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Autobiographies are usually rubbish. Biographies aren’t too bad, as they generally show both sides of their character, but autobiographies only focus on the good character traits of people, and tend to avoid mentioning the little things like their drug-fuelled trips to Uganda or the ‘hilarious’ illegitimate children. Luckily, this book is different.

For those who do not know, Guy Pratt was the replacement bassist for Pink Floyd, following Roger Waters and David Gilmour’s “little tiff”. In this book, in which Guy tells tales from his life so far, we hear about his days touring around Australia in his youth, gigging with Pink Floyd and David Gilmour, performing with Roxy Music during Live8 and recording the music for the sitcoms Spaced and The Young Person’s Guide to Becoming a Rock Star.

The difference between this book and a normal autobiography, is that whereas most autobiographies are just spun out in one bash, with exciting and pointless stories woven together unpredictably. Guy has taken time with this book, even to the point of touring the UK with a stage show which was the forerunner to this book. Not only has this ensured that every ‘yarn’ grabs the reader, but it also keeps them totally engrossed and entertained.

This is a great book, mainly as it’s an interesting insight into one of the biggest bands in the world during their difficult years. It’s very very funny, plus who doesn’t like reading about rock stars getting into a spot of mischief now and again?

Purchase this fine literary work here.

One morning a well-dressed young man appears at a leading polling company. He’s charismatic and (more importantly) carrying a clipboard, so no one dares to challenge him. In no time at all the titular Rimmer (Peter Cook) has taken control of the company, and Great Britain is next on his hit list.

After stepping on and over countless people on his way to the top of the Tory party, the mesmerising leader creates a government controlled entirely by the people, with each decision – no matter how small – being the subject of a national vote. With a hundred daily referendums the public soon become tired of having their say on everything, so when Rimmer offers them a way of life where they don’t have to decide on anything at all, it seems only natural for them to take it. Hail President Rimmer.

Although each cast member (including the likes of John Cleese, Harold Pinter and Arthur Lowe) is flawless, Peter Cook is on another level entirely. His disarming charm and penetrating gaze are tailor-made for the role of Rimmer, and his performance here tops anything else he committed to film, including Bedazzled. Funny, yet cold and cynical, with an absolutely brilliant soundtrack, The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer is one of the best DVD releases this year.

Surely little more than a satire when it was first released in 1970, today the film has a slightly sinister undercurrent. Replace the key figures with our own political and media heavyweights and is it so far fetched? Thank God Alistair Campbell is now well away from having government influence, the resurrection of this film would certainly give him ideas.

You should think about clicking here to buy this DVD.

Adapted from the novel by Vercors, this story of quiet resistance in German-occupied France in the Second World War met with fierce opposition when director Jean Pierre Melville attempted to start production just a couple of years after the end of the conflict.

This explains in part the sparseness of the end result and the relative lack of personnel in the credits. The director was, however, able to persuade Vercors to allow shooting to take place in his home, which in turn enabled him to ensure that Melville stayed true to the author’s work. Scenes featuring the book at the beginning and end serve to underline the adherence of the film to the original text.

The story centres on the arrival of a German officer, von Ebrennac, into the home of a French man and his niece. They have no choice about whether he lives in their home but they make a stand by choosing not to speak to him. As the months pass von Ebrennac, a cultured, erudite man with compassion and a sense of distaste for his enforced presence in the house, attempts every evening to engage the pair in conversation and prove to them that he is civilised and even vulnerable. All attempts fail and the pair remain totally silent.

There is little action and in the shadowy atmosphere of the kitchen where most scenes take place, the tiniest gesture becomes loaded with significance and one word, after months of silence, speaks volumes.

Interested? Buy it here.

There’s no point in getting too attached to any of the characters in this book, most of them last no longer than two or three (incredibly brief) chapters, and there are dozens of them to take on board.

However, as only a handful escape a gruesome death and make it to the end of the book it sometimes feels like it’s hardly worth the effort.This tale started life on the internet and the regular installments built up a cult following. This explains why each chapter is so short and why most end on some sort of cliffhanger – a device which would work just fine in weekly episodes but is of little use when the following page instantly dispels what precious little tension has been built up on the previous two or three.

The plot centres on the hunt, by several characters, for The Eye of the Moon, a stone with mysterious powers. The author has chosen to remain anonymous and the book is copyrighted to The Bourbon Kid – the name of one of the characters. Is this because he or she is hoping to retain a sense of mystery or because they are a bit embarrassed by their literary efforts?

Probably the former but the latter would make a fair explanation because, although the book is relatively entertaining (even laugh-out-loud funny in a couple of places), the clumsy style of the writer makes reading it feel like wading through treacle.

You may well enjoy this if you’re after something quick and ultimately disposable to read, but you probably won’t remember or care what happens in the end.

I’ve already forgotten.

You can buy The Book With No Name here.

Maggie Gyllenhaal is fast establishing herself as one of the bravest actresses of her generation and performances don’t come much more courageous than this.

She stars as Sherry, an ex-junkie just out of prison for stealing and finding it very difficult to come to terms with the restrictions placed on her by her parole officer (Giancarlo Esposito). Sherry is desperate to stay on the straight and narrow because she wants to regain custody of her young daughter, now in the care of her brother (Brad William Henke) and his wife (Bridget Barkin). Although she’s clean she finds it increasingly impossible to deal with everyday problems such as getting a job, living in a halfway house and curbing her impulsive nature, and she knows if she’s not careful a return to drug use will take her daughter away from her forever.

Gyllenhaal shows us Sherry warts and all – both her sunny, sweet side and her self-destructive inner demons – and it is a measure of her talent that you still warm to this damaged woman, even when her behaviour is not commendable. At times she seems pathetic and sad, at others manipulative, and yet you still hope she wins through. The writing is honest and raw throughout (the film is written by director Laurie Collyer), and although the ending rings less true than what precedes it, there is still much here to really impress.      Pixie Santos

Sherrybaby is released on July 27