This large tome provides little new information about The Beatles yet is a richly illustrated and well-written book.. Most
of the test is culled from a series of interviews from 1995 which had appeared on a videocassette - although warning of this limitation is given right at the preface. Those who already have read these documents might want to pass on the book unlesss they are true Beatles fans looking to add to a collection. In any case, the book is of excellent
quality and certainly worth the price. The photographic reproductions are of a very high quality, the graphic design is original, fully coloured, and impeccable. The large size and format of the book, lend it a coffeetable cachet. But beware, the has its limitations: for
example, it is too linear in that it retraces the group's history chronologically. Aside from a short "Instrumental Break", the book possesses a certain flow. There are numerous personal anecdotes and informative details but some of these are hardly worth reading. To avoid boring oneself, the reader could, for example, read passages here and there without following the chronology. The avid fan just discovering or rediscovering the Fab Four could, presumably, read sections corresponding to the production of various albums while listening to the latter, to increase depth and enjoyment of both and to avoid reading the book in its entirety. Despite the drawbacks this book is a definite collectors' item for Beatles' lovers. It has rich editing and colour photographs. Nevertheless, this read could be supplemented and complemented by other works on the Beatles.