olympic Committee owed him.
As for his personal life, he comes across as fair in describing both the unraveling of his first marriage and the strength of his enduring second marriage – not necessarily an easy feat. One aspect he merely mentions in passing did give me pause, though: He suggests at one point that his wife helped trigger what turned out to be a 12-year relapse from sobriety, by stocking their tour bus with champagne. But such serious matters are not the subject or focus of this memoir, and he quickly returns to the breezy stories.
Overall, I enjoyed it. I haven't really read anything about or by the Pythons before, so there was much new to me here. I'd never have suspected that he was friends with George Harrison, for example – but then again, I suppose the individual Beatles had to socialize with someone, didn't they? I particularly loved his fight to receive every penny of the 1£ the International Olympic Committee owed him.
As for his personal life, he comes across as fair in describing both the unraveling of his first marriage and the strength of his enduring second marriage – not necessarily an easy feat. One aspect he merely mentions in passing did give me pause, though: He suggests at one point that his wife helped trigger what turned out to be a 12-year relapse from sobriety, by stocking their tour bus with champagne. But such serious matters are not the subject or focus of this memoir, and he quickly returns to the breezy stories.
Super charming and filled with jokes and lines I am certainly going to steal. If you are a Python fan you will love it. It's a well thought book in that it uses "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" as a throughput. Thanks for all the jokes :)