Gene Wilder (1933-2016) began acting when he was thirteen and writing for the screen since the early 1970s. After a small role in Bonnie and Clyde pulled him away from a career onstage, he was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Supporting Actor for his role as Leo Bloom in The Producers, which led to Blazing Saddles and then to another Academy nomination, this time for writing Young Frankenstein. Wilder has appeared in twenty-five feature films and a number of stage productions. His first book, about his own life, was Kiss Me Like A Stranger, and was followed by the novels My French Whore, The Woman Who Wouldn't, What Is This Thing Called Love? and Something to Remember You By.
"Gene Wilder has written a remarkable period piece. It's an elegantly woven story of intrigue, danger, sex and comedy -but for me the big surprise is that it's a truly moving and eloquent love story." --Mel Brooks "A...touching debut novel...(it) takes the form of the final, eloquent notebook of a man still finding out who he is." --Publishers Weekly "Slender...nimble...satisfying." --Kirkus Reviews "It's unavoidable: the hero of MY FRENCH WHORE simply must be imagined as a young Gene Wilder. The talented actor who wrote this enjoyable novella...makes an easy transition from stage to page." --The Seattle Times "Sweet fluff. If you loved 'Young Frankenstein, ' you'll be awfully fond of this." --The Washington Post "Wilder's delightful fiction debut (is) a novel so witty, dramatic and romantic that the reader is left with an indelible mental movie." --Los Angeles Times
"Gene Wilder has written a remarkable period piece. It's an elegantly woven story of intrigue, danger, sex and comedy -but for me the big surprise is that it's a truly moving and eloquent love story." --Mel Brooks "A...touching debut novel...(it) takes the form of the final, eloquent notebook of a man still finding out who he is." --Publishers Weekly "Slender...nimble...satisfying." --Kirkus Reviews "It's unavoidable: the hero of MY FRENCH WHORE simply must be imagined as a young Gene Wilder. The talented actor who wrote this enjoyable novella...makes an easy transition from stage to page." --The Seattle Times "Sweet fluff. If you loved 'Young Frankenstein, ' you'll be awfully fond of this." --The Washington Post "Wilder's delightful fiction debut (is) a novel so witty, dramatic and romantic that the reader is left with an indelible mental movie." --Los Angeles Times
In 1918, near the end of the Great War, Pvt. Paul Peachy, son of German immigrants, escapes a bad marriage by joining the army. Sent to France, he passes his 30th birthday in a wasteland of muddy trenches. That same day, he is asked to interrogate a captured German spy, Col. Harry Stroller, famous for his exploits in England. The next morning, Peachy sees his two best friends die in battle. In an act of cowardice, he flees into the nearby woods but is soon captured by German troops. To save himself from execution, he brashly impersonates Colonel Stroller, using what little information the spy revealed to him. Peachy's daring masquerade continues as he finds himself ensconced in Col. Viktor Steinig's headquarters. There, he meets and falls in love with Annie Breton, the titular French whore, while his situation grows ever more complicated. Written in prose distilled to its essence, this enchanting novella, Wilder's fiction debut, reads like a breeze. Outwardly sweet and simple, it has delightful complications and an ending that may surprise. Recommended for all public libraries. [The Academy Award-nominated actor is also the author of a memoir, Kiss Me Like a Stranger.-Ed.]-Ron Terpening, Univ. of Arizona, Tucson Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.
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