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The Man Who Saved Britain

Paperback

Main Details

Title The Man Who Saved Britain
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Simon Winder
Physical Properties
Format:Paperback
Pages:304
Dimensions(mm): Height 197,Width 130
ISBN/Barcode 9780330442466
ClassificationsDewey:823.914
Audience
General

Publishing Details
Publisher Pan Macmillan
Imprint Picador
Publication Date 15 June 2007
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

'This is a brilliant look at the British Empire, and its fall, as reflected in the gadget-filled, babe-bagging, martini-swilling, world-saving career of James Bond. It's utterly unique. Sly, funny, occasionally sad, a wild mix of cultural history, film criticism, and memoir in which the author, trying to fathom the disorienting collapse of his parents' world, finds the key in the somewhat daft (Winder's word) creation of Ian Fleming. It burns from beginning to end' Rich Cohen, author of Sweet and Low 'Winder pulls it off with fizzing enjoyment ...His talent for pitch-perfect depreciative comedy fully justifies this aim. When he's not Swift, he's Twain' Sunday Telegraph 'A book of eccentric brilliance that covers everything from Jamaica as lieu de memoire to the sexual magnetism of General Nasser' Times Literary Supplement 'A hilarious blend of cultural history, biography and memoir' Guardian 'An entertaining yomp through the literary and cinematic heartland of James Bond country' Sunday Times 'A diverting book of true fanaticism' Metro 'Almost ridiculously enjoyable' New Statesman

Author Biography

Simon Winder was born in London in 1963. He is a Publishing Director at Penguin. He lives in Wandsworth.

Reviews

"Simon Winder gives us a rollicking tour through Bondland, expertly captures the knowing blend of nostalgia, sophistication, and plain absurdity that made the Bond books (and later the movies) such a hit in the 1950s and '60s. . . . Entertaining and very funny."--Michiko Kakutani, "The New York Times"
"Happily, this brilliantly obsessive exegesis on the meaning and influence of the 007 character--part sociological study, part geek memoir--also has a sense of humor about its subject. . . . Indeed, Bond hasn't provided this much entertainment in decades."--"Entertainment Weekly" (grade: A)
"Sly, funny, occasionally sad, a wild mix of cultural history, film criticism, and memoir."--Rich Cohen, author of "Sweet and Low"""

"The nimble and witty Simon Winder sifts through Ian Fleming's formulaic 007 books with excellent and often hilarious explanations. . . . [An] enchanting book--social history at its best."--"The Palm Beach Post"

"Winder has an easy journalistic tone, a surprisingly objective take on his own obsession, and an encyclopedic knowledge of all things Bond- and Ian Fleming-related. . . . Witty and intelligent."--"Financial Times" (U.K.)

"Almost ridiculously enjoyable."--"New Statesman" (U.K.)

Kirkus Review US:British editor Winder uses Ian Fleming's most famous character to tie together a series of important personal and societal events in this cheery memoir.He begins his potted history with a starry-eyed recollection of seeing The Spy Who Loved Me at age ten. It was a pivotal moment for Winder; the rugged Bond of the silver screen impinged on his consciousness and never really let go. The author makes an early disclaimer that his knowledge of history is limited at best and his life hasn't really been interesting enough to merit a full-blown memoir-a typically British act of self-deprecation that might not appear to be the best start for a book. As the breadth of his Bond obsession slowly unravels, however, he manages to make some entertaining, albeit often tenuous links among himself, Fleming's character and various upheavals in British society. Winder attempts to determine why the British public became so enamored of Bond after World War II. He explains how his own Bond-influenced penchant for safari suits caused him years of grief in foreign climes. He wonders why his frequent snorkeling trips have never met with the kind of undersea encounters inevitably faced by his hero moments after dipping a toe in the water. He primarily admires the Bond novels, but such is the extent of his obsession that he manages to find something worthwhile in even the most wretched big-screen adaptations. This leads to many passages in which the author muses on the nature of fandom, but he never strays too far from his original intentions. Winder manages to craft a deeply humorous tome from very eclectic subject matter.Ambitious and highly original. (Kirkus Reviews)