The Princess Bride

This review has been hard to write, mainly because I'm most likely going to end up reviewing the movie more than the book.  In fact, if you think you might like the book, just go watch the movie.

The Princess Bride, by William Goldman, is essentially the story of a kidnapped princess, a greedy prince, a giant with a big heart, a revengeful swordsman, and a mysterious rescuer.  That part of the story is good (and not as girly as the title implies - trust me, guys will like it).  The rest of the book tells the story of the author and his tale of how he found the book (because in his fictional world, it was written by S. Morgenstern) and how his grandfather used to read it to his father, and his father used to read it to him, and not until he tried to read it on his own did he realize that his father had been abridging the book in an effort to only leave in "the good parts."  The premise, then, is that Goldman's job is to officially abridge Morgenstern's work so it's more accessible to the general public.  The author cuts into the body of the story every once in awhile, which if you don't like interference from authors, you probably won't be a fan of this.

In short, I found this book confusing at first, and then annoying.  Don't get me wrong, the story of "the princess bride" is a good one.  But they did such a great job in the movie (most of the lines are taken straight from the book) that I would rather just sit down and see it played out than have to delve into the author's narration.

3 out of 5 stars.  And that third star is only because the story itself is so good.  Do yourself a favor: watch the movie.  You'll get all of "the good parts."