REVIEW: Ringo Starr’s ‘Photograph’ raises the bar for E-books
When first hearing about the new e-book, ‘Photograph‘, by Ringo Starr, I expected the traditional flip-through type of photography book in electronic format similar to the recent release of ‘Linda McCartney: Life in Photographs‘ from Taschen. But this new e-book from the ex-Beatle offers so much more.*
‘Photograph’ seems more like an app than just an e-book. Most e-books are adapted from their original hard copy versions resulting in a straightforward recreation in digital form, with static text or photos on each page. But since ‘Photograph’ was first developed as an e-book with no hard copy to work off of, Ringo along with Genesis Publications has put together something more interactive.
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While ‘Photograph’ does have the traditional elements of an e-book with photos and text on each page, the reader is invited to search further for more information. Hit the “drum” icon to hear Ringo give more details about a specific photo and the e-book begins to feel more like a documentary about Ringo’s life (i.e. “This is me as a baby”).
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Some pages offer small images of memorabilia, and when clicked on, they expand on the screen, for example, to show the front and back of an item or all pages in a historical document.
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In addition to audio clips, the 149-page electronic book also offers current video of Ringo talking about the book and his personal recollections. Each chapter has a summary page where a collage of all the photos included in that chapter appear.
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This behind-the-scenes look at the life of a Beatle offers interesting and fun photos like Ringo in an old car in Liverpool (page 40), Paul looking very French (page 54) and a cute photo of future musicians Julian Lennon and Zak Starkey together as kids (page 129).
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Ringo’s eye for photography comes through in shots like the snow-covered train tracks in Washington DC (page 82), Ringo’s use of a fisheye lens showing The Beatles as tourists during their concert tour (page 104) and a unique angle during the filming of ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ (page 86).
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Ringo Starr’s e-book, ‘Photograph‘, published by Genesis Publications is one part of a three-part project exploring the archives of the ex-Beatles’ drummer. Part two is the exhibit, Ringo: Peace & Love, currently on display at the GRAMMY Museum and part three is an expanded hardcover version of ‘Photograph’ coming out in December 2013.
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Starr has repeatedly said that he will never write his autobiography, so ‘Photograph’ is probably the closest fans will get to a first-person account hearing Ringo share recollections of his life before, during and after The Beatles. Knowing that this is just a smaller version of the hardcover book coming out in December just whets the Beatles fan’s appetite for more of Ringo!
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‘Photograph’ is available on iTunes from the iBookstore.
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–Trina Yannicos
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Will be looking for that hardcover in december! Good on you Ringo!
Will be looking for that hardcover in december! Good on you Ringo!
Keep beating the drum Ringo.
Keep beating the drum Ringo.
Ringo is right on it as far as the cutting edge of books goes and it’s because he himself constitutes today’s book-purchasers when he says that his reason for not writing an autobiography is because he’s never been bothered to read one.
Ringo is right on it as far as the cutting edge of books goes and it’s because he himself constitutes today’s book-purchasers when he says that his reason for not writing an autobiography is because he’s never been bothered to read one.