BOOK REVIEWS

(Book Review) Shake, Rattle and Blue Moon – The Formative Recordings of Elvis Presley 1953-1960 (Alan Tranter): This new book by Alan Tranter is not a biography, it is more accurately a chronicle of Elvis' growth; his visits to the recording studio, his first movies, his record releases, his influences, his live performances, his TV appearances, all of which paint a picture of the artist who became, and remained, King.

Need to brush up on your knowledge of Elvis’ earliest recordings or are a new fan wanting a solid account of Elvis in the studio circa 1950s?
If so, Alan Tranter’s new book is a fresh and satisfying release, chock full of background on individual songs, recording information and neat analysis of Elvis in the studio.

 Read Nigel Patterson’s full review  

(Book Review, Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

'Elvis UK - Beyond RCA' "Physical Edition" Review: To satisfy collectors who need physical versions of books rather than E-Books, UK authors John Townson and Gordon Minto have published the soft-backed PRINT COPY of 'Elvis UK Beyond RCA The Ultimate Guide To Elvis Presley's British Non-RCA LPs 1974-1997'.
It is a second edition, updated and slightly revised. The book is a newly written 377 pages, with fully comprehensive text and follows on from our previous publications in the Elvis UK series, each of them acclaimed by collectors, and provides the ultimate guide to Elvis’s non-RCA LP album releases issued in the UK between 1974-1997.
This new volume complements - and extends considerably - information relating to these particular releases included in our original books Elvis UK, published in 1987, and Elvis UK2, published in 2002
The softback book is being sold exclusively through Now Dig This / Elvis The Man And His Music.
It retails at £45 (includes p&p in the UK) overseas customers will have to pay the higher postage costs.
... EIN's copy has not arrived in Australia yet so our good friend Kees Mouwen has posted this additional review to add to our original digital flip-book detailed examination.
Go here to understand more about this new soft-cover version of this essential book for Elvis collectors
(Book Review, Source:EIN/EDayByDay)

(Book Review) 'Fact vs. Fiction in the 2022 ELVIS Movie' (Trina Young): EIN’s Nigel Patterson recently sat down to read Trina Young’s fourth book about Elvis. Given its core intent, Fact vs. Fiction in the 2022 ELVIS Movie is not a standard narrative, but rather, an illuminating treatise assessing degrees of fact and fiction in what was the most successful non-franchise movie of 2022, Baz Luhrmann’s spectacular assault on your visual and auditory senses, ELVIS.

For the core section of the book, Ms Young rates each scene based on four different criteria (note that for each scene it's time in the film is included). The author then provides narrative details for each of the last three criteria, the Storyline information often running to several pages. Her ratings for historical accuracy (truth) can be truly enthralling.

Read Nigel’s 1,750-word review

(Book Review, Source: ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) 'Elvis Aaron Presley - The Man, The Truth' (by Baby Bird): EIN's Nigel Patterson prefers a book he can hold in his hands, but for a change decided to spend an icy cold, pre-Winter's afternoon in the Australian capital, Canberra, indoors, delving inside the latest Kindle only Elvis release, Elvis Aaron Presley: The Man, The Truth by Baby Bird.
The book promises to counteract previously published "extraordinary unbelievable claims" and also "to try and dispel some of the myths and lies and show who Elvis really was on the inside"....
What he found was very unusual, interesting, but imperfect.
Read Nigel Patterson's review

(Book Review, Source:EIN)

Book Review: 8mm Elvis - The Story of Elvis on 8mm':  Long before the days of Bluray, DVD and VHS people watched home movies on 8mm film.
'8mm Elvis The Forgotten Format' is a glossy, colour, hardback book cataloguing the history of Elvis on 8mm film.
Author Vince Wright has been collecting all the Elvis 8mm he could find since the 80s.
He explained..  “I was cataloguing all these films hoping someone would write a book about it – I waited, they didn’t, so I did.”

So in 2023, and after many years of searching and researching, the author has released his comprehensive narrative and visual record of Elvis on 8mm.

This book is unique in its narrative and visual content and is an important inclusion in the complex jigsaw puzzle that forms a complete record of the multi-varied story of Elvis Presley.
Go here to read Nigel Patterson's review
(Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) Elvis vs Hitler: Elvis Is Alive IV (Robert Mickey Maughon): After a decade long break, novelist Mickey Maughon has resurrected his “still alive” Elvis Presley for another adventure.

While Adolf Hitler is dead, his son, Ivan, is very much alive and seeking vengeance for the death of his mother and father.
He also has access to technology which makes him a threat to the survival and security of the world.
And did I mention, Ivan is also an Elvis tragic!

Read Nigel Patterson’s review of the fourth entry in the author’s 'Elvis Is Alive' series.

(Book Review, Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

'Elvis UK - Beyond RCA' Book Review: UK specialists John Townson and Gordon Minto's new book 'Elvis UK - Beyond RCA - The Ultimate Guide To Elvis Presley’s British Non RCA LPs 1974-1997' flipbook follows on from their previous publications in the Elvis UK series.
This book..
• Is extensively illustrated in full colour
• Features a host of background information including a chronological list of all the albums included
• Deals with each album individually, in a detailed and forensic way, while the text is amply illustrated with scans of every known cover and label variation, relevant photographs, and scans of contemporaneous newspaper and magazine articles
• Includes background information about each release including historically significant events of the period
• Contains hitherto unpublished information from company files
• Includes a wealth of background information relating to the record industry incorporated throughout the text.

The incredible trio Nigel Patterson / Piers Beagley and Kees Mouwen (Elvis Day by Day) combine forces to check out this very detailed Digi-book.

(Book Review, Source:EIN/EDayByDay)

'The Airplanes & The King' In-depth review: The original spanish book 'Los Aviones Y El Rey' by Carlos Varrenti was republished as an expanded English version 'The Airplanes & The King' towards the end of 2022.
Not only that but it was expanded from its original 197 pages to an amazing 400 pages with a lot of unreleased material and stunning photos from the 'Elvis Files' vaults!
The English version was unfortunately delayed by supply issues due to the worldwide Covid pandemic - but has now been published as a High quality Hardback book.
As an Aeronautical engineer and Elvis fan, Varrenti is well qualified to write a book which details Elvis’ history with his aircraft and his link to aeronautics in general. With photos and stories from 1955 through to 1977 - and beyond - the book is also an interesting historical look at Elvis’ life "on tour" but this time with an delightfully original theme.

EIN's Nigel Patterson takes a very detailed look at this impressive publication and discovers a trove of delights...

(Book Reviews,  Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) Elvis For Vinyl Fans Only Vinyl Discography from Eastern Europe Yugoslavia * Romania (Piotr Soczynski): To date, Polish author Piotr Soczynski has published eight (one more to come) Elvis discographies. His first four books were two volumes chronicling Elvis’ demo and acetate records and two volumes detailing his U.S. Army vinyl records.
His most recent books have been discographies of Elvis’ music released in Eastern European countries.
All eight books are high quality “coffee table” hardcovers full of color and information for all fans, but particularly serious collectors.

EIN’s Nigel Patterson recently selected one of Piotr’s books to review.
You can read his detailed review here - with plenty of fascinating Eastern Europe vinyl images.

(Book Review, Source: ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) Guaranteed To Blow Your Mind – The November 1976 Tour Revisited (Arjan Deelen and Jon Daly): The November 1976 tour was Elvis’ eighth for the year and spanned the 24th to the 30th of the month with seven concerts in Nevada, Oregon, and California. During that last week of November Elvis appeared in Reno, Eugene (twice), Portland, San Francisco (twice), and Anaheim.

With large “coffee table” books tending to dominate the Elvis book market, many price conscious fans are always on the look-out for a more cost-effective option.
Does Arjan Deelen’s latest book chronicling one of Elvis’ best tours of 1976 fit the bill?

Read Nigel Patterson’s review to find out

(Book Review, Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) Elvis Live At The International 50th Anniversary Edition (Kieran Davis): In 2011, Kieran Davis released the highly praised book, Elvis Live At The International. In 2022, he has published an expanded 50th Anniversary edition…and what an expansion it is!
The latest edition dwarfs the original with 432 pages compared to 172 in the original release.
And the added 250+ pages of additional material is stunning, making the 50th Anniversary release one of the best Elvis books published in 2022.

As its title reflects, the book covers Elvis' appearances at the International Hotel in Las Vegas between 1969 and 1971 (it was renamed the Las Vegas Hilton in July 1971). The narrative element is significantly based around fan, Peggy Elzea’s copious diaries, and a bumper array of archival material. Peggy’s experience seeing Elvis in Las Vegas is one every fan will envy.
There is so much fascinating information and so many striking images in the book that it is hard to know where to start in describing it...

Read Nigel Patterson’s detailed 2,700 words review

(Book Review, Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) Destined To Fly: The Story of Pilot Ron Strauss – From Iowa to Elvis (Sally A. Hoedel): In 2020, Sally Hoedel published her first Elvis related book, the acclaimed Destined To Die Young. Ms Hoedel’s second book, the fascinating story of the pilot of Elvis’ Lisa Marie jet, Ron Strauss, is nearing publication (September 2022).

The book includes a fabulous Elvis-related story about Ron Strauss visiting his bank manager to obtain a home mortgage and the time Ron fell asleep in Elvis’ bed will bring a smile to the reader’s face. Other interesting accounts include Ron’s reaction to Elvis carrying a loaded gun on board (in a pressurized cabin), and many readers will appreciate reading how Ron felt about Linda Thompson and Ginger Alden.

EIN’s Nigel Patterson recently took flight with an advance copy. What Nigel found, not only added appreciably to his knowledge of a rarely written about aspect of the Elvis Presley story and provided greater insight as to who Elvis was as a person, but also offered a wonderfully rich and entertaining account of the life and times of the underappreciated, Ron Strauss.

