Author: Ben Greenman
Title: Dig if You Will the Picture
Narrator: Peter Berkrot
Publication Info: Tantor Media, Inc., 2017
Summary/Review:
I received a free advanced reading copy of this book through the Library Thing Early Reviewers program (although I ended up listening to an audiobook from the library)
Greenman’s book is the story of Prince’s career largely told through Prince’s music with a focus on his role as a cultural icon and sometimes generous/sometimes rocky relationships with other musicians. Prince’s biography is in there too, but it’s more of the details fall into place around the examination of his music. Greenman is a devoted fan of Prince so his own experience as a Prince fan emerges several times in the book, but unlike Rob Sheffield who makes the fan’s experience a window into a greater understanding of an artists, Greenman’s personal reflections seem more an intrusion. Nevertheless, it’s overall a great attempt at understanding the life work of someone as mercurial and hard to define as Prince.
Recommended books:
- Trouble Boys: The True Story of the Replacements by Bob Mehr
- On Bowie by Rob Sheffield
- Brothas Be, Yo Like George, Ain’t That Funkin’ Kinda Hard on You? by George Clinton
Rating: ****
