Customer Reviews

Bettie Page: Queen of the Nile

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This is both a good read and a feast for the eyes. Silke has such an extensive knowledge of illustration techniques, the history of pinup art and of Bettie Page that he's a natural to create this great book. Anyone with even a passing interest in the above would be well served to buy this book. A winner!

First, though, a correction: listing the late, great Dave Stevens as co-author is strictly an Amazon snafu. Stevens, having based a character on Bettie Page in his seminal "The Rocketeer," later started "Bettie Page Comics," for which I believe he did only one issue. Jim Silke, the pin-up artist/photographer/historian, then did a four-issue story for the line, which is what's reprinted in this book. Stevens did the covers for three of the four issues, and they're reprinted here, but they're not going to make anybody's "best of Dave Stevens" collection, and are no reason to buy the book. When I got the book, I was disappointed. Then I read it.

It's wild! It's a pastiche of conventions from the racy pulps, particularly Spicy Adventure (in fact, the first chapter is called "Spicy Adventure") and the pulp-inspired photo spreads that Ms. Page did in the 50s. Non-stop cliffhangers, bizarre locations (a jungle planet, ancient Egypt), eccentric supporting characters who are an intriguing mix of actual period movie characters and the rougher, more sinister "exotic" bad guys from the pulps. Silke's a great illustrator, but he's also a great writer -- this thing motors!

It's mildly racy. Bettie gets topless a lot and tied up a lot. Throughout, she remains exuberant, optimistic, and triumphant. The overall tone is suspenseful but sweet.

Similar to "Raiders of the Lost Ark" this is pulp (racier than Spielberg referenced) as you fondly remember it, maybe more than it actually was. If it sounds like your kind of thing, you can't go wrong.