Read Nigel’s full review

(Book Review: Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) Elvis The King of the Rings Volume 2 (Paul Bélard): The second volume of Paul Bélard’s two volume photo-journal record of Elvis’ love of rings has been released.
While on holiday, EIN’s Nigel Patterson spent a leisurely afternoon perusing the rich narrative detail and jaw dropping, visual splendor on offer....

... They say first impressions last! The cover image of Elvis’ famous TCB ring is truly striking and sets the tone for what is an impressive examination of another 100+ rings that Elvis owned during his lifetime.
This is more than a photo-book and while the mostly colour images dominate, the narrative component contains valuable and interesting information...

This is Nigel’s detailed review- including nine stunning images from the book
(Book Review, Source: ElvisInformationNetwork)

Book Review: 'Elvis Presley, Gospel Singer – An Inspirational Life' (Madeleine Wilson): This new book differentiates itself by being a “Christian biography” where Elvis’ life and career is considered within the prism of his faith and love of gospel music.
It is a long overdue release which covers seminal factors that defined Elvis Presley the person, and Elvis Presley the artist.

... Elvis, “The King”, many times said publicly that there is only one King, and that is Jesus Christ. He not only acknowledged the Lord but also worshipped Him and prayed to Him, often.
(Madeleine Wilson)

It has been said that the formula of a great tragedy is that a fatal flaw prevents tremendous potential from being realized, and the ending is one of ruin not of joy.
In many ways, the life story of Elvis Presley can be seen as one of tragedy…

Read Nigel Patterson’s detailed review.

(Book Review, Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

'Elvis UK Cover Story' Book Review: Elvis experts John Townson and Gordon Minto recently published their new (digital) book 'Elvis UK Cover Story: The Ultimate Guide To Elvis Presley's British EP & LP Sleeves 1956-1977' designed to add to and complement their original 'Elvis UK' book.
It is a 286 page, fully comprehensive book, providing the ultimate guide to Elvis’s EP and LP album sleeves released in the UK between 1956-1977.
Extensively illustrated in full colour and arranged in sections, this book addresses a wide range of topics including back cover photos, printing companies, sleeve notes, etc.
There are extended sections including 'Front Cover – Fact File', and 'For UK Fans Only' an in-depth study of those albums that originated in the UK, or were only ever available in the UK.
It includes a wealth of background info incorporated into the text.
It is a downloadable digital flip-book stored on your own device.
Reading through this fact-filled investigation, the amazing thing EIN discovered was just how many sleeve variations, UK only releases, and cheap RCA / Parker design decisions there were.
For the world’s biggest superstar some of their marketing decisions were truly bewildering. And some of their design choices total madness.

EIN's Piers Beagley spent plenty of time enjoying the craziness of RCA's vinyl marketing though the ages - as well as spinning his old UK vinyl .. see his review...
(Book Reviews: Source;ElvisInfoNet)

Book Review - Elvis: The Quest For An Oscar (James Turiello): Many will find it surprising that someone could write more than 500 pages detailing the case why Elvis deserves to receive an Honorary Academy Award, but author James Turiello has achieved this with his latest book.
EIN's Nigel Patterson spent a weekend exploring the author's argument.
Can someone who appeared in Kissin' Cousins, Harum Scarum and Clambake really be Oscar worthy?
In a detailed review, Nigel discusses what the book has to offer and provides his assessment of whether or not the author successfully makes his case that Elvis is deserving of an Honorary Oscar.

Go here to read Nigel's insightful review
(Book Review, Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) 'Disc Jockeys, Preachers, and Elvis': From author /DJ Ron Brandon 'Disc Jockeys, Preachers, and Elvis' is a self-published biography.
Ron Brandon was the person who recorded Elvis' 1956 live performance in Tupelo and our Elvis legacy would be less rich had he not done so and then sent Elvis a personal copy!
The book details "55 years of Behind The Scenes stories of Disc Jockeys, Rock & Roll, and Elvis.. as told by the author that lived them"
It includes 23 chapters, 96 pages, 150 photos many in color, A4 size with large type easy-to-read, excellent quality.
Chapters include sections on radio stations WTUP Tupelo 1956, WMOC Chattanooga 1962, WNOE and Marty Lacker New Orleans 1963, 'Radio Music Report' magazine, Sex Drugs and Rock 'n' Roll, as well as the story of 'Elvis comes home to Tupelo'. Brandon tells the stories of hard work, meeting loads of radio personalities and getting a successful time slot in multiple radio stations. He meets plenty of interesting characters along the way, both good and bad! He also was the person who tracked down Elvis' 'Mystery Kisser'!

Packed full of stories EIN's Piers Beagley spent time enjoying this look into a very interesting life well-lived! go here to find out more
(Book Review, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

Book Review: elvis presley Un fenomeno  mondiale nelle cronache italiane (Volume 1) 1956-1959 (Luca Casteellino and Ernesto Zucconi): Late in 2021 this new book from Italy was released. As the first volume in a five volume (scrapbook type) series, the book catalogues Elvis’ impact in Italy in the first years of Elvis’ international super-stardom.

EIN’s Nigel Patterson spent a weekend consulting Google Translate and exploring what is featured in an absorbing, richly narrative and visual, 155 pages of Elvis Italian style.

Read Nigel’s full review

(Book Review, Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) 'Don't Be Cruel, Elvis: The Bill Black Story': It is easy to forget that, in the beginning, Elvis was only one part of a trio put together by Sam Phillips, which included Bill Black on bass and Scotty Moore on lead guitar.
The unique sound that emerged from their early sessions was the result of a close collaboration of like-minded musicians and an engineer who wanted to generate something as yet unheard.
Bill Black's contribution to Elvis’ success went beyond the bass playing. His antics on stage — twirling his bass, riding it as if it was a bronco to be tamed, trading corny jokes with Elvis — delighted the audiences. Scotty confirmed that, “If it hadn’t been for Bill, we would have bombed many times in the early days.”
Memphis Mansion’s Henrik Knudsen fortuitously befriended Bill Black's family and was entrusted with the family’s treasured scrapbook.
Using this key source, plus the investigative power of author Paul Belard, key rock'n'roll bassman Bill Black finally gets the biography he deserves with this impressive 260 page book.

Packed full of rare photos, great stories and interviews, EIN's Piers Beagley spent some quality time enjoying this very fine tribute to "Blackie" a great musician and a true character ... go here to find out more..
(Book Review, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) Elvis June 1956: June 1956 was another busy month for Elvis Presley and author Paul Bélard captures the frenzy and excitement of Elvis' rocket-to-stardom in this new photo-book, ‘Elvis June 1956’.
Elvis' 1956 juggernaut was picking up strength during the month with a series of dynamic live shows across America, appearing on Wink Martindale’s ‘Dance Party’ TV show, violating segregation laws in Memphis, outraging media critics and many parents with his burlesque show rendition of ‘Hound Dog’ on The Milton Berle Show and rehearsing for his appearance on The Steve Allen Show as the highlights.
The book includes some wonderful archive material such as..
- “Singing Sensation Causes Near Riot Here”
- “Writhing Singer Has Long Beach Soxers Wailing”
- "Elvis Sends 6,400 Here Into Frenzy”
- “Presley Leaves You In A Blue Suede Funk”
· “The Presley Problem”
This graphic biography illustrates how our man worked hard getting his career off the ground. All this packed on 220 pages.
Go here as Nigel Patterson and Kees Mouwen check out this look at one of Elvis' key months of his career
(Book Review, Source:EIN & EDayByDay)

Book Review 'From Elvis in Japan': David Ward's 'From Elvis in Japan: Elvis Presley Japanese LPs 1956-2018' is the a very detailed and visually attractive Elvis “discography”. It covers Elvis LP (vinyl) releases in Japan between 1956 and 2018, the e-book is full of interesting information about each release and stunning images of the LP covers and discs.

The discography contains information on 131 Elvis LPs released in the “land of the rising sun”, a complete song index, and “value add” sections such as How to Read Elvis’ Name in Japanese, Japanese Albums with US Artwork, and English Lyrics (the translations are often outrageously funny!).

Japan also pressed plenty of unique compilations such as 'Elvis Presley Special 24', 'Elvis on Screen', 'Elvis Presley The Complete Singles (11 LP box set)' and 'Elvis Presley By Request of Japanese Fans'.

Go here and discover even more as EIN's Nigel Patterson reviews this fascinating look at Elvis' Japan releases.

(Book Review, Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

Book Review 'Christmas with Elvis: The Official Guide': Out Now from author Robert Elder, 'Christmas with Elvis: The Official Guide to the Holidays from the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll'
Written in collaboration with EPE, the book helps you Celebrate Christmas with the King of Rock n' Roll!
In this spirit, Christmas with Elvis is designed like a Christmas party Elvis himself would have liked. It’s a behind-the-scenes look at the iconic music and songs Elvis sang and recorded for his bestselling holiday albums, alongside favorite stories, trivia, and Yuletide cocktails and munchies, all wrapped up with a merry Christmas twist fit for the King of Rock ’n’ Roll.

Go here as EIN’s Nigel Patterson investigates more...

(Book Reviews, Source;/ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) Elvis The Army Years Uncovered (Trina Young): EIN thanks our good friend, Kees Mouwen (administrator of the best Elvis blog on the Internet....Elvis Day By Day), for allowing us to publish his informative review of Trina Young’s latest book.

Despite what some fans may think, Elvis’ Army years were eventful, full of interesting and sometimes sad, incidents.
Those two years in the Army were important in shaping Elvis as a person.
As Kees notes in his enlightening review, in her book, Trina Young “goes behind the superficial public relations story of Presley’s army years”.

