Customer Reviews

Pictures in My Head

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

An amazing work. Clear and simple, pulls no punches and yet holds back nothing. The good and the bleak, the beauty of Ireland's people and their amazing will to thrive. If you buy this book, get the hardback copy- you'll turn back to it again and again. The darling Irish boy, who lives in the man that wrote this book will make your soul bleed and sing.

Mr. Byrne's words to his daughter should be read by every woman who doubts the depth of a man's heart. He is a profoundly intelligent and beautiful soul.

You will laugh out loud, you will cry and mostly you will wonder at the life and the spirit of this Irish man.

I get the impression that Mr. Byrne is superbly sensitive to his surroundings and absorbs everything. I envy his photographic memory and ability to live completely in the moment. :o) This is the perfect book to curl up with under your favorite green soft blanket.

Not only do we see into the life of the actor, but we get a glimpse of the fine man behind the characters he has portrayed. As a child seeking himself, as a young man seeking his path and as an adult seeking his place in contemporary life with his (now former) wife and his children, we have the rare opportunity to meet, know and love a fine man. If his future writings live up to the potential shown here, Gabriel Byrne will be one of the best storytellers to come on the scene in many years. I am eagerly looking forward to Gabriel's next venture and will cherish this one. Would that I could have the chance to meet him, not just through this book but in real life!!

So you like Gabriel Byrne do you? Well this book will make you like him even more! In the begining it takes you to when Gabriel Byrne's mom and brother are getting ready to come home from the hospital. Gabriel's uncle often adds comical relief to many situations in the book. My favorite part of the book was when Gabriel talked about a nun that hit him with a ruler, I found what Gabriel kept saying to be extremly funny. Anyway this book gives you a perspective on one of hollywoods hottest stars from a different point of view. If you're looking for a laugh or just a great book, "Pictures in my head," is it.

I must say this book really surprised me! I got it as a Christmas present last year, and I never expected it, because I had only been a Gabriel Byrne friend for about three months or so, but after I had read it, I felt I knew Gabriel personally. I have never met him, but I am longing to see him. The book is very well written, so I wonder why he doesn't write more. Probably because he doesn't have time... I'm awaiting his new film or book. Whatever it is, I'll buy it. Buy this book, you won't be disappointed. If you're a Byrne fan, it's a must! If you're not, after reading the book, you will be!

Remember that neat Irish cousin who always told those great stories? No? I didn't have one either. But reading this book makes me feel like I did. Far from the Peter Pan tell-all favored by the more bloodletting ilk of Hollywood divorcee, Mr. Byrne provides substantive detail as to why his epithet as "The Quiet Man" of the Hollywood Irish is deserved. Neither the nun's rod nor the naughty child is spared as a small Irish town and things Irish in general leap to life. Like other autobiographically rich tropes through letters such as David Niven, John Gielgud & Alec Guinness have done, there's enough detail to warm your cockles but not enough gas to fold your sails. Picture a Clive James diatribe through a lace curtain, with a little Liz Smith thrown in. This work occludes the "why me" self-doubt of stardom, while anticipating the generally assumed greed for acting celebrity Byrne eschews. For once, fans can say thanks that success has not gone to an actor's head, but to his journal.

I think that Gabriel Byrne did a superb job in writing this book.

He is quite talented as an Actor, but, the Creme de La Creme of being an Author. I admire everything he could account from his childhood in Dublin, Ireland, to how he was treated by his family, his marriage to Ellen Barkin, and to his two children (Jack and Romy), being born.

I don't know if Ellen and Gabriel are still together, but from reading of how Jack was born first, and to Gabriel's daughter, Romy being born three years thereafter. His Prayer to Romy, was simply fantastic! I truly believe he is an excellent father, and I am very proud of him.

If anyone out there has an address for Gabriel, I want to send him the first holy comunion cross, that was stolen from him.

Gabriel Byrne provides the reader with the rare and wonderful opportunity to step into the life of one of Hollywood1s most revered leading men. Experience first hand his poignant and often hilarious upbringing as well as his tenacious journey to stardom. Wonderfully written and is as informative as it is entertaining. A definite must for those who love and admire Irish literature and Gabriel Byrne.

When I first found this book,I already admired Gabriel Byrne as an actor so talented that he truly becomes the characters he plays (a rarity in Hollywood, now or at any time). I was amazed to find that he is equally talented as a writer. But greater than any of this, his honesty, sense of humor and appreciation of the people around him make a rare man, one that it would be a privilege and a joy to know. I hope he plans to write more.

"Pictures in My Head" demonstrates Gabriel Byrne's uncanny ability to convey the essence of time and place with an economy of words. This slim volume of vignettes from Mr. Byrne's life transports the reader from his early childhood through his success in Hollywood as an adult until 1995.

Mr. Byrne's writing is unique and lyrical. His style of writing mimics the disjointed, natural flow of internal thinking, jumping from one fragment of an idea to another. For that reason, in addition to vocabulary and cultural references unfamiliar to the American reader, the text is sometimes difficult to digest upon first reading. Many passages require a second pass, but upon re-reading I found myself effectively transported into Mr. Byrne's world. The title of the book "Pictures in My Head" perfectly embodies the essence of what this book is about.

The stories from the early part of Mr. Byrne's life are particularly enthralling. The retelling of events of his early childhood in Ireland include incredible detail. Mr. Byrne has the rare talent of recalling small details that most people wouldn't notice, much less recall. Rarer still is his ability to then take those small details, recount them and essentially capture a moment with words. However, I agree with another reviewer who found the second half of the book less satisfying. In addition to seeming a bit more rushed, Mr. Byrne's desire to protect the privacy of his friends, family and himself in the second half of the book unfortunately hinders his ability to write with the same freedom and compelling detail that made the first half of the book so captivating.

Despite this criticism, the same honesty, intelligence and sensitivity that contribute to Mr. Byrne's success as an actor translates well into his foray as an author. "Pictures in My Head" is a compelling triumph. Gabriel Byrne's capacity for conveying the beauty and poignancy of life as a human being is remarkably gripping. I sincerely hope Mr. Byrne will continue to write.