Reviews

Ava Gardner: Love Is Nothing (Bloomsbury Lives of Women) by Lee Server

squrrl_grrrl's review against another edition

5.0

The life of a woman who doesn't give a damn. If you love old Hollywood you will drool over this womans' tenacity and joie de vivre.

kendrajbean's review against another edition

4.0

I'd better clarify: The writing deserves a high rating, but if you're going to read this book, I'd really recommend a physical copy rather than the Kindle version, which is what I opted for.

I'm not familiar with publishers' methods of transferring printed text to digital text but have noticed most kindle books I've read are completely riddled with typos and grammatical errors that aren't always in the printed book versions. What's up with that?

velvetcelestial's review against another edition

informative medium-paced

5.0

violetturtledove's review against another edition

emotional funny informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

I think biographies are a bit tricky to review because it's only partly about how they're written, and largely about the subject which the author can't (or shouldn't) change.

 I have to admit I knew the name Ava Gardner before i picked up this book but that was about it. She really had a fascinating life and Lee Server does a brilliant job of telling it in an engaging and empathetic way. 

I feel like maybe there are some embellishments in the way that motives and feelings are assumed in some parts, but there has clearly also been a great effort made to seek information from all possible sources.

There are many colourful and amusing quotes and anecdotes but it's also very moving; despite our notable differences I feel a certain kinship and empathy with Ava after reading this, and even welled up at the last paragraph (I DON'T as a rule cry at books!). 

nealalex's review against another edition

3.0

Interested me more in Artie Shaws's music than in going back to any of Ava Gardner's films, but worth it for her off-screen story, and tales of the film world. On The Killers: "Siodmak always knew what he wanted and worked very quickly. There was no rehearsal before the actual shooting began. Siodmak's interest was in staging and camera placement. He did not discuss motivation with the actors or give line readings." On The Naked Maja: "Filming was in the Italian style, without direct sound recording (dialogue to be postsynchronized). Many of the other actors she performed with either spoke no English or had accents too thick to be understood. Sometimes the other actors did not speak their lines on camera but simply mouthed gibberish or counted numbers; you didn't so much interact with the other players as watch and wait for their lips to stop moving.

shawngray's review against another edition

4.0

There was about a year or two in my mid twenties that I was hooked on old movies on AMC. Came across Ava Gardner and realized I had a huge crush.