Read Kees’ detailed review

(Book Review: Source: Kees Mouwen)

(Book Review) Elvis November 1956: As fans, we do not always realize that what we think we know about Elvis’ life, happened in short periods of time. Paul Belard’s visual biography series illustrates how hectic Elvis’ life and rise to fame was.
The latest release in Paul Belard’s series of photobooks, covering just one month in 1956, highlights just how much happened.
It was a busy time, Elvis spent time with his girlfriend Natalie Wood and buddy, Nick Adams on his new Harley Davidson. He did a small tour in the south with Scotty, DJ and Bill making stops in Toledo, Cleveland, Troy and Louisville, Kentucky. And managed to squeeze in a 10-day holiday with Bitsy Mott, Gene Smith and Richard Dougher to Las Vegas, returning to the New Frontier Hotel.

EIN’s Nigel Patterson and Elvis Day By Day’s Kees Mouwen joined forces to provide a detailed review of the narrative, visual and archival highlights from what was a a very busy month for the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll.

(Book Review, Source:EIN & EDayByDay)

Book Review: 'Elvis The King of the Rings Vol 1': Author-researcher Paul Belard has released the latest installment in his ongoing Elvis day-by-day biography series, visually (and narratively) documenting Elvis Presley's life and times. Unlike previous volumes, this book doesn’t cover a specific period of time, it covers a “shiny” part of our man's life, his love for big and glittery jewelry, specifically rings.
Elvis liked expensive things: cars, motorcycles, clothes, and jewelry. His jewels befitted a king. He wore sumptuous pendants hung on heavy gold chains; huge lavish rings dripping of rubies, sapphires, lapis lazuli, and emeralds; bracelets of gold and precious gems.
The singer Robert Goulet described Elvis’ penchant for generosity: “I remember once we sat together backstage for two hours. And he was a charming, delightful man. And at one point I said, “That’s a beautiful ring you have there.” He said, “You like it?” I said, “It’s beautiful!” He took it off his hand and put it on mine. He gave me his ring.”

Belard's new book features 254 pages dedicated to Elvis’ love of rings.
The photos include close-ups of so much glorious "Bling" along with stories of Elvis wearing them on-stage and even where they ended up.
Go here to read our review by Kees Mouwen and Nigel Patterson
(Book Review, Source:DayByDay/ElvisInformationNetwork)

Book Review 'An A-Z of Elvis': Joe Shooman’s new book 'An A-Z of Elvis... Infrequently Asked Questions' is an offbeat look at various parts of the Elvis story.
As the author notes, "This isn’t your bog-standard rehash of the same old Elvis tropes, instead we decided to look for the weird and wonderful…"

The A-Z entries are a diverse, eclectic collection, from the well-known to the weird and controversial. Each entry is afforded a paragraph or two up to a page of interesting text, with many of the entries complemented by impressive contemporary, hand drawn, artwork.

Our review discovers that at times, there is an almost punk sensibility in the narrative as author Joe Shooman dredges the darkest recesses of the multi-layered Elvis story and occasionally assaults the reader’s conception of Elvis Presley reality....

Go here as EIN's Nigel Patterson checks out this fascinating sounding publication.

(Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

'Elvis Day By Day 2020' Book Review: 2020 is a year none of us will forget. But as we all tried to adapt to a "new normal" the wonderful world of Elvis Presley provided a very fine distraction. 2020 brought us several great Elvis releases on CD and vinyl (lots of it!), many new books, movie releases on DVD, Blu-ray and in cinemas around the world. We had to say good-bye to friends from the Elvis world and there was the Covid-19 pandemic, which had a huge impact on the Elvis world too.

Everything Elvis Presley from 2020 is captured in this comprehensive, day-by-day yearbook. Fully illustrated, with new in-depth reviews, articles and interviews on the main - and odd-ball - releases of the year. The good, the bad, the funny and the sad, and even the news and reviews you may have missed. All packed in one comprehensive book to revisit 2020 as it happened.

The book is.. "Impeccably written, in an attractive and easy to read composition, it is peppered with facts accompanied by high quality B&W and color pictures. It demonstrates in detail that Elvis is still present and influential."
Go here to Elvis author Paul Belard's full review..
(Book Reviews, Source;PB/ElvisInfoNet)

Book Review – 'Elvis 1956 July 5 to July 31 (Memphis-Biloxi-New Orleans)': Paul Belard’s latest photobook is another strong release. Focusing on a month in 1956 when Elvis actually got to take vacation.
Starting on July 5, 1956 (the day after Elvis’ triumphant concert at Russwood Park in Memphis - this will be covered in another volume), the hundreds of photos (many candid shots) show a different side to Elvis than normally associated with books about Elvis during the height of Presleymania.

.. July 1956, Elvis days off were spent deep sea fishing and relaxing before Elvis returned to Memphis on the 20th, where photographer, Lloyd Shearer, was on hand to take a slew of photos of Elvis around the city. At the end of the month Elvis returned to Biloxi....

The images are nicely complemented by a diverse and fascinating collection of archival materials.

Go here to read EIN’s detailed review from Nigel Patterson

(Book Review, Source: ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) The Jewish World of Elvis Presley (Roselle Kline Chartock): The latest Elvis related book by an academic draws attention to an issue many fans will have been unaware of – the strong affinity Elvis had with Jews and how it influenced his life. Jews were disproportionately represented in Elvis’ life and inner circle – for instance, five of the Memphis Mafia were Jews. Was it just coincidence that there were so many Jews in Elvis’ life or was there something more at work?

Roselle Kline Chartock (Professor Emerita of Education) has written an absorbing and accessible account of the importance of Jews in Elvis’ life from his Jewish roots to the many personal friendships and professional relationships he enjoyed with them.
In so doing, the author reveals that what has previously been seen as a series of anecdotes, is actually a coherent and important theme in the Elvis story.
Read Nigel Patterson’s detailed review

(Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInfomationNetwork)

(Book Review): Kid of the King (Liz Presley): The world knows Lisa Marie Presley to be the only child of Elvis and Priscilla. In this new book, Liz Presley claims to be the “older sibling” of Lisa Marie - a claim that will be met with derision and disbelief by most fans.
EIN’s Nigel Patterson offers his views on Ms Presley’s claim and the author’s wider story which traverses her struggles with gender identity (Liz was born ‘David’), a troubled upbringing, becoming successful in business, fulfilling her dream to be a singer, and, most importantly, finding “herself” and her “real family”. Regardless of what readers think of the author’s claim, EIN’s Nigel Patterson found that there is an important message reflected in Kid of the King.

Read Nigel’s detailed review

(Book Review, Source: ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) Elvis@Argentina 1963-1969 (Carlos Ares): The second volume in Carlos Ares’ series of “coffee table” books detailing Elvis’ reception in Argentina is another high quality production. With a great balance between informative text, colorful images and impressive archival artefacts, it is a worthy inclusion in any fan’s Elvis library.

It is available in English and Spanish text editions.

Read EIN Nigel Patterson’s detailed review

(Book Review, Source:ElvisInfoNetwork)

'Walk A Lonely Street' Book Review: Recently published Tony Plews, 'Walk A Lonely Street: Elvis Presley, Country Music & The True Story of Heartbreak Hotel' is a unique volume that tells the tale of Elvis Presley’s rise to fame as viewed through the lens of his era-defining first hit record, “Heartbreak Hotel”. Presented as a series of consecutive short stories, it offers a new perspective on Presley’s musical and cultural achievements, and reveals the true and dramatic saga behind the breakthrough song that changed the world.
In EIN Piers Beagley's detailed review he discovers that.. the true joy of this book is Tony Plews’ delightful and engaging writing style. His detailed research and his mix of facts and imagination blend together to create an emotional narrative that really draws the reader in. At times he also adds a nice British, somewhat droll, sense of humour that can make you laugh out loud. A totally enthralling musical journey, Tony Plews writes with a truly engaging, colourful and passionate style. If your love of Elvis is based upon his amazing musical legacy then this is the book for you....
Go here to EIN's 'Walk A Lonely Street' in-depth review
Coming Wednesday.. EIN interviews author Tony Plews
(Book Review, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) 'Technicolor to Black & White' (Jean-Marie Pouzenc): The latest ‘coffee table” multi-media” (book, CD and 10” vinyl) set from Jean-Marie Pouzenc continues his history of producing fan pleasing, high quality, releases!
Focusing on Elvis’ film career in France it is a wonderfully expressive record of its subject and offers a neatly balanced package between its narrative, visual, archival and audio elements.

Elvis didn’t incarnate almost supernatural heroes, he was you and he was all of us. He played an everyday guy, an ordinary character with a job....(Jean-Marie Pouzenc)

Read EIN’s detailed review by Nigel Patterson

(Book Review, Source: ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) Elvis Firearm & Weapon Collector An Illustrated Compendium (Paul Belard): The latest photobook from prolific Elvis author/researcher, Paul Belard, Elvis Firearm & Weapon Collector An Illustrated Compendium, focuses on one of Elvis’ major passions.  Elvis’ love of guns (and other weapons) is well known, but until now there has not been a detailed narrative and visual record of this passion. Belard has managed to compile a visually impressive and narratively comprehensive account, presenting hundreds of Elvis’ guns, knives, holsters, and other associated items, and most of the items are in color.

With interesting background information and a range of rare archival material (including affidavits, auction records, and letters of provenance) this book is an important one which neatly fills a hole in the multi-faceted Elvis story.

Read EIN’s full review

(Book Review, Source: ElvisInfoNetwork)

(Book Review) Destined to Die Young (Sally Hoedel): Could Elvis’ death at the young age of 42 have been avoided? This question is answered in Sally Hoedel’s thought provoking book, Destined to Die Young.

The book is the result of exhaustive research by the author who found a key factor which was to affect Elvis throughout his life – one which meant that regardless of his diet and overuse of prescription medication, he was destined to die young. The narrative is full and colorful, and its depth of detail reflects the extent of research undertaken by the author.

In her introduction, the author establishes an important context for Elvis’ longevity (or lack of longevity) and health issues, this being his family tree....  Hoedel identifies the genetic disorder as Antitrypsin Deficiency, a condition which can result in lung and/or liver disease. In this respect, her discussion of the life and death of Gladys Presley is thought provoking..

