As You Wish - Nonfiction Review

Goodreads:  As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales From the Making of The Princess Bride by Cary Elwes

Rating: Loved It!

Source: Purchased (Audible)

Description:  From actor Cary Elwes, who played the iconic role of Westley in The Princess Bride, comes a first-person account and behind-the-scenes look at the making of the cult classic film filled with never-before-told stories, exclusive photographs, and interviews with costars Robin Wright, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal, Christopher Guest, and Mandy Patinkin, as well as author and screenwriter William Goldman, producer Norman Lear, and director Rob Reiner.

The Princess Bride has been a family favorite for close to three decades. Ranked by the American Film Institute as one of the top 100 Greatest Love Stories and by the Writers Guild of America as one of the top 100 screenplays of all time, The Princess Bride will continue to resonate with audiences for years to come.

Cary Elwes was inspired to share his memories and give fans an unprecedented look into the creation of the film while participating in the twenty-fifth anniversary cast reunion. In As You Wish he has created an enchanting experience; in addition to never-before seen photos and interviews with his fellow cast mates, there are plenty of set secrets, backstage stories, and answers to lingering questions about off-screen romances that have plagued fans for years!

Genre:  Nonfiction

Why I Picked This Book:  This is one of my favorite movies and I couldn't resist the audio when I saw it had been read by Cary Elwes.

My Impression:  So The Princess Bride is one of my top 5 favorite movies of all time.  I've watched it more times than I can count ever since the first time I saw it with my parents as a child.  It's one of my husband's favorite movies too.  In fact it was a topic of conversation on our very first date.  We've seen it several times since then and shared it with our kids.  So needless to say I'm a fan.  When I heard that not only had Cary Elwes written a book about his experiences filming the movie WITH passages added by most of the actors I knew I had to read it AND when I heard that he read the book and most of the other actors made appearances so that was happening.  Of course it took awhile to actually happen.  But it completely lived up to my expectations.

This book is essentially a love letter to the movie and everyone involved in it.  The level of enthusiasm from Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Billy Crystal, Chris Sarandon, Carol Kane,  Mandy Pantakin, Rob Reiner, William Goldman, and a number of other actors is so genuine that I could feel it through the audio.  I loved all the behind the scenes information and how everyone became involved in the project.  It was a total delight and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  However, if you're not a fan of the movie or have never seen it than I don't think this is the book for you.  There's isn't much drama or insight into particular actors or the industry as a whole.  If you love the movie than this is a must listen!  Now I need to go watch The Princess Bride again!

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  Possibly but it'd have to be a story that really interested me.  

Would I Recommend this Book?  If you are a fan of the movie than this is a must read though I highly recommend listening to it.