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48+ Works 4,061 Members 225 Reviews

About the Author

Includes the name: Joseph Layden

Image credit: via Times Union

Works by Joe Layden

Against the Odds (1992) 78 copies
A Smile as Big as the Moon (2002) — Author — 77 copies
NFL Behind the Scenes (2003) 49 copies
Summer (Xtreme Sports) (1948) 48 copies
Dribble, Shoot, Score! (1605) 45 copies
Xtreme sports: Fast track (2002) 43 copies
NFL Rising Stars (2005) 30 copies
To the Xtreme (2001) 20 copies
Dream Team 1996 Scrapbook (1996) 16 copies
All About Apolo (2002) 15 copies
Nba Hot Shots (1999) 9 copies
USA Basketball (1996) 7 copies
Notre Dame Football A-Z (1997) 6 copies
Domestic violence (1995) 1 copy

Associated Works

The Rock Says... (1919) — Author — 283 copies
No Regrets (2011) 119 copies
Living with Honor: A Memoir (2012) 63 copies
WWF WrestleMania : The Official Insider's Story (2001) — Author — 38 copies

Tagged

2014 (17) 2015 (41) acting (23) actors (46) audio (41) audiobook (63) audiobooks (17) autobiography (125) behind the scenes (22) bio (14) biography (187) biography-memoir (25) Cary Elwes (23) ebook (28) entertainment (21) film (91) hardcover (21) history (15) Hollywood (22) humor (43) Kindle (32) library (16) Lord of the Rings (46) memoir (308) movie (24) movie making (29) movies (125) music (43) non-fiction (512) own (17) pop culture (25) Princess Bride (76) read (38) read in 2015 (14) signed (25) sports (93) to-read (351) Tolkien (19) unread (17) wrestling (24)

Common Knowledge

Canonical name
Layden, Joe
Gender
male

Members

Reviews

A sweet, light-hearted reminiscence of the making of a wonderful film. Elwes has nothing but lovely things to say about the whole production, and as a fan it made me smile.
½
 
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Magus_Manders | 189 other reviews | Jan 24, 2024 |
 
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bcuperus | 189 other reviews | Dec 22, 2023 |
Gets a bit repetitive, but a very heartfelt and endearing reminiscence of what has become a rightfully much-beloved movie. Highly recommend listening to the audio book, as narrated by much of the cast.
 
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TheKroog | 189 other reviews | Oct 18, 2023 |
Twenty-five years after the release of The Princess Bride, a movie that was not much of a success in its time but later became a cult classic, Cary Elwes, who played the iconic Westley in the movie, writes about his time working on the set. With additions by many of Elwes's co-stars, along with the director, the producer, and the screenplay writer (who also wrote the book the movie is based on), Elwes gives us a peek at the making of a movie in general, and this family favorite in particular.

As soon as I knew this book existed, I knew I'd be reading it, and I knew I'd enjoy it. I've seen the movie several times, but even more importantly, it is my husband's all-time favorite movie. So I suggested we both listen to the audiobook, which is narrated by Elwes himself, an actor we have both really liked for a long time, which is exactly what we did. And we both loved it! We also loved that the bits added by other people who worked on the movie were mostly read by those people as well. I think the fact that they were willing to take the time to first write, and then narrate their own thoughts on the making of this movie illustrates exactly what Elwes says throughout the book, that this cast and crew became a lot like a family. Others who read this book seem to be looking for the seedy underbelly, assuming that Elwes left out anything negative in his rush to extol the virtues of his co-workers. And I can't say that's not the case, of course, but perhaps the reason this memoir is so friendly and upbeat is because that's how it really was. It's not like poor Wallace Shawn was brow-beaten into saying his time working on the movie was all sunshine and rainbows (he had some issues, but I won't say more than that).

I loved hearing some of the accounts of things that happened throughout the months working on this film, and even in the time after. Some of them were described by multiple people, which added a nice depth to them. I had re-watched the movie in anticipation of reading this book, but still felt compelled to look up certain scenes to see something Elwes described, whether a specific way he moved during the scene due to an injury or a line that was improvised. For fans of The Princess Bride, this book may make you see the movie in a whole new light and, hopefully, a good one. If you've never seen the movie, I recommend it.
… (more)
 
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Kristi_D | 189 other reviews | Sep 22, 2023 |

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Statistics

Works
48
Also by
4
Members
4,061
Popularity
#6,199
Rating
3.9
Reviews
225
ISBNs
106
Languages
6

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