The Beatles, The Bible, and Bodega Bay: My Long and Winding Road (Hardcover)

by Ken Mansfield (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Ken Mansfield first worked with the Beatles in the 1960s when he was the American manager of Apple Records. More than likely it was his brush with Beatles fame that landed him this publishing contract, but it is his writing talent and depth of personal story that makes this spiritual memoir rock. Mansfield jumps back and forth, from his childlike fear of landing in London for the first time to his mature and reflective life in the California fishing community of Bodega Bay (seen in Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds). Beatles fans will love all the insider's scoop about the Fabulous Four, although the more recent information about Mansfield's friendship with the currently drug-free and sober Ringo Starr seems the most fresh and intriguing.

Occasionally the Beatles references seem overdone, such as the numerous chapter headings named after Beatles songs or the conspicuous song lyrics stuck into the middle of the narrative. For example, when the 50-something Ringo Starr makes a deal with the 50-something Mansfield that will make the narrator globs of money, he writes, "It was nice to get a little help from a friend!" Biblical quotes are also sprinkled throughout. Take this memoir as a long and winding road or a joyful spiritual romp that travels here, there, and everywhere but ultimately leads to the riches of contemplative living. --Gail Hudson

From Library Journal
Written by the American manager of Apple Records (the Beatles!s well-intentioned, if ill-conceived, label), this is a ruminative and ultimately very spiritual and personal journey through a man!s life. Mansfield!s personal relationships with each member of the Fab Four (especially, in recent years, Ringo Starr) are illustrated with some fascinating signed artifacts that illustrate a great portion of the book and complement stories within its framework. A fly-by-night fan or first-time reader of the Beatles will probably be frustrated by the more philosophical aspects of Mansfield!s story. Ultimately, this insider!s work is too anecdotal and personal to interest anyone but hardcore Beatles fans. An optional purchase.?Colin Carlson, New York
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Broadman & Holman Publishers; 1st Ed. edition (May 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805422897
• ISBN-13: 978-0805422894
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #636,608 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars All You Need is Love (and this book), May 26, 2000

By A Customer

This is an amazing book. Ken Mansfield has done a masterful job of relating stories and anecdotes about his days with the Beatles that will satisfy and intrigue any fan, while working in more meaty matters of faith and personal examination. The photos are great, the writing in first-rate, and the website on the back of the book .................... is fabulous. Highly recommend!

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars remarkable, October 17, 2000

By	Bunny Leaf "audiophile" (Morrisville, NC USA) - See all my reviews

Ken Mansfield has written (with a little help from his FRIEND) the most Interesting (Beatles), Powerful (Biblical references and outstanding prayers!) and Beautiful (in it's entirity) book that I have read in a very long time. The insight into the Beatles is refreshingly honest and believable which is rare in books on the Beatles and the story of his travel down the path of life to Real Love is awesome. I loved this book and so will you!!!

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Raised near Bodega Bay when the Beatles came to America., February 4, 2002

By	Fred R. Brock (Bradenton, FL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Having been raised 25 minutes from Bodega Bay, in a Bible believing home, at the time the Beatles came to America, I could not get the connection when I saw the title of this book. Currently working part-time in a major bookstore, I saw the title on the Beatles display, picked it up and found that it had pictures of Bodega Bay and the Beatles in it. This caused me to want to read the book. I took it home to read (permitted by company policy) and ultimately purchased the book. It is a fascinating blend of Ken Mansfield's relationship with the Beatles on a personal basis and his journey to spiritual enlightenment. His descriptions of his meditative experiences in and around the shores of Bodega Bay are spiritually uplifting. His genuineness in describing both his spiritual fervor and his intimate relationships with the Beatles lends itself to reality of experience in a world so full of "novels". If you are acquainted with Beatles history and have a spiritual sensitivity, you will find this a most fascinating and readable book.