Cynthia Lennon

Advantages: A fairly insightful look into John's life by someone who really knew him
Disadvantages: A little naff and bias in places

...CYNTHIA LENNON: JOHN WHERE THIS FITS INTO MY BEATLEMANIA MONTH OF MAY: A truly interesting account of the Late Lennon in which tales of triumph, despair and anger are told but perhaps not for the first time... - - - - - Whether you are seeing a celebrity on TV, stage or listening to one of their albums, the chances are that you are more than often not bearing witness to a persona or alter ego; someone that is either a completely different character to what they would normally be recognised as or even a magnification of their personality as a way to turn heads and make people buy into their act. With that being said, that is one of the many reasons why I like reading both autobiographies and biographies; it is a great opportunity to see past the blurry stage lights and hopefully get into the real minds and lives of an admired... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: An honest account of life with John Lennon.
Disadvantages: Very little that hasn't been written already.

...I did a search on Amazon to see how many titles came up for Beatles books. Result: 1182. For John Lennon: 445 results. So did we really need yet another book? Cynthia Lennon was born in 1939, the week the war began and lived in Hoylake ("over the water" from where John Lennon lived, in what was seen as a 'posh' area). She lost her father at 17 from cancer, which later would be one of the things that would bring her closer to John who had lost his mother at a similar age (It was also one of the few things he had in common with McCartney). Having won a scholarship to the Junior Art School in Liverpool at the age of 12, it now looked as if the death of her father would put a stop to her ambition to be an artist. Thankfully, her mother insisted that she continue her education. She started at the Liverpool College of Art in 1959... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Excellent, partly written from personal experience, covers pretty much everything
Disadvantages: Could've chosen a better cover photo, I want more!

...it with little nuggets of information from his personal experience. He obviously liked Lennon very much (and is apparently one of the few reporters Lennon and The Beatles trusted), but doesn't worship him in the way that some biographers do their subjects. He also has the advantage of having had access to the people in Lennon's life and spending a lot of time with The Beatles (he used to type and file his stories while everyone else partied). He is respectful to both Lennon's first wife, Cynthia, and his widow, Yoko Ono: particularly refreshing, as most people try to villainise one of them, usually the latter. I think I have the advantage over older fans where Coleman's portrayal of Lennon's second marriage is concerned: I wasn't around to pay attention to the media villification of Yoko. A lot of fans would disagree with me and see Yoko... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful