10 replies to this topic

[Bucky]

I am sorry if this has already been discussed as I was not able to find a thread regarding it.

Has anybody on here read Moore's autobiography? I was just looking on amazon and came across it and was wondering if it was worth a look so figured I would get the opinions of any Bond fans who have read it.

Thanks.

[Jaws0178]

Don't know if this will help but you can look at the first few pages of it regarding his early days (ie: childhood)

[oatesy]

I am sorry if this has already been discussed as I was not able to find a thread regarding it.

Has anybody on here read Moore's autobiography? I was just looking on amazon and came across it and was wondering if it was worth a look so figured I would get the opinions of any Bond fans who have read it.

Thanks.

It's okay. A fairly light read, as it doesn't go into too much depth. I wouldn't say it was particularly insightful, and it doesn't have a huge amount of pages devoted to his Bond years if that is your main interest. I can't remember too much about it as I haven't read it since the first publication, which perhaps says something in itself.

Back in 1973 Roger wrote a diary of this day-to-day experiences on the set of Live And Let Die, which I greatly prefer as it is both a funny read and full of detail. I suspect it is hard to get hold of now though, however you do see copies at second-hand book stores and ebay (http://cgi.ebay.com/...=item1c1a50cad7).

[Bucky]

I am sorry if this has already been discussed as I was not able to find a thread regarding it.

Has anybody on here read Moore's autobiography? I was just looking on amazon and came across it and was wondering if it was worth a look so figured I would get the opinions of any Bond fans who have read it.

Thanks.

It's okay. A fairly light read, as it doesn't go into too much depth. I wouldn't say it was particularly insightful, and it doesn't have a huge amount of pages devoted to his Bond years if that is your main interest. I can't remember too much about it as I haven't read it since the first publication, which perhaps says something in itself.

Back in 1973 Roger wrote a diary of this day-to-day experiences on the set of Live And Let Die, which I greatly prefer as it is both a funny read and full of detail. I suspect it is hard to get hold of now though, however you do see copies at second-hand book stores and ebay (http://cgi.ebay.com/...=item1c1a50cad7).

Interesting, thanks for the recommendation. The Bond years are not really what interest me the most as I just think Roger Moore seems like a great person and wanted to know more.

[David_M]

As noted, it's a light read and not as in-depth as I'd have preferred. But then I'm a guy who'd been waiting 30 years for him to write it, so I was probably never going to be satisfied. I'll also agree with oatsey that Roger's "Live and Let Die" diary was a much more fascinating read; those "film journal" books used to be much more interesting back when they were few and far between. Now every film has a "Making Of" book, and most of them are dull as dishwater, probably because they were written by a committee of marketing experts and studio lawyers. Roger's "diary" is funny and candid and adds a lot to my enjoyment of the film. I wish he'd done one for all his Bonds.

"My Word Is My Bond" is fun for what it is; if you're a Roger fan, you should get it. On the other hand, if you're a long-term fan, odds are you've heard most of the stories in it, already.

Anyway, it should be easy enough to get your hands on. Every store around here had it in the bargain bins around the holidays, which actually made me feel kind of sorry for ol' Rog.

[Mark_Hazard]

There's also Roger Moore His Films and Career http://www.amazon.co...r/dp/070907039X
also on Amazon.com but without a picture - written by the prolific Gareth Owen, who also helped on My Word is My Bond.

Edited by Mark_Hazard, 06 April 2011 - 12:16 AM.

[hilly]

It's quite entertaining and fun. Definitely worth reading. As others have said, there are no real startling Bond-related revelations in it. And the constant syrupy references to the current Mrs Moore start to grate after a while. However, Roger has a nice line in funny, mildly smutty showbiz anecdotes, which remind you that, despite the air of sophistication and the jet-set lifestyle, he is, underneath it all, still a naughty boy from the East End..

[Brian Flagg]

I recently read My Word is My Bond--I bought it cheap--and I found that I enjoyed it more for the non-Bond stories than anything else. I liked reading about his childhood during the war and his early years in showbiz. The narrative is in Roger's breezy style, so one feels like they're listening to a witty raconteur recounting several experiences. I wasn't looking for anything "serious" or "intense" and would've been turned off by Rog being anything but his public persona in the book. I'm looking forward to his Bond memoir, too.

[Double-0-Seven]

I recently read My Word is My Bond--I bought it cheap--and I found that I enjoyed it more for the non-Bond stories than anything else. I liked reading about his childhood during the war and his early years in showbiz. The narrative is in Roger's breezy style, so one feels like they're listening to a witty raconteur recounting several experiences. I wasn't looking for anything "serious" or "intense" and would've been turned off by Rog being anything but his public persona in the book. I'm looking forward to his Bond memoir, too.

I couldn't agree more. I just picked it up recently for the first time (I've been meaning to get it since it first came out). I'm about halfway through it right now and I am enjoying it immensely. It's a very light read, which I like. I've read memoirs and autobiographies before where the writing style is as if they were writing for Shakespeare. Very hard to get into. The writing is very casual and typical of Roger so in this case, it's extremely easy to get into. If you're a fan of Roger or Bond then I'd say give it a shot. It's pretty cheap now and is full of Roger's humor.

[O'Cookmate]

Those that have described it as a light read are fairly bang on the money, but that doesn't bother me. I'm not normally one for autobiographies, so I don't know how in depth they usually go, but it was at times frank (but never compromising), sometimes funny but always entertaining and interesting. It's a book I greatly enjoyed reading and it left me with an even greater affection for the man himself.

[rnblover1971]

I am sorry if this has already been discussed as I was not able to find a thread regarding it.

Has anybody on here read Moore's autobiography? I was just looking on amazon and came across it and was wondering if it was worth a look so figured I would get the opinions of any Bond fans who have read it.

Thanks.

It depends on what you want to get out of it. If you are interested in Roger Moore's life and career in general, which includes a lot of other things outside of his role as Bond, such as the other movies he's been in, and his work in UNICEF, then it is a worthwhile read.

If you are only interested in his career as Bond, you will be disappointed. He spends very little time talking about the Bond movies compared to the rest of the book and a lot of the details about those Bond movies you can probably find in other books.

As for me, I knew these facts about the book, so I wasn't disappointed. Because I cared only about his career as Bond, I just glanced over everything else, and read only the stories that related to his career as 007. And he does have some good stories to tell.