Go here to read EIN Nigel Patterson's detailed review

(Book Review. Source: ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) From Elvis in Memphis (Eric Wolfson): The 150th volume in the popular Bloomsbury Academic 33 1/3 series of music history and criticism books is Eric Wolfson’s From Elvis in Memphis (due out on 12 November).
EIN’s Nigel Patterson recently sat down and submerged himself in what is the first (and long overdue) extensive examination of any Elvis album.
What Nigel found was a deeply considered, strongly written, and thought provoking analysis of what many regard as Elvis’ finest album.

.. "In 1968, Elvis Presley was worse than dead – he was irrelevant. After helping to establish rock and roll as a cultural force and becoming its biggest star in the 1950s, he now found himself eclipsed by the music. New artists like the Beatles and Bob Dylan blew the mid-1960’s rock landscape wide open.. Elvis, once the epitome of the young and exciting rock and roll star, had become old and stale.
From the moment that From Elvis in Memphis begins with a rock and roll Odysseus returning home after “a little while”, the album refuses to settle. Over the course of the record, people drive eight-wheel locomotives, ride in long black limousines, and soar like beautiful birds...."

Read Nigel’s detailed 3,000+ words review of From Elvis in Memphis

(Book Review, Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

‘TTWII 50th Anniversary Collectors Edition’ FTD Book Review: FTD's most expensive set ever published, David English and Pal Granlund bring the complete background story of 'Elvis: That's The Way It Is'. Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the movie's 1970 release, this ultimate collector's edition includes two hardback books, eight cds with over 450 minutes of music, including newly discovered unreleased performances.
With access to 2,000 original negatives and 35mm slides, restored and repaired, many of which have never been seen before, the book also contains items from the MGM and RCA archives including paperwork, documents, memos and recording information.
Two books, 600 pages, plus all the MGM recorded rehearsals - including 70 tracks officially unreleased.
FTD's most expensive set but with the vast majority of the rehearsals already out on bootleg, can it really be worth the US$270 plus postage. Initially Sold Out and already into its first reprint what makes it so desirable?
EIN's Piers Beagley investigates and discovers plenty .. Go here to our 6000 word review including plenty of extracts and stunning images.
(FTD Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review): Elvis Roots, Image, Comeback, Phenomenon (Mark Duffett): The latest book release from Mark Duffett (author of Counting Down Elvis His 100 Finest Songs) was recently published.
In Elvis Roots, Image, Comeback, Phenomenon, the author returns to his academic roots and offers readers a fresh and stimulating perspective on how the Elvis Presley phenomenon should be considered in 2020.
Challenging other academic positions, Duffett traverses a rich theoretical terrain, including race, culture, consumerism, and sociological and psychological theory, in presenting his position.

EIN’s Nigel Patterson offers his view on this new book. Read Nigel’s detailed review here.

(Book Review, Source: EIN)

'INSIDE ELVIS' - Book Review: With the world in lockdown now is the perfect opportunity to invest time into some quality and thought provoking reading. 'Inside Elvis' by author Arjan Deelen might be just what the doctor ordered, with insightful interviews from key Elvis musicians such as James Burton, Scotty Moore, Jerry Scheff, Glen D. Hardin, Charlie Hodge, Bob Lanning, Jim Murray, Duke Bardwell and many more.
We can learn what was it like working with Elvis. What was it like being on the road day after day as the world’s most famous entertainer and it all helps us understand more about Elvis’ complicated life story.
The 300-page book also contains over 300 photographs from the collections of various high-profile collectors, and most of these are in color and razor-sharp.
The artwork of the book was done by graphic artist Michael van Werven, who has made it a visually stunning work.
Also included is a Bonus CD with 29-tracks containing various rarities.

EIN's Piers Beagley takes a break and enjoys soaking up time with Elvis and his friends. Go here for his review and check out some example pages along the way.
(Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) Elvis March 7 to March 31: Paul Belard’s latest photobook focuses on the 25 days following Elvis’ discharge from the Army up to and including his important appearance on the Frank Sinatra Timex “Welcome Home Elvis” TV Special.

Over more than 200 pages, the author has compiled an impressive collection of images and rich archival material.

Read EIN’s detailed review

(Book Review, Source: ElvisInfoNet)  

MRS 'Elvis:Back In Living Stereo' in-depth Review: The new MRS set contains 6CDs of essential 1960-1962 master recordings, plus rare alternate outtakes - including plenty of officially unreleased material - and all of the personal home recordings Elvis made during the 1960s.
The 100 page book, with text from Gordon Minto, includes rare unpublished documents and photographs, supported by a comprehensive text discussing each of Elvis’ RCA studio (non-film) recording sessions held during 1960-62.
Musically the packed cds - over seven hours - present a stunning look at Elvis recording in the early sixties before the shine wore off. The "Master" sessions nicely contrast with the looser "Outtakes" discs and with Elvis getting even more uninhibited on the Home Recordings. - Very unihibited with a certain Nancy Sharpe!

But with so much thrown into the mix, and some tracks in poor audio quality, have MRS packed "Too Much" into the one release.

Go here as EIN's Nigel Patterson & Piers Beagley check out the positives and negatives in their in-depth review.

(Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

'The Guitar Player Worth A Damn' - The King In Motion Vol. 4 (Venus Productions): Elvis' 1972 'On Tour' performances have been featured in multiple books as well as the official MGM movie / DVD. The latest Venus Productions multimedia set revisits this tour with a composite book, DVD and CD set.

The DVD promises a qualified revamp of "Elvis On Tour" compiled from hours of unreleased footage taken from the best sources available - while the CDs include the never-before-released Hampton Roads Afternoon Show from April 9, 1972 plus an unreleased alternate mix of Elvis' Greensboro April 14, 1972 concert.
The main feature is the 200 page hardcover book with loads of rare pictures of the On Tour performances.

EIN's Piers Beagley and Nigel Patterson recently explored this new release. What did they find? How does the book component compare to other Venus releases? What do the audio-visual elements offer?

Read Piers and Nigel's detailed review featuring plenty of example pages of 1972 Elvis 'On Tour' on-stage action.

(Review, Source: ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review): Elvis September 1958 - Germany Bound (Paul Belard): Paul Belard's latest visual and archival record of the Elvis story focuses on just one month, September 1958. This was the month Elvis prepared for his departure from the USA on deployment to Germany to continue his Army training.

EIN's Nigel Patterson took a tour of duty through Germany Bound. He has taken inventory and you can read what Nigel found here:

Read Nigel's review ......

..(Book Review, Source: EIN)

(Book Review): Elvis January-February 1956 (Paul Belard): Prolific Elvis publisher, Paul Belard, recently released two more titles as part of his mammoth project to document the Elvis story through (well known and obscure) pictures and rare archival material.

EIN's Nigel Patterson offers his perspective on what the first of Belard's new books, Elvis January-February 1956, has to offer.

The titular months were among the more important in the early part of Elvis' career and Paul Belard has unearthed a wide range of interesting and rare material.

Read Nigel's review (Book Review, Source: EIN)

'Elvis: Stories Behind The Songs' Book Review:  BBC Local Radio presenter Matt Shepherd has published his first printed book looking at some of Elvis' biggest hits and lesser known treasures.
'Elvis Presley: Stories Behind The Songs' is the first of a two volume book and starts in January 1969, almost 50 years ago, when Elvis recorded in Memphis for the first time in 14 years.
The 248-page book features nine chapters examining Elvis' stunning musical legacy. Elvis' recordings from 1969 - 1973 feature in the first section of the book while Elvis' fabulous fifties performances make up the second part.
A lot of EIN readers will have read so much about Elvis' amazing legacy already that a new book really needs to have an alternate viewpoint to keep one interested - and we think Sheppard’s 248-page book does just that.
Unlike other books, Sheppard’s examination of each song (usually) explains the composers backstory, the connection to Elvis, who previously recorded the song, alternate reviews, interview extracts and website links to other sites (such as youtube) and performances of the song by other artists.

EIN's Piers Beagley selected the book for some summer holiday reading on the beach and found himself enjoying what he found ..

(Book Reviews, Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review): Elvis in Vegas: How the King Reinvented the Las Vegas Show (Richard Zoglin): EIN recently interviewed senior editor of Time magazine, Richard Zoglin, about his new book, Elvis in Vegas.

To complement our interview, EIN's Nigel Patterson provides a detailed review of Zoglin's book, a release that offers a lot more than its title suggests, and a book that is clearly one of the most important Elvis releases of 2019.

Read Nigel's detailed review of Elvis in Vegas: How the King Reinvented the Las Vegas Show

Read EIN's interview with the author, Richard Zoglin

Best (and Worst) Books of 2018: What were the best Elvis books published in 2018? The worst? The most incredulous?

EIN's Nigel Patterson, with help from Piers Beagley, has compiled an extensive list of the best and worst Elvis books of last year.

The 14 award categories include the best:

• general biography
• "subject specific" release
• composite (book/CD and/or DVD) release
• "insider" memoir
• photo-journal
• fiction release
• ebook
• book for younger readers
• non-english text
• re-issue
• fan club/fan publication
• most incredulous release

Plus EIN names its top two Elvis books of 2018!

To find out what they are (and why) and read about more than 70 other Elvis books published in 2018 click here..(Spotlight, Source: EIN)

(Critical Review) Letters from Elvis (Gary Lindberg): In his latest book, author/researcher Gary Lindberg claims that Elvis wrote 65 letters to his "spiritual adviser", Carmen Montez.

This controversial book is incensing many fans with claims including that Elvis had close friendships with Marlon Brando and Harry Belafonte and Elvis was abducted and sexually assaulted.
Other claims that have received next to nil coverage are that Vernon Presley was not Elvis' biological father and that Elvis' "lost (true) love" disappeared under mysterious and violent circumstances.

EIN's Nigel Patterson takes an extensive and critical look inside Letters from Elvis in a 7,000+ word critical review.

Nigel's review covers a lot of interesting and relevant issues, both technical and Elvis related. It dissects major claims in the book, examines the role of forensic document examination and graphoanalysis, outlines copyright law around letters, examines third party records in relation to several of the claims, and identifies another celebrity "letters" case - one where the letters were initially authenticated, but later revealed to be an elaborate hoax - this case may be instructive in considering Letters from Elvis.

Contributing to Nigel's review are comments from Elvis' known "spiritual adviser", Larry Geller. (Book Review, Source: EIN)

(Book Review) The Elvis Experience (Dave Hebler): As a member of Elvis' Memphis Mafia, Dave Hebler was part of Elvis' inner sanctum at least until his acromonious sacking, along with Red West and Sonny West, in 1976, and the subsequent publication of the infamous book, Elvis What Happened?.

Over the years, Dave, Red and Sonny West reclaimed respect in the Elvis world, at least with many fans, if not the Presley family and EPE.

Dave Hebler's new book was released during Elvis Week 2018.

The Elvis Experience has a 'fan friendly' feel to it. There are many amusing and fun stories and the author does not shy away from discussing at least some of the not so positive aspects of his experience working for Elvis.

To find out more about "The Elvis Experience" you can read Nigel Patterson's in-depth review here.

(Book Review, Source: EIN)

(Book Review) Psychological Autopsy of Elvis Presley The Elvis Analysis: The Role of Suggestion in the Etiology of Psyhcosomatic Disorders (Willliam J. Ronan): Why did Elvis die? In a technically complex and thought provoking exploration of Elvis' death, William Ronan, Clinical Member of AAMH and American Psychotherapy Association Diplomat, presents his case for considering causative factors - principally how cumulative personal loss and its associated trauma led to Elvis' loneliness, depression and addiction, factors which affected his physical state and ultimately contributed to his death.

Read Nigel Patterson's detailed review .....................(Book Review, Source: EIN)

Book Review - 'Elvis The Gospel Singer' (Paul Belard): Paul Belard has a quest to present the Elvis story in chronological visual form. To date he has released seven books with another 40+ at an advanced stage. In Elvis The Gospel Singer Belard moves from his chronological account of the Elvis day-by-day biography and offers a subject specific chronological account of Elvis' favourite music: gospel.

Over an impressive 300+ pages the author offers a full account of the gospel artists and music influencing Elvis and provides the lyrics for, and often background information to, all of Elvis' gospel recordings.

With more narrative than usual Belard delves deep into Elvis and his love of gospel music and includes rare historic material, and some unusual but valid song choices.

Read Nigel Patterson's review of Elvis The Gospel Singer.
(Book Review, Source; ELvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) The Elvis Map A Travel Guide: It is always good to see releases from countries not as well associated with Elvis book publishing.

The Elvis Map A Travel Guide is one of two book(let)s released by the Official Elvis Presley Fan Club of Finland.

The book(let) is a neat, slimline release which allows the reader to “walk a mile” in Elvis’ shoes in both his birth town Tupelo, and his long-time home city, Memphis.

Read Nigel Patterson's full review

(Book Reviews, Source: ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review): Elvis 1960 Seven Days In March (Paul Belard): Elvis researcher, Paul Belard's latest photo-book visually chronicles Elvis' discharge from the Army to his arrival back home in Memphis.

EIN's Nigel Patterson recently submerged himself in the visual and archival record of what was an important "turning point" in the complex Elvis story.

Sections include..
Nearly 40 pages covering Elvis leaving his home in Bad Nauheim;
Rare images from Elvis' plane ride back home via Scotland;
Elvis' arrival back in America and being met by Nancy Sinatra;
Elvis’ last Army breakfast and Army discharge:
Elvis' triumphant train ride from Washington to Memphis:

Read Nigel's detailed review

(Book Review, Source: EIN)

(Book Review) The Comeback - Elvis and the Story of the 68 Special (Simon Goddard): The past two months have been a busy period regarding Elvis' legendary '68 Comeback Special. Marking its 50th anniversary, the Special was shown in cinemas and two new books were published, one by Steve Binder (Director/Producer of the Special) and the other by noted rock music analyst, Simon Goddard.

EIN's Nigel Patterson recently took a few deep breaths and submerged himself in the Simon Goddard release.

Having previously read a number of the author's cerebrally challenging books, he was not surprised to find that Goddard's treatise on Elvis' legendary Comeback Special is one hell of an intellectively challenging and dizzy rollercoaster of a ride....... a journey most rewarding for those brave enough to go the distance.

Read Nigel's detailed review (Book Review, Source: EIN)

'The Complete ‘50s Movie Masters And Session Recordings' In-Depth Review: This MRS 'The Complete ‘50s Movie Masters And Session Recordings' 5CD/Book combo pays tribute to Elvis Presley’s complete music recordings made for his movies during the 1950s.
The 5CDs contain the complete works of the master and session studio recordings made for each of Elvis’ movies during the 1950s, and all tracks have been remastered.
The 200-page book focuses on each of the recording sessions held for the four motion pictures made between August 1956 and March 1958.
The comprehensive text is complemented by rare and previously unseen photographs and documentation.

So what surprises will collectors discover in this new set, what is in this new collection that FTD have missed and how good will the audio sound.

Go here as EIN's Nigel Patterson & Piers Beagley provide an in-depth review of this new MRS release

(Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Multimedia set review) - Tearing 'Em Up! 1971 - The King In Motion Vol. 3 (Venus Productions): Elvis' 1971 tour has been well served by a number of very strong book releases. The latest Venus Productions multimedia set revisits the tour with a composite book, DVD and CD set.

The DVD includes 40 minutes of concert footage from the November 1971 Tour. The footage has been professionally synced with the Boston November 10th show.
The main feature is the 209 page hardcover book with loads of rare pictures of the complete tour! 

EIN's Piers Beagley and Nigel Patterson recently explored this new release. What did they find? How does the book component compare to other releases on the tour? What do the audio-visual elements offer?

Read Piers and Nigel's detailed review featuring plenty of example pages of 1971 Elvis on stage action.

(Review, Source: EIN)

'The EPE Catalog' Book Review: Bob Pakes' 'The EPE Catalog' presents an A-Z guide, 390 packed pages, with over 1,450 images on every weird and wonderful product that was part of the immensely successful 1956 Elvis Presley merchandise train.
The book contains an unbelievable number of photographs and documents showing how much product EPE tried to flog to the fans.  Anyone want an Elvis Presley hot-plate or some mittens!?
The book is an incredible compendium of how teenage America went crazy for Elvis Presley and the clever exploitation of their teenage cravings by one Col Parker via Hank Saperstein.
Incredibly around 80 different Elvis licensed products in all different colours and sizes were rushed out over this amazingly short period. Elvis Badges/ Buttons including everything from ‘I Like Elvis’ to ‘I Hate Elvis’ buttons, and featured over 18 pages of the book, is just one of those 80 products! It is an intense and fascinating story.
Teenagers in the 1950s were the first generation to really have any spending money and Tom Parker wanted to grab his share!

Go here as EIN's Piers Beagley checks out this fabulous book - with plenty of example pages..
(Interviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) Counting Down Elvis His 100 Finest Songs (Mark Duffett): Given Elvis recorded around 700 songs during his lifetime, compiling a list of his 100 finest recordings is no mean feat.

EIN's Nigel Patterson recently submerged himself in Mark Duffett's latest book and found a wonderfully woven narrative full of intriguing analysis and musical surprises as it counted down to #1 and then offered 100 more.

For lovers of Elvis' music this is an essential read.

Read Nigel's detailed review

(Book Review, Source: EIN)

'Elvis: The Movies' Book Review: Respected Elvis author Alan Hanson, along with Erik Lorentzen, has just published 'Elvis - The Movies', 432 pages examining all of Elvis' movies and including some sensational photos.
Elvis Presley's dream was to become a movie star, and the dream started well for him. His acting ability developed steadily throughout his first four movies. But, alas, it was the music which first gave him access to Hollywood, that proved the undoing of his acting career. The inevitable result was a long series of films with weak plots in which only the music mattered.

Author Alan Hanson chronicles Elvis' cinematic career, combined with hundreds of stunning photos from Erik Lorentzen's exclusive collection. But how could this improve on all the previous 'Elvis movie' books.

Go here as EIN's Piers Beagley checks out this new deluxe production and includes some of the book's fabulous Elvis photos
(Interviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

Go here as EIN's Piers Beagley supplies a 5,000 word indepth review - includes stunning photos and discovers that this AMIGA 'On Tour' box-set is the BEST deluxe Elvis release since the 2012 FTD 'Boy From Tupelo' (Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInfoNet)

Caveat Emptor (Buyer Beware) - Exposing the Amazon Elvis Book Rip-Off?: From RCA to Sony Elvis' back catalog has long been exploited at the expense of his legacy. The same thing is now happening regarding Elvis book releases!

Through clever marketing, including the use of different (but suspicious) author names and different book titles for releases which are essentially identical; short and long book editions; and coupling the Elvis story with that of other celebrities, a glut of Elvis related book titles (with repetitive text) only available from Amazon are blatantly misleading fans.

Read EIN's findings in our "exclusive" investigative report

(Spotlight, Source:ElvisInformationNetwork)

Elvis Presley Concert At Madison Square Avenue In 1977 (Walter Twin): Caveat emptor! - is this minimalist Elvis photo booklet the worst ever released?

(Yes, it is so bad as to be unbelievable!)

EIN's Nigel Patterson reviews this new release.

Love's Unchained Melody (Robert Evans): EIN's Nigel Patterson recently read the latest novel from author Robert Evans. It is an emotional love story which takes place over two time periods - the mid 1950s' and 1977 to 2003.

