Kate: Inside The Rainbow

 

I've been meaning to get around to this one for quite some time now, especially as I've had the book since it was first released. But I also wanted to properly absorb the book before I attempted to make any comment on it. It was also tricky attempting to take some half decent shots of some pages. It's a very heavy book to start with, and scanning this in without destroying it completely would literally be impossible. Besides, I wouldn't want to ruin the surprises within this book for anyone that doesn't own it yet.

Just to give you a better idea of how thick it is.

In the beginning I started out with ordering the limited edition version, but halfway through the order I stopped and cancelled it completely. I couldn't justify spending £120 on a book that was exactly the same as the standard edition. The extras that came with the limited edition version didn't warrant that excessive amount in my opinion. This was my personal choice and I have no regrets about it. I'm sure if anyone is at all curious about the extra goodies of the limited edition version there are most likely several people out there who have posted photos of these things for you to look at.

Kate breaking into the BBC after hours and stealing the Doctor Who story "The Underwater Menace".

With that being said, this is a stunningly gorgeous book that's absolutely stuffed with hundreds of unseen photographs - so if you don't have a copy yet, I strongly suggest you get out there and get yourself one. The photographs are arranged in a variety of different ways and sizes - full page, half page, medium sized, quarter sized and super small. If I do have one small gripe about the book it's that some of the more interesting photos have been presented in a much smaller size. The bat photos from the Never For Ever sessions are a good example of what I'm referring to. Only two of those photos are printed in this book, and when you compare them to the overall size of the page, you can really see how small they are. I personally found that slightly disappointing. However, with the vast amount of photographic material presented in this book, I do realize having full sized photos on each page would have been next to impossible, considering that the book stands at 283 pages as it is - so that little disappointment is my own and shouldn't be a reflection of the book itself. It is stunning and definitely worth having.

Even though this is primarily a photo book, there are some wonderfully written in depth sections as well that are really essay-like in their style. The text is candid and insightful as we get a glimpse into the world of Kate Bush. See what I did there? Never mind! Whether you like to read or not, you'll definitely appreciate reading John's memories regarding various photo shoots, etc. I won't get into much detail about the text as this could easily turn into a long-winded rant from me. It's pretty interesting stuff though, so you won't be disappointed.

For those who haven't got the book yet - Although the price on the back of the standard edition states £40, you can actually buy it via Amazon UK for £26. So if you live internationally, this will be a huge price saver for you. So whether you collect Kate related books or not, this one is definitely worth picking up.

Highly recommended.