I finished Norman's book last night, just in time for Kenneth Womack's book on Mal to arrive tomorrow.
I actually enjoyed
The Reluctant Beatle, despite the lazy documentation and the fact that every photo save one was from Shutterstock. It was comprehensive but not overly detailed, which I appreciated. Some books include so much minutaie (a bio I recently read of Phil Spector comes to mind) that I feel overwhelmed.
Norman kept his sometimes-snarky attitude mostly in check, and at the end of the book I realized why: In the Acknowledgments he issues a
mea culpa for his mean-spirited 2001 obituary for George and indicates he got quite a bit of blowback from it. ("[It] gave great offense to many people, among them several professional colleagues whose opinions I respected.") And apparently—not surprisingly—neither Olivia nor Dhani would speak to him for this book (as well they shouldn't have, in my opinion. And I see he does not mention the millions of fans he also offended.). I personally think this would have better served as a Foreword or a Preface than as part of the Acknowledgments. Putting it at the end of the book struck me as a bit cowardly.
I was disappointed because Norman's described some interesting-sounding photos that did not appear in the book (and were not documented. Frustrating!). Here are two examples.
1. After Stu's death, from Astrid Kirchherr, describing how John and George went up to visit his studio at her house: "John sat in a chair, so full of emotion to be in the same room where his friend [had been] painting that he nearly burst out into tears. . . . George was a bit worried so I said, 'Just stand behind him.' John was just falling to bits there, and when you look at the picture and George's eyes, they're so full of protection for John."
2. From Pattie, after their sojourn to see the Maharishi: "As usual, she took numerous photographs of George, including one in which he's reclining on a mattress at the simple guesthouse where they stayed. 'It's the last image I have of him . . . looking completely happy and at peace."
I'd love to see these photographs. I checked Pattie's book for the latter, but it wasn't included there.
I feel like a heretic for saying this <ducks head>, but I did enjoy the book. I'm still not a fan of Philip Norman, though.
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Topic: Phillip Norman To Publish A Book On George (Read 4185 times)