Click here to read Nigel's review

'The Million Dollar Quartet’ Book Review: 'The Million Dollar Quartet’ is the name given to the impromptu jam session among Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash on December 4th 1956.
This book by Stephen Miller - from 2013 - includes interviews with the drummer and the sound engineer.
It features a detailed analysis of the music played – and its relevance to subsequent popular music.
The early lives and careers of the quartet – where they were in 1956.
Relevant social and economic factors which meant that a massive audience of young people were keenly looking for a new kind of music they could call their own.
The “reunions” of surviving members of the quartet.
The emergence of the tapes, first on bootleg and then on legitimate CDs.
The genesis of the stage show and its reception – the enduring appeal of the music.

Go here as EIN book reviewer Susan MacDougall explores this detailed look into a jam session that Elvis fans all know so well... is there really any more to discover?

(Book Reviews, Source;SMacDougall/ElvisInformationNetwork)

'ELVIS & The Colonel' Book Review: Published in March 2017 from author Darrin Lee Memmer, 'ELVIS & The Colonel' is an A4 format, 200-page project.
The publicity noted, "Rest assured that this is no whitewash or rose-colored approach to biography; nah, just the most contemporaneously-rich, fair-minded & engaging collection of material about Colonel Parker to be assembled in one place."

There is no doubt that "ELVIS & The Colonel" is one of the strangest books EIN has ever read - although that could easily be expected from author Darrin Lee Memmer.
Darrin Lee truly enjoys challenging Elvis myths. His most famous publication so far is in fact 'Desert Storm; The Shattering of a Myth' about Elvis' emotional roller-coaster ride of mid-1974.
So while the book about Elvis and Col Parker promises NOT to be a "whitewash" you can expect that it will be. 

Go here as EIN's Piers Beagley spends some time soaking up the author's controversial thoughts and finds the book a challenge to the reader that will certainly getting one involved and feeling argumentative - which is not necessarilly a bad thing.

(Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

(Book Review) 'Being Elvis - A Lonely Life': The latest Elvis biography is authored by noted rock writer, Ray Connolly. Media reviews have suggested that... "Perhaps because we all know how it ends, it’s those early years that make for the hardest reading. The decisions Elvis makes all seem to be omens of what’s still to come for the young man."...

EIN's Nigel Patterson offers his observations on a release which searches below the surface to reveal how Elvis' insecurity and loneliness were exacerbated by the unique situation that he experienced as the world's first truly global superstar.

Go here to Nigel's review of this new biography

(Book Review, Source: EIN)

Book Review - Elvis: Truth, Myth & Beyond An Intimate Conversation with Lamar Fike: Many of Elvis’ inner sanctum (family, friends and the Memphis Mafia) have released one or more books about their experience with Elvis. In 2011 it was anticipated that the larger than life, Lamar Fike, would finally publish his memoir. Publication plans were delayed as Lamar courted interest from Hollywood about a screen adaptation of his book. Then, very sadly, before the book was finished, Lamar passed away on 21 January 2011.

In 2016 it became known that before he died, Lamar had also spent several days with researchers L.E. McCullough and Harold F. Eggers, Jr. discussing his 23 years association and friendship with Elvis. The result of those discussions (400 questions and answers) have now been released in the book, Elvis: Truth, Myth & Beyond An Intimate Conversation with Lamar Fike Elvis Presley's Closest Friend and Confidant.

In the shadows of late afternoon, EIN's Nigel Patterson recently took off his blue suede shoes and delved deep inside Elvis: Truth, Myth & Beyond, to explore the germane, always interesting and clever mind of the late Lamar Rielly Fike. This is what Nigel found

(Book Review, Source: EIN)

'Elvis Taking Care Of Business - In A Flash FTD Book Review: Focusing on Elvis in late 1970 and early 1971, "Elvis Presley Taking Care Of Business - In A Flash" is the new FTD Book/CD combo by Flaming Star/FTD.
Produced by David English, Pål Granlund and Paul Richardson, this book presents a detailed chronicle of Elvis’ personal life and public career between the autumn of 1970 and the early weeks of 1971.
It is a hardcover, large-format book with 450 pages that offer detailed coverage of Elvis’ life and career over the important four months from October 1970 to January 1971.
The publicity promised hundreds of photographs, many of them candid and previously unpublished and new and exclusive interviews.
It also comes with a bonus CD with unreleased versions of studio-tracks plus Elvis’ concert in Portland, Oregon on Nov 11th 1970.

Can it really be as good as promised? EIN's Piers Beagley investigates and discovers plenty .. Go here to our indepth review featuring plenty of extracts and wonderful photographs.
(FTD Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

'ELVIS On Television The Complete Sound Recordings' CD/Book Review: The 60th anniversary of Elvis’ first appearance on national television is celebrated with this 2CD/100-page set.
The new MRS box-set was publicised as containing the complete archival recordings of Elvis Presley’s television appearances from 1956-60. For the first time ever, these tracks been painstakingly remastered and restored.
The recordings contain all song tracks, comedy sketch routines and interviews including the extended Wink Martindale interview.
The 100-page book is a chronological photo journey following Elvis from the very first in 1956, to his appearance on The Frank Sinatra show in 1960. It contains liner notes accompanied by many rare and new unpublished photographs.

In the individual chapters Gordon Minto provides the main details and highlights of each TV performance. Matching the text, each chapter features around 15 pages of significant photographs, a surprising number of the in colour.

Go here as EIN's Piers Beagley checks out this new MRS CD/Book package with an in-depth review along with some scans from the book showcasing some excellent Elvis images.

(Book/CD Reviews, Source;ElvisInfoNetwork)

'ELVIS LIVE in the 50's The Complete Concert Recordings' CD/ Book Review: The new MRS box-set 'Elvis Live in the 50’s The Complete Concert Recordings' was publicised as the ultimate tribute to Elvis Presley documenting his shows from the 1950’s. The 3 CD’s represent for the first time ever, the release of the complete collection of archival live concert recordings by Elvis Presley in the 1950’s. All of the 82 tracks included have been painstakingly remastered and restored.

The 172 page book is a chronological photo journey following Elvis from the very first to the very last shows performed in the 1950’s. It contains linear notes that includes every show listing (now updated) and is accompanied by hundreds of photographs many of which are rare and unpublished.
The book includes tour details (date, town, venue) and all photos are annotated. The customary range of press clippings is a powerful record of 1950s publicity ads, ticket stubs, receipts and show reviews.

Go here as EIN's Nigel Patterson and Piers Beagley provide an in-depth review of this new MRS release along with some scans from the book showcasing Elvis in action.

(Book/CD Reviews, Source;ElvisInfoNetwork)

(Book Review, Source: EIN, January 2016)

(Book Review, Source: EIN, May 2015)

(Book Review) Officer Elvis: A Darla Cavanah Mystery: The second volume in Gary Cusick's entertaining Darla Cavanah Mystery series is set 'down south' around the King's castle (Graceland). Driven by a deepening mystery around a mounting death toll of ETA's it is a fun read with plenty of colourful characters, mystery and of course plenty of Elvis. (Book Review, Source: EIN)

Read EIN's full review here

Elvis Presley: A Southern Life (Joel Williamson): By the deliberate construct and emotionally powerful force of its narrative, Joel Williamson's latest book, Elvis Presley: A Southern Life, is one determined to stimulate analytical thought by serious students of the Elvis story and ignite ire among those readers expecting a straightforward and non-controversial (read: rose colored glasses) biography.

Williamson compellingly intertwines the agents of change in the 1950s: rising affluence, upward mobility, sexual awakening and a singer whose voice and hips spoke to millions of young girls blossoming into womanhood and determined to break free from the shackles of the conservative society of their parents.

But at the same there are elements in the presentation of his argument that are concerning. (Jan 2015)

Read Nigel Patterson's controversial 3,000 word review

The world knows Elvis Presley....but they don't know me: The name Bruno Tillander will be familiar to many European fans and some in the UK and USA.

He has been involved in the Elvis world for many decades and established the Swedish Elvis fan club magazine Tidskriften Elvis.

To find out what lies behind the intriguing title of Tillander's new book, how it differentiates itself from many other books about Elvis and why it was unfairly criticised for its pre-publication promotion, click here to read Nigel Patterson's comprehensive review

(Book Review) 100 Things Elvis Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die: Noted Elvis author Gillian G. Gaar has released her latest Elvis book.

Whether you are an avid Elvis reader or casual fan there is 'something for everybody' jam packed into what is a cleverly written, multi-level release - a compendium of trivia and facts which also act as an Elvis biography.

Read EIN's detailed review

For the Love of Elvis (Book Review): A new book by Professor Marla Selvidge will please many readers with its focus on the positive aspects of Elvis and why he was, and continues to be, important to many peopole today!

EIN's Nigel Patterson takes a look inside For the Love of Elvis and learns why Elvis resonates in the world 35 years after his death.

Marla Selvidge, "Elvis did not want to dominate his audience; he loved and cherished them in a way that no other performer has done."

- Go here to Nigel's review at this positive "For the Love of Elvis"

(Book Reviews, Source;Nigel/ElvisInfoNet)

'Elvis-The King Of The Jungle' In-Depth Book Review: Featuring 546 pages the book includes a detailed look at everything that took place at the historic taping and recording sessions of Elvis' "Comeback Special". It also includes eye-witness reports from lucky fans that were present at the legendary NBC performances.
EIN's Piers Beagley checks out this gorgeous new book about one of the most important weeks of Elvis career.....
.... My expectations were high for this wonderful new production - but I am still absolutely stunned by its massive size and the impact. Yes, there are other candids and photos of Elvis in 1968 within the book but it is basically about ONE WEEK in Elvis' life presented over 500 pages - What a week! If you love Elvis in the 'Singer Presents Elvis' TV special then you will spend hours luxuriating in these glorious photos. Did I mention Elvis looked gorgeous in 1968!"...
Go HERE for the full-indepth review and plenty of magnificent photos. Now with added images, comments & purchase details.

(Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInfoNet)

(Book Review): Elvis' Favorite Director: The Amazing 52-Year Career of Norman Taurog: Michael Hoey's latest book is a cracker! Hoey has crafted a finely tuned narrative balance between three core elements: Elvis, director Norman Taurog and the glitter of Hollywood.

Glorious chapters of in-depth discussion and fascinating minutiae about Elvis films are interspersed with equally fascinating chapters bringing to life the excitement and glamour of both Hollywood (from its early days of silent movies to the late 1960s) and many of its most famous stars. 

Click HERE to come behind the scenes as EIN's Nigel Patterson explores the treasures on offer in what is a thoroughly fascinating and engrossing read!

(Book Review, Source: ElvisInfoNet)

'Elvis - Aloha Via Satellite: A 40th Anniv Release': Getting rave reviews from Elvis fans - "this book is just nothing short of incredible!", "Beautiful packaging and quality all the way through", "my first thoughts on the book are WOW the photos are incredible so sharp, many I have never seen before", "Really enjoy following the whole story in chronological order, and some of those black and white rehearsal show shots are astounding" - are just some comments on FECC.

The latest release celebrating the 40th Anniversary of Aloha Via Satellite from Joseph Pirzada’s Boxcar label dropped into the EIN mail box.  With considerable pre-publication hype, a stunning 440 pages and more than 1,000 visuals, many of them "alternate" shots or unpublished, can it really be as good as we all hope. Is this the ultimate photo-journal about Aloha? GO HERE AS EIN brings you the first on-line detailed review.

Click here for our detailed review by Nigel Patterson - including plenty of fabulous Aloha Elvis images

(Book Review, Source: ElvisInformationNetwork)

'The Elvis Files Vol. 1 1953-56' In Depth Book Review: The first volume of the Elvis Files story, chronicling Elvis' rise from his pre SUN discovery to becoming the world's biggest new sensation - nearly 600 pages & over 1,400 photos...
All ELVIS EVENTS in this Time Frame Period 1953-1956 are shown..
- Every Working Moment...
- The Early Tours
- Plenty of CANDID Moments.
- Elvis Interviews
- The TV Shows
There is an incredible impact to this book that can shock even the most blasé of Elvis fans who think they have seen it all before. The amazing amount of sensational images, interviews and informative articles gathered together within its 600 pages is stupefying.
Of all the books I have previously purchased about early Elvis none of them demonstrate the excitement and dynamic life of Elvis as well as this superb volume. No other series of Elvis photo-books comes close.

Click here to find out what it includes with lots of example pages, book extracts - plus great ELVIS photos
(Book Reviews, Source;EIN)

'Elvis: Walk A Mile In My Shoes' - EIN Review: 'Elvis: Walk A Mile In My Shoes' is subtitled “Arjan Deelen talks to the musicians, singers, songwriters and producers who helped create the ‘Presley Sound’”.
Arjan Deelen's interviews were carried out over a 14-year period and he interviewed everyone from Scotty Moore & D.J. Fontana and the TCB Band through to Shaun Nielsen, Jim Murray & Terry Blackwood, The Memphis Boys, Mary & Ginger Holladay and many, many more.
The book is publicised as a feast for the eye, with almost 300 rare and unpublished photos of Elvis, in some cases sourced from the original negatives and dias. These photos cover the whole spectrum of Elvis’ career, from 1954 to 1977.

The book has finally arrived in Australia and EIN's Piers Beagley has an In-Depth look to see whether it lives up to its expectations..
Go HERE for the review, NOW UDATED with EIN Readers Feedback interview excerpts, rare photos and much more.

(Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork) 

'A Boy From Tupelo' special In-depth Review: For more than a decade Ernst Jorgensen has been working on his deluxe book/CD package to present the definitive look at Elvis during his sensational and creative Sun Records period.
Over eight years later after first being discussed with fans it is finally released as a massive 530 pages, around 1,000 photos and weighing nearly 5 kilograms, this is the biggest project of its kind.
It also features all of Elvis’ Sun recordings on 3 CDs - including a CD of Elvis LIVE, on the radio, and in concert.
Go here as EIN's Piers Beagley checks out this fabulous production while David Tinson checks out Elvis' sensational early LIVE recordings.
The review features plenty of book extracts and rare photos.

(Book/CD Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

'Graceland Through The Years 1957-1977' Book Review: The latest release about Elvis’ Memphis mansion from Joseph Pirzada’s Boxcar label dropped into the EIN mail box last week.  With considerable pre-publication hype, an impressive 450 pages and more than 1,000 visuals, did it impress EIN as an expansive top floor view or as a depressingly damp basement?

Click here for our detailed review by Nigel Patterson - including plenty of Graceland Elvis images and example pages - Now UPDATED with more photos

(Book Review, Source: ElvisInformationNetwork)

'Way Down' Jerry Scheff autobiography Review: Jerry Scheff, TCB Band bassist, has played behind some of the great names in popular music and spent several years in the US Navy before making his way to Los Angeles to begin the life of the session bassist, leading to his pivotal role in Elvis’ TCB band.
In his autobiography 'Way Down' Jerry Scheff gives us his view of some of music's biggest names as their audiences never saw them, tired at the end of a session, burned out after a show, inspired by a new song. Particularly interesting are his emotional insider tales of touring with the "Elvis Family".
Telling his story for the first time, he blends memories of childhood and adolescence with evocative anecdotes about studio sessions end encounters with a host of major stars - and while Jerry doesn’t bad-mouth anybody nor does he evade the topic of the pretty heavy-duty drug taking of that particular era.

Go here as EIN's Piers Beagley reviews this delightful book including some interesting extracts.
(Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

'Elvis: Live at the International' Book Review: From author Kieran Davis the full story of Elvis' time at the International Hotel from August 1969 to September 1971. The book contains 170 pages describing in meticulous detail exactly what it was like to see Elvis at the International. Taken from the diaries of super fan Peggy Elzea, the chapters describe meeting Elvis backstage, the shows, the hotel, the staff, the food, even the call-girls.

There are sections of tape transcripts, jumpsuit descriptions, photographs of memorabilia, the hotel's advertising campaign, the list goes on. If you ever wanted to know how Elvis chipped his tooth on stage in 1971 even that is in here. With approximately 100,000 words, there will never be a better chance to read about Elvis' first engagements in Vegas as seen through the eyes of a fan who was there.

Click here as EIN's Piers Beagley checks out whether the book lives up to the description and with plenty of book extracts to read.

(Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

Elvis By Special Request '71 At 40 (Book Review): The latest Joseph Tunzi - Paul Lichter collaboration provides a long overdue visual focus on what some refer to as Elvis' 'lost tour".

EIN recently took time out to explore what '71 At 40 has to offer. What we found was a visually pleasing portfolio of images (many rare or previously unpublished) from the 12 cities visited throughout the tour supported by two informative essays by Paul Lichter and an array of press clippings published during the tour.

Read EIN's full review

(Book Reviews, Source;ElvisInformationNetwork)

In Treat Me Nice, Howard Jackson presents a formidable treatise, a rich tapestry of insight, analysis, comparison and acute commentary.

Jackson's work is effectively two books in one, for as much as he traverses often quite complex psychological and metaphorical territory, he also provides a strong perspective on Elvis’ musical canon, both its strengths and weaknesses.  

Read EIN's full review here

'Elvis Presley And Nancy Sinatra On The Speedway' Book Review: A JAT production, the book features text by Paul Lichter and inside there are hundreds of world premier photos never-seen-before including the director Norman Taurog's inside Elvis' Palm Springs home and behind the scenes with Norman Taurog, Elvis and Nancy. Approximately 300 exclusive and breathtaking photographs!!!

A definitive look at Elvis' movie Speedway, following on from JAT's highly recommended classic look at Viva Las Vegas.

Go here as EIN's Nigel Patterson checks out this new JAT quality hardback look at Elvis' 27th movie filmed in late 1967.

(Book Review, Source;ElvisInfoNetwork)

'Bringing It All Back Home' CD/Book Review: From Venus productions last year, a double CD/Book set of Elvis performing in Memphis. The first CD contains the matinée performance of March 16, 1974, his first live appearance in his hometown since 1961. The second CD features the only performance by Elvis at the Mid-South Coliseum on June 10th 1975. Both concerts are still NOT officially released and Venus have created a high-quality production with a delightful 132 page book full of great photographs and text. The notes say that the source used was the "first generation soundboard tapes" and it sure sounds like it! Both concerts are in great quality and deserve to be released by FTD!

As we head into 2011 EIN looks back to check out a few favourite releases from last year.
Go here for lots of images from this neat publication as EIN's Piers Beagley gives this a thumbs up!

(CD Reviews; Source;ElvisInfoNetwork)

'VIVA LAS VEGAS' Book Review: Prolific Elvis publisher, Joe Tunzi, recently collaborated with Elvis super-collector, Paul Lichter. For most fans it's a mouth watering delight......Elvis and Ann-Margret together in one of the King's most successful celluloid offerings, Viva Las Vegas. The sight of two of Hollywood's most attractive stars in the one film could not miss - and its success was amplified by the sizzling on and off screen chemistry between the two leads.
VIVA LAS VEGAS Swingin' - Singin' - Lovin' is the result and in keeping with recent hardcover releases from JAT Productions it is a glorious book.

The result is a stunning tribute to one of Elvis's greatest films, Viva Las Vegas. From glorious full page, full color photos to very rare images of Elvis with fans

Read EIN's full review and see more great visuals

(Source: EIN, July 2010)

The King and Dr. Nick What Really Happened to Elvis and Me (Book Review): Dr. Nick's long awaited memoir was recently released. After three decades of being often maligned by the media and an unforgiving public Elvis' personal physician finally has his say.

In conjunction with interviewing Dr. Nick, EIN's Nigel Patterson spent time exploring Dr. Nick's side of the story.

What EIN found:

• sheds great light on Elvis' medical conditions;
• provides facts around several contentious issues;
• is a memoir written with honest caring and compassion; and
• a memoir which will challenge the views held by many fans!

In order to establish the truth, Dr. Nick deserves to be heard and his memoir is a fitting way for him to clearly state his case. (Source: EIN, Feb 2010)

Read EIN's full review

Elvis My Best Man (Book Review): George Klein became a friend of Elvis' while they both attended Humes High. EIN contributor, Susan MacDougall, recently sat down to read George's memoir. What Susan found was an entertaining memoir which has met with some criticism. Susan says:

The stated purpose of the book is to document some of the important things about Elvis that have been missed elsewhere, especially “his deep, natural intelligence and how funny he was”. There are certainly some entertaining anecdotes, such as putting a gift-wrapped box of snakes on a car seat to frighten thieves, and Elvis hiding under a train to escape a horde of sorority sisters.

Read Susan's full review

(Book Review, Source: EIN, Feb 2010)

Baby, Let's Play House Elvis Presley and the Women Who Loved Him (Book Review): The latest Alanna Nash book will be released in the US on 5 January 2010.

EIN recently had the pleasure of delving deep inside the 700+ pages of this release to discover a rich and compelling account of a side of Elvis, which until now has been rarely, if at all, documented in detail.

What we found was illuminating, at times emotional, and occasionally confronting. Never dull and always adding to our understanding of the man, Alanna Nash has written a stunning new book!

As its title implies, Baby, Let's Play House presents the long overdue female perspective on Elvis and answers a number of important questions including how differently Elvis communicated with men and women and the inner anguish which eventually led to his tragic demise.

Read why Baby, Let's Play House will be one of the two best Elvis book releases of 2010. (Source: EIN, 1 December 2009)

'68 At 40 Retrospective' book review: Joe Tunzi has teamed up with Elvis' 1968 TV Comeback producer Steve Binder to create a quality hard-backed book of 120 colour pages. The book, which features 8 chapters that examine all the different aspects of bringing this life-changing programme to air, is very stylish and beautifully laid-out. There is a real excitement in being able to study every stunning classic Elvis moment in detail and best of all are Steve Binder's recollections giving us yet more insights on this special event and all the tricky production decisions that he had to make a stand for. EIN's Piers Beagley checks outs JAT Productions best book so far.

Click here for our detailed review and images.

(Book reviews, Source;EIN)

Book Review - The Man Who Made Elvis Laugh: Sammy Shore's second memoir is filled with wonderful stories about his time with Elvis and the countless other celebrities who he either opened for, or were his good friends.

From Red Skelton, Bob Hope and Glen Campbell to Barbra Steisand, Sid Caesar and Ann-Margret, Sammy's memoir lives up to its by line of "A Life in American Comedy".

There are many delicious one liners and more involved jokes to keep the reader smiling as you engage in Sammy's trip down memory lane to a sadly by-gone era - the Golden Era of Comedy. (Source: EIN, Sep 2008)

Read EIN's full review

'Elvis '57: The Final Fifties Tours' Book Review: In 1957 Elvis performed in eighteen cities, including a short tour of Canada. 'Elvis ’57: the Final Fifties Tours' by Alan Hanson is a detailed look at these tours which started in Chicago and ended with the headline grabbing sensation of the LA Pan Pacific concerts and the final Hawaii trip in November. These would be Elvis' last live appearances before he left for his army stint and would help cement his place in Pop culture forever. This book is a sensational investigation into the phenomenon of Elvis in the fifties presented from a brand new perspective. The reviews from the time are exhilarating . . 
"He clutches the mike and begins to sing, twitching all over. . . Up and down the stage he goes, dragging the mike like a captive, undulating, shouting feverishly.... Then his face sets, his lips curl back and seizing the mike by the scruff of the neck he prowls like a panther up and down the platform, snarling and driving his worshippers crazy."
EIN suggests that all discerning Elvis fans should invest in this thrill-ride. Go here for full review and photos.

(Book Reviews: Source;EIN) 

'Live In L.A' FTD Book/CD review: 'Live In L.A.' is FTD’s audiovisual documentary of Elvis in Los Angeles. Although it covers 1956-1976, the main focus of the book and bonus CD is the evening show at the Inglewood Forum, May 11th 1974. The book contains 138 pages with nearly every photo in colour. Supergroup Led Zeppelin were in the audience and Elvis needed to put on a good show - and the book gives fans a chance to relieve the feel of the concert through some excellent images of Elvis in action. Since it is a much slimmer volume than FTD's 'Rockin' Across Texas' and also containing some audio problems with the soundboard CD, fan reviews have been varied. Click here to read EIN contributor Armond Joseph's deeper investigation to see whether it is really worth the price. (Source: EIN, Jan 2008)

"Elvis: in the twilight of memory" (Book Review): June Juanico holds the distinction of having been one of Elvis' girlfriends in the mid 1950s as he became famous.

Susan MacDougall offers her views on Ms Juanico's impressive memoir. With subjects as diverse as food, sex and how Colonel Parker tried to sabotage their relationship, Elvis: in the twilight of memory is a thoughtful, well-written book giving us a window onto events in a pivotal year of Elvis's life when he was on the brink of fame and fortune. (Source: EIN, July 2007)

Elvis at 21: New York to Memphis (Book Review): Finally, a book which does proper justice to the exquisite photographic images of the young King of Rock 'n' Roll captured by Alfred Wertheimer in 1956.

Quite simply this release is an outstanding example of how to present a photo-journal!

Elvis at 21 New York to Memphis was the stand-out book of its type in 2006 and one of the best Elvis book releases in many years!

Join EIN's Nigel Patterson as he explores the absolutely stunning visual feasts this book has to offer. ( Source: EIN, March 2007)

"We Remember, Elvis" (Book Review): Susan MacDougall explores the pages of the revised edition of Wanda June Hill's book, We Remember, Elvis.

What Susan finds include some explosive allegations which are sure to split fans and raise the ire of the Memphis Mafia!

Some of the issues uncovered by Susan are: Was Elvis a drug addict? Was he drugged against his will? Were members of the Memphis Mafia controlling? Was he sexually profligate? Elvis' generosity and compassion. Is Wanda June Hill's book genuine?

Read Susan's in-depth review to find out more (Book Review, Source: EIN)

Book Review - "The Elvis Reader": Susan MacDougall delves inside The Elvis Reader, a selection of writings by a variety of authors. It ranges over all facets of the Elvis myth - the Musical, the Mythical, the Southern, the Physical, the Mortal, and the Metaphysical Elvis. With an introduction by Mojo Nixon, articles from the New Republic and Harpers sit alongside essays and book extracts.

The writers are journalists, authors and academics, including: James and Annette Baxter, Stanley Booth, Van K. Brock, Jay Cox, the infamous Albert Goldman, John Lardner, Richard Middleton, Maureen Orth, Clark Porteous, Priscilla Presley, Janet Winn, and Charles Wolfe.

What merit does The Elvis Reader hold? - do we can develop our own discernment and critical thinking, or we could become swamped by the bewildering number of different view points and find it hard to decide where the truth lies? Read Susan's detailed review to find out more (Source: EIN, Jan 2007)

Library Journal reviews Jerry Schilling memoir: "In 1954, Schilling had a chance meeting with Elvis Presley at a Memphis pickup football game. It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship, which eventually led to Schilling's entry into the strange and exciting Presley entourage in 1964. Here, the author vividly describes meeting the Beatles, Eric Clapton, Richard Nixon, and basketball great Wilt Chamberlain; tripping on LSD with the King; and sitting in shock with Elvis as they watched the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. on television.

Throughout, Schilling treats Elvis evenhandedly, focusing on their friendship but not ignoring the drug problems, isolation, and creative vacuum that killed Presley. The King comes alive once again as a romantic, sensitive, caring, and sometimes childish and moody man in a bubble. Refreshingly, the author reveals as much about himself as Elvis, showing how the tinsel lifestyle transformed him from a well-meaning, wide-eyed, obedient kid to a divorced adult wanting freedom and a career. Schilling has captured the aura and grim realities of life with one of the most important American icons of the 20th century. One can only hope that he will follow with a book about his post-1977 life as a manager of the Beach Boys, Jerry Lee Lewis, Rick Nelson, and Billy Joel. Highly recommended for all types of readers.-David P. Szatmary, Univ. of Washington, Seattle Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information". (Source: Library Journal, USA, Jan 2007)

'Inside G.I. Blues' - Book Review: An Elvis Unlimited production written by Megan Murphy & Henryk Matraszek, with a stylish design by Kenneth Dokkeberg along with some research from Ger Rijff. EIN reviews this deluxe box-set, which also a bonus DVD & even a promo 45rpm, and presents some example images from this very appealing book. Is this book one of the best of 2006? (Source: EIN, November 2006)

EIN has only 2 copies left of this great set. Best price in Australia/NZ

'Elvis Presley: The Man, The Life, The Legend' - book review: Written by Pamela Keogh, this is the first EPE authorised Elvis biography. Printed on high-quality paper and with a good selection of beautiful photos, the writing has a suitable urgency that reflects Elvis' own life. But do we really need yet another biography? Piers Beagley investigates. (Source: EIN, September 2006)

'THE KING' by Jim Piazza - book review: If you are looking for something extraordinary amongst a zillion Elvis books then this is it. Way over-the-top and so large that it will never fit on your bookshelf, this 160 page glossy high quality, high-style book is immense. Even though the fabulous photos are the key to the book, author Jim Piazza does include some pertinent text and observations. August (and now early September) is EIN's book month so don't miss out on the opportunity to check out some images from this unique book. (Source: EIN, August 2006)