James Bond in the 21st Century: Why We Still Need 007

Smart Pop

by Glenn Yeffeth (Editor), Leah Wilson (Editor)

The staying power of the world's most dashing secret agent and the evolution of the James Bond franchise are explored in this smart yet nostalgic collection of essays. Leading writers, including Raymond Benson, J.A. Konrath, Raelynn Hillhouse, and John Cox, discuss the ten sexiest Bond girls, the best villains, and the controversy surrounding the latest actor to play James Bond. Topics covered range from the playful—how to build a secret lair and avoid the perennial mistakes made by would-be world dominators—to the thought-provoking, such as Bond's place in the modern world, his Oedipal tendencies and perceived misogyny, and the unerring allure of the charming spy.

Genres: Pop Culture, Nonfiction

208 pages, Paperback

First published August 11, 2006

About the author

Glenn Yeffeth is CEO and Publisher of BenBella Books.

Reviews

[Steve Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty much a must read book for Bond fans. If you only know Bond from the films, then this is a nice little introduction to the cold, cruel and totally unlikable character that appears in the books. (And I still want to be him so much even though he is at best a total bastard!) This book was published while Casino Royale was still being filmed, so that film and Daniel Craig are very much no more than footnotes to the text.
Every Bond fan knows who is the best Bond, which is the best film, the best book, the best Bond girl, the best villain and all the other bits and bobs that you can make lists out of and we all have our own favourites and nothing will sway us from them; and people that disagree with us are just stupid or wrong and often both!
Contains no real insight that will shock or surprise the ardent Bond fan to exclaim 'well I never knew that' but reference to the bloody iris of the opening sequence of the films and the revelation that Shirley Bassey sang the theme tune to GoldenEye will raise a few eyebrows! (It is a gun barrel in the opening sequence and it was Tina Turner rather than Dame Shirley that was belting out that particular number; and somebody should have spotted such obvious mistakes!) That said, I still thoroughly enjoyed this book even if the idiots that contributed failed to realise that Shirley Eaton as Jill Materson in Goldfinger is the best Bond girl: these people are fools!

[Pete · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an interesting collection of essays, however, I found their depth and credibility lacking. I know that sounds ironic when talking about Bond as their topic. Considering previous books from the Smart Pop series in which I have only read Finding Serenity, I was let down by this collection. In comparison to Finding Serenity which was insightful, sociological as well as psychological in its analysis of characters, themes and execution of the short lived Firefly series, The James bond collection was superficial at best. I was looking for the character analysis, social commentaries of the films and books and overall a more thoughtful approach to this iconic yet amorphous character. Even the final essay, which seemed to provide the most potential, with the title of "Why the World Still Needs James Bond in the 21st Century" was a shallow let down. The pedigree of authors was fair while coming from authors in love with Bond, or having written Bond they provided a remarkable lack of depth.

[Sjervey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This set of essay was assembled before Daniel Craig assumed the role of James Bond, so, of course, it is dated. Even when it was new, it was uneven, some of the essays are superb, some are basically fluff to fill a book. I recommend the essays by John Cox (The Sexual Subtext of 007), which provides insights into the Bond stories and into the process of developing screen plays in general, and the five concluding essays in the eponymous final section for solid reading and I will simply note that several of the other essays are entertaining and help develop a pre-Danial Craig overview for historical perspective. It's a fun read for Bond lovers who don't take it too seriously. If you are a dyed-in-the-wool fanatic who can't listen to anyone say anything against your favorite Bond, this is not for you. If you are a Bond lover who just wants a diverting read, this is definitely for you . If your in between, stick to the essay I cited at the top and maye pick one or two more for the flavor. Enjoy.

[Alan Carlson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dates to just before Craig took over the movie role of Bond. James Bond.

[Ryan Scicluna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good Essays and very valid points. However I did not enjoy the sarcastic or "role-playing" type essays from the HR of MI6 and neither the chapter in which the Bond movies were given a score. I found that to be quite subjective and it did not contribute to the enjoyment of the book as a whole.

[Vikas Datta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting analysis of how these fantasies expertly served are still going strong... that chapter on the dichotomy between the Bond of the books and Bond of the movies in extraordinarily incisive