Bill Howey's new book, "The Actor's Menu", gives the aspiring actor the one thing most acting class books are devoid of: that is the opportunity to use a comprehensive blueprint to get a usable system for executing the craft of acting on a repeatable basis. Howey's book, presented much like a restaurant menu, (presumably so actor/waiters could understand it) is an enlightening journey into all the ingredients that make up the portrayal of complex characters. The Actor's Menu forces you to think, asking a myriad of questions aimed at discovering just what your particular human incarnation has to bring to the table, and how it can be applied repeatedly as the basis of your acting career.

As acting class books go, "The Actor's Menu" is a corker. Revealing without being preachy; informative yet not dogmatic, Howey's book forces you to think and come up with your own personal menu that brings the best you have to offer to the role. My favorite section was without a doubt the Essential Ingredients chapter, where emotions, feelings and conflict are explored for what they are and are not, and how to meld them into an actable tool. One of the nice yet less obvious jewels in the The Actor's Menu is the constant weaving and equipping of the actor's arsenal. You may be eating a meal here but my view is that it's an MRE, as you are fully equipped for battle after reading and implementing this book.

Bill Howey is no Johnny-come-lately to this endeavor, having been an actor. teacher, writer and producer for more than 25 years. Howey's client list is as eclectic as it is talented. Some of the people he's worked with over the years include George Clooney, Robert Mitchum, Sam Kinison, and even his own son Steve Howey, who stars as Van on the hit WB show "Reba".

If you've determined that you really can't do anything else with your life other than act, then The Actor's Menu will whet your appetite even further!

Keith Thompson is a writer and webmaster, fascinated by the creative process in all it's forms. The The Actor's Menu can be found at Acting-Class-Books