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theveronicareview's review against another edition
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
Maybe I'm alone in this, but I believe we all come into this world aware of Elvis. His work and persona are so deeply embedded in our collective consciousness that, whether a fan or not, some aspect of our lives is bound to be touched by his impact on our culture and society.
Likewise, so many of us have our own perception of who Elvis was: cool, suave, annoying, proud - whatever it is, the majority of us are likely wrong. So few people knew the real Elvis and, arguably, one of the people who knew him best was his only wife, Priscilla.
I am not the type of person to rate/judge a memoir, but Elvis and Me was one of the most fascinating books I've read.
Constantly toeing the line between condemning & condoning the actions of Elvis, her parents, & herself, Priscilla recounts how she was courted by the singer at just 14 years of age. She spent late nights at Elvis' house in Germany, she was allowed to travel to another country to be with him, & she finished school in another country from her parents just so she could remain near the singer. Elvis taught Priscilla how to dress & how to act. She was given drugs so she could keep up with his demanding lifestyle. Priscilla went from being her parents' child to Elvis' child bride (though they actually married when she was 21), & it would be years before she'd realize she could be her own person, separate from Elvis.
Reading this memoir with modern eyes, it's baffling how their relationship was accepted. In her memoir, Priscilla does note that her parents were hesitant & insinuated that Elvis knew it was inappropriate, but that didn't make this read easier to digest. Obviously, it's now difficult for me to think of Elvis, the person, & not be repulsed. Reading other reviews of Priscilla's memoir, it's clear her words injured some who love/loved Elvis & who want his legacy to remain intact. Others are baffled by Priscilla's romanticization of their time together - some to the point of nausea and others with the desire to know more.
What appalled me more is that I went the majority of my life thinking they were the same age and that their relationship was respectable. It may be impossible to know or perceive how all the world's idols behave behind closed doors (although Elvis left that door opened just a crack, I'd say), but I think Priscilla's memoir is just another example of why we should always admire celebrities and their work with an objective eye. We don't truly know any one of them.
Likewise, so many of us have our own perception of who Elvis was: cool, suave, annoying, proud - whatever it is, the majority of us are likely wrong. So few people knew the real Elvis and, arguably, one of the people who knew him best was his only wife, Priscilla.
I am not the type of person to rate/judge a memoir, but Elvis and Me was one of the most fascinating books I've read.
Constantly toeing the line between condemning & condoning the actions of Elvis, her parents, & herself, Priscilla recounts how she was courted by the singer at just 14 years of age. She spent late nights at Elvis' house in Germany, she was allowed to travel to another country to be with him, & she finished school in another country from her parents just so she could remain near the singer. Elvis taught Priscilla how to dress & how to act. She was given drugs so she could keep up with his demanding lifestyle. Priscilla went from being her parents' child to Elvis' child bride (though they actually married when she was 21), & it would be years before she'd realize she could be her own person, separate from Elvis.
Reading this memoir with modern eyes, it's baffling how their relationship was accepted. In her memoir, Priscilla does note that her parents were hesitant & insinuated that Elvis knew it was inappropriate, but that didn't make this read easier to digest. Obviously, it's now difficult for me to think of Elvis, the person, & not be repulsed. Reading other reviews of Priscilla's memoir, it's clear her words injured some who love/loved Elvis & who want his legacy to remain intact. Others are baffled by Priscilla's romanticization of their time together - some to the point of nausea and others with the desire to know more.
What appalled me more is that I went the majority of my life thinking they were the same age and that their relationship was respectable. It may be impossible to know or perceive how all the world's idols behave behind closed doors (although Elvis left that door opened just a crack, I'd say), but I think Priscilla's memoir is just another example of why we should always admire celebrities and their work with an objective eye. We don't truly know any one of them.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Toxic relationship, and Pedophilia
Moderate: Infidelity, Drug abuse, and Misogyny
nerdinthelibrary's review against another edition
i genuinely don't think i can rate this. it's pretty well written, fast-moving and compelling. the entire story is fascinating, particularly because there's basically no point at which priscilla seems to ever realise that what's happening is bad. she was groomed and abused from age fourteen and there's never any point, even with the hindsight of her writing this in her forties, where she criticises elvis. there are a few times when she offhandedly says that something was bad but she always follows that with a justification. makes me so curious about the framing of the sofia coppola movie considering the fact that priscilla was involved and seems happy with it. not to make priscilla sound stupid because i don't think she is, but i really do wonder if the coppola movie does frame the film as being about an abused woman and priscilla didn't realise, because this book literally describes elvis throwing things at her and flying into rages and taking pictures of her naked as a teenager and convincing her to take pills and not allowing her to get a job and isolating her from any sort of support system she could have had, and she never seems to find any problem with it. anyway, fascinating book, would recommend, incredibly disturbing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Drug use, Addiction, and Physical abuse
sarahreadsalotofbooks's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
4.0
I knew Elvis was a mess but I didn’t realize he was an abusive groomer.
He began grooming Priscilla when she was 14 telling her how to behave, what to wear, how to wear her makeup. By the time she was 16 they were sexually involved and he had convinced her to take sexual photos. He was emotionally and mentally abusive, as well as physically abusive at times.
Throughout all of this he was also grooming her parents, eventually getting them to consent to allow her to leave them to go live with him for the remainder of her high school years.
Priscilla comes across as someone with Stockholm syndrome finding his behavior humorous as she narrated this at times. She describes the time he raped her as “forcefully made love to her”.
As despicable a person as he was, this was a well-written, informative book.
He began grooming Priscilla when she was 14 telling her how to behave, what to wear, how to wear her makeup. By the time she was 16 they were sexually involved and he had convinced her to take sexual photos. He was emotionally and mentally abusive, as well as physically abusive at times.
Throughout all of this he was also grooming her parents, eventually getting them to consent to allow her to leave them to go live with him for the remainder of her high school years.
Priscilla comes across as someone with Stockholm syndrome finding his behavior humorous as she narrated this at times. She describes the time he raped her as “forcefully made love to her”.
As despicable a person as he was, this was a well-written, informative book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Violence, Cursing, Mental illness, Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Rape, Infidelity, and Sexual content
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