Thursday, February 23, 2012

Book Review - Drowned in the Grenadine - Dan Gilvezan

Title:  Drowned in the Grenadine

Author: Dan Gilvezan 

Review: This book is funny, cover made me laugh a bit with the line above the title that read, Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in Literature.  Reading closer I saw the tiny print above that read, No way this book will ever be…The books is a story about an actor that finds what is important in life.  The story is well paced and keeps you reading.  I enjoyed the characters and found myself cheering for Nathan.  Finding what matters most is never easy and Nathans journey is one most of us go through at sometime in our lives.

I laughed and I cried as I journeyed my way through this book.  It is well written and fast paced making it easy to keep reading while I ignored my kids.  (Maybe I need to read this again and rediscover what is most important in life.)  I never realized what a wild unpredictable world acting can be.

If you enjoy humor and someone that can laugh at themselves you will enjoy this book.  Check it out and I think you will be surprised by what you discover about your life.

Publisher: Published June 3rd 2011 by Createspace
Copyright: 2011
Pages: 258
ISBN: 9781461012306
Quick Review: 4 Stars out of 5. 
Why I Read it: Looked Funny
Where I Obtained the Book: Sent to me by the author.

Synopsis: Fancy cars, a loving wife, a designer home in the Hollywood Hills. Nathan Lindeman had it all, lost it all, and now he’s desperate to get it back. They say there are no second acts in show business, but they just may be wrong. There’s a new TV series being cast that’s virtually guaranteed to be a success, and Nathan has a shot at snagging one of the lead roles. If, that is, he can survive the perils and pitfalls that threaten to derail him along the way. Follow along on Nathan’s journey, as he deals with teenage casting directors, soulless network execs, egomaniacal fellow performers, hucksters and thieves, a cast of characters so bizarre and unbelievable they could only be based in reality. By turns, funny, sad, heartbreaking and heartfelt, Drowned in the Grenadine explores America’s fascination with celebrity, the nature of success and what it means to be both a father and a son.
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Author Biography: Born in St. Louis, Dan Gilvezan graduated with a B.A. in drama from Webster University in Webster Groves, Missouri. Upon graduating he joined the National Players touring company in Washington D.C., bringing the classics to colleges and civic centers across the country. Following his time on the road he spent several years performing in summer stock, dinner theater, childrens’ theater and repertory theater throughout the Middle Atlantic states.

Upon moving to Los Angeles, one of his first jobs was as the voice of Peter Parker/Spider-Man on NBC’s “Spider-Man & His Amazing Friends.” After this auspicious beginning other roles in animation followed, including: Jet pilot Slipstream in “G.I. Joe,” Dirk Courage in “Spiral Zone,” Sean Harrison in “Jem,” Henry Mitchell in “The All-New Dennis Menace,” Dargon in “Sectaurs,” Cooler in “The Pound Puppies,” and everyones favorite yellow Volkswagon, Bumblebee, on “The Transformers.”

Around the time of Spider-Man, Dan was hired to perform  in a TV commercial for Jack in the Box restaurants. That one commercial became a three year run as on-camera spokesman, during which time the company enjoyed an unprecedented increase in sales. Since that time, Dan has lent his talents to hundreds of television and radio commercials hawking everything from corn flakes to outboard motors.

No stranger to episodic television, Dan has guest-starred on many popular TV series: in addition to his work on Desperate Housewives, Bones, Boston Legal, NYPD Blue, The Bernie Mac Show, Miss Match, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Third Rock From the Sun, Bette, Murphy Brown, Moonlighting, and many others, he has had recurring roles on Diagnosis Murder and the cult favorite She-Wolf of London/Love and Curses.

Theater has always been Dan's first love. His work has encompassed regional theater, summer stock, children's theater, improv, national touring companies and dinner theater. Most recently he appeared in the inaugural production of Richard Martin Hirsh's comedy, "The Concept of Remainers" at the Chandler Studio Theater. In addition to enjoying an extended run, the production was nominated as best ensemble comedy by Stage Scene LA.
Dan currently resides in Los Angeles with his wife, Joselle, his daughter, Allison, and several houseplants.

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1 comment:

  1. I had heard that this was a great book to read about the "fictional" inside workings of the Hollywood machine, and I was not disappointed! I downloaded for Kindle and it was a great entertaining read with some (ahem) unexpected twists. Highly enjoyable and very funny, recommended.

    ReplyDelete

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