cover image Easy Riders, Raging Bulls

Easy Riders, Raging Bulls

Peter Biskind, , read by Dick Hill. . Brilliance Audio, $49.99 (0pp) ISBN 978-1-4233-7106-9

The former executive editor of Premiere offers a juicy and supremely entertaining overview of the birth of new Hollywood in the 1970s (producing films like Nashville , Chinatown , Harold & Maude , Jaws , Shampoo , Taxi Driver , The Godfather and Star Wars ), which was wonderfully creative but short-lived. The artists celebrated sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll onscreen and off, which partially explains why so many high-flying careers crashed. Dick Hill's invigorating narration is so animated that he seems to be enjoying the sordid and funny mixture of gossip and history as much as any listener. The combination of Biskind's shrewdly written definitive history and Hill's unflagging energy makes this a great way to spend 24 hours. A Simon & Schuster paperback. (Dec.)