''The James Bond Bedside Companion'' is a

non-fiction Nonfiction, or non-fiction, is any document or media content that attempts, in good faith, to provide information (and sometimes opinions) grounded only in facts and real life, rather than in imagination. Nonfiction is often associated with be ...

book written by the official

James Bond The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors have ...

author,

Raymond Benson Raymond Benson (born September 6, 1955) is an American author best known for being the author of the James Bond novels from 1997 to 2003. Benson was born in Midland, Texas and graduated from Permian High School in Odessa in 1973. In primary scho ...

, first published in

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

. It was later updated in

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

. The book was nominated for the

Edgar Allan Poe Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America, based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards honor the bes ...

for Best Biographical/Critical Work in 1984.

Content

The book, split in five parts, includes information on "The James Bond Phenomenon", a biography on

Ian Fleming Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer who is best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., a ...

the creator of James Bond, a biography on the

fictional character In fiction, a character (or speaker, in poetry) is a person or other being in a narrative (such as a novel, play, radio or television series, music, film, or video game). The character may be entirely fictional or based on a real-life person, ...

James Bond, information on the novels, and finally information on the films. Benson goes into considerable detail for each novel including continuation novels by authors

Kingsley Amis Sir Kingsley William Amis (16 April 1922 – 22 October 1995) was an English novelist, poet, critic, and teacher. He wrote more than 20 novels, six volumes of poetry, a memoir, short stories, radio and television scripts, and works of social an ...

(writing as

Robert Markham Robert Markham is a pseudonym used by author Kingsley Amis to publish ''Colonel Sun'' in March 1968. The book was the first continuation James Bond novel following the death of Bond's creator, Ian Fleming. Kingsley Amis Following the death of Ian ...

) and John Gardner. Likewise it details information on every film from the first official Bond film '' Dr. No'', to the then-recent Bond film ''

Octopussy ''Octopussy'' is a 1983 spy film and the thirteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions. It is the sixth to star Roger Moore as the MI6 agent James Bond. It was directed by John Glen and the screenplay was written by G ...

''. Additionally, it discusses the two unofficial adaptations of '' Casino Royale'' and the remake of '' Thunderball'' called ''

Never Say Never Again ''Never Say Never Again'' is a 1983 spy film directed by Irvin Kershner. The film is based on the 1961 James Bond novel '' Thunderball'' by Ian Fleming, which in turn was based on an original story by Kevin McClory, Jack Whittingham, and Flemi ...

''. The 1988 publication included information on ''

A View to a Kill ''A View to a Kill'' is a 1985 spy film and the fourteenth in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and is the seventh and final appearance of Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Although the title is adapted ...

'' (1985) and ''

The Living Daylights ''The Living Daylights'' is a 1987 spy film, the fifteenth entry in the ''James Bond'' series produced by Eon Productions, and the first of two to star Timothy Dalton as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. Directed by John Glen, the film's ...

'' (1987) as well as the books written by John Gardner since the 1984 edition. In 2001 the now defunct PublishingOnline company created a print-on-demand "facsimile" edition from scans of the 1988 edition (the production plates were long lost). This edition suffered from poor scanning and is now out of print along with earlier 1980s editions. As of January 2012, Crossroad Press has re-published the 1988 edition, with a new Foreword by Benson, as an e-book for Kindle, Nook, and other e-readers. Plans are underway by Crossroad to make the book available as an downloadable audiobook and a new print edition. Author Raymond Benson also wrote modules for the ''James Bond 007''

role playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal a ...

and, from 1997 to 2002, was commissioned by

Ian Fleming Publications Ian Fleming Publications is the production company formerly known as both Glidrose Productions Limited and Glidrose Publications Limited, named after its founders John Gliddon and Norman Rose. In 1952, author Ian Fleming bought it after completi ...

to succeed John Gardner as the author of the James Bond novels series.

References

External links

Raymond Benson's official website
Non-fiction books about James Bond 1984 non-fiction books Works about Ian Fleming {{film-book-stub

Content

See also

References

External links