Steven Spielberg: Crazy for Movies

by Susan Goldman Rubin

Intimate family photos and interviews reveal Spielberg behind the scenes

From Jaws to E.T. to Schindler's List to Saving Private Ryan, Steven Spielberg has created many of the most popular and respected movies ever made. Now, through extensive interviews with Spielberg's family, with the stars of his films, and with the people he has worked with most closely, Susan Goldman Rubin presents the definitive portrait of a man whose childhood paved the path he would take as an artist.

A wealth of behind-the-scenes information allows readers to look at the creative process up close. Full of never-before-seen, one-of-a-kind family photographs, this fast-paced biography will inspire young people everywhere.

A chapter is devoted to the Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation, the nonprofit organization Spielberg established to videotape and preserve the testimonies of Holocaust survivors, and a portion of the profits from this book will go to support the foundation's work.

Genres: Biography

96 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2001

About the author

Susan Goldman Rubin is the author of more than forty-five books for young people, including Andy Warhol: Pop Art Painter; The Yellow House: Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin Side by Side; and Edward Hopper: Painter of Light and Shadow. A long-time instructor in the UCLA Extension Writers Program, Susan Goldman Rubin lives in Malibu, California.

Reviews

[Kasey Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Man, this guy is a hero.
An artist and a hero.
Love him, his movies (Temple of Doom is ok), and the way he sees the world.
A good book and now I want more.

[R. G. Nairam · Rating 4 out of 5]

brb watching everything

[Melanie Abril · Rating 5 out of 5]

This children's informational text goes into the life and works of Steven Spielberg through in depth interviews from Spielberg and his family. Blended together in perfect harmony, Rubin narrates Spielberg's life and tells how he was impacted and what inspired the well-known, award winning movies while then speaking of the process Spielberg went through making the movies. From Raiders of the Lost Ark to E.T. to Jaws to The Color Purple, Spielberg incorporates aspects of his life and is just as well shaped by the movies as he shapes them. The images throughout the book tell Spielberg's behind the scenes story as they show pictures from his childhood and actual behind the scenes photos from his movies. Spielberg's genius shines through in the chapter dedicated to his making of the film, Schindler's List, revealing Spielberg's integrity for the accuracy and dedication to telling a story about one of the darkest times this world has ever experienced. This is a wonderful book all ages but would be most appropriate for ages 12 and up as it discusses topics seen in films that are not necessarily kids films.

[Hima · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is the only biography that I read that I was interested in the whole time!

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]