
Love and Let Die
Bond, the Beatles and the British Psyche
John Higgs(Author)
Weidenfeld & Nicolson (Publisher)
Published on 14. September 2023
Book
Paperback/Softback
528 pages
978-1-3996-0017-0 (ISBN)
Description
'Smart, analytical and enormously good fun' Stuart Maconie, Mail on Sunday
'Ingenious . . . conjures a whole cultural history of the past six decades' The Spectator
'Strikingly insightful . . . page after page of glorious anecdotes' The i Newspaper
'A book to leave you shaken and stirred' Independent
'Poignant and entertaining' Observer
'If you take popular culture seriously, this is the book for you' Jeremy Deller
Dr No, the first Bond film, and 'Love Me Do', the first Beatles record, were released on the same day. Most countries can only dream of creating a phenomenon on this scale; Britain produced two on one windy October afternoon. Told over sixty dramatic years, Love and Let Die is the story of two culture touchstones that continue to define our aspirations and fantasies; of opposing values, visions of Britain and ideas about male identity; and of how a clash between working class liberation and establishment control exploded on the global stage.
'Ingenious . . . conjures a whole cultural history of the past six decades' The Spectator
'Strikingly insightful . . . page after page of glorious anecdotes' The i Newspaper
'A book to leave you shaken and stirred' Independent
'Poignant and entertaining' Observer
'If you take popular culture seriously, this is the book for you' Jeremy Deller
Dr No, the first Bond film, and 'Love Me Do', the first Beatles record, were released on the same day. Most countries can only dream of creating a phenomenon on this scale; Britain produced two on one windy October afternoon. Told over sixty dramatic years, Love and Let Die is the story of two culture touchstones that continue to define our aspirations and fantasies; of opposing values, visions of Britain and ideas about male identity; and of how a clash between working class liberation and establishment control exploded on the global stage.
Reviews / Votes
A daring, dazzlingly entertaining pop cultural critique . . . smart analytical and enormously good fun. There's something provocative or revelatory on every page -- Stuart Maconie * MAIL ON SUNDAY * Strikingly insightful . . . [Higgs] gives us page after page of glorious anecdotes about Bond and The Beatles, revelations about one sparking insights into the other * i NEWSPAPER * Ingenious . . . Love and Let Die starts with a perfect coincidence [and] conjures a whole cultural history of the past six decades * THE SPECTATOR * A highly evocative picture of the 1960s . . . Love and Let Die is a book to leave you shaken and stirred * INDEPENDENT * This is more than just a book about those two cultural colossi, the Beatles and Bond. It is that, and magnificently so, but it is also about class, art, masculinity, entitlement, politics, love and death. Humane, droll and wise, there is some brilliant apercu, revelation or connection on every page. A dazzling, daring, recondite and immensely readable pop culture critique -- STUART MACONIE If you take popular culture seriously, this is the book for you -- JEREMY DELLER Poignant and entertaining . . . sharp and pacy. . . Higgs is a lively writer and has assembled many intriguing nuggets from six decades of British popular culture * OBSERVER * In pairing these pop-cultural phenomena, Mr Higgs is onto something. A brilliant meander through the British male psyche . . . excellent and illuminating * WALL STREET JOURNAL * A triumphant work of truth, heart and soul. Love and Let Die is revolutionary, spirited, shaken and stirred -- SALENA GODDEN, author of MRS DEATH MISSES DEATH Brilliant -- Frank Cotterell-Boyce * OBSERVER * Entertaining . . . an eccentric jaunt through the interwoven histories [of the Beatles and Bond] * SUNDAY TIMES * Here is an author who constantly reaches out to the reader, grabs their attention and doesn't let go, finding connection in the most unexplored places . . . I was gripped throughout . . . Higgs finds beautiful threads everywhere . . . packed with small details and big ideas * THE PSYCHOLOGIST * Persuasive . . . The story of the power struggle between the working class and the establishment, as seen through the lens of the Beatles' records and the Bond films, is a fascinating one . . . entertaining * TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT * Lives up to the hype . . . both captivating and thought-provoking. A riveting read * SHINDIG! *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Orion Publishing Co
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 196 mm
Width: 130 mm
Thickness: 33 mm
Weight
384 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-3996-0017-0 (9781399600170)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

E-Book
09/2022
Weidenfeld and Nicholson
€3.99
Available for download
Person
John Higgs is the author I HAVE AMERICA SURROUNDED, THE KLF, STRANGER THAN WE CAN IMAGINE, WATLING STREET, THE FUTURE STARTS HERE, WILLIAM BLAKE NOW, WILLIAM BLAKE VS THE WORLD and LOVE AND LET DIE. He lives in Brighton.