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Didn't We Almost Have It All: The Genius, Shame, and Audacity of Whitney Houston by Gerrick Kennedy
thndrkat's review
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
This engaging and thought-provoking book is less of a traditional biography and more of a series of essays on various themes related to Whitney Houston's life and music; the cultural and systemic forces that shaped, influenced, and hurt her; and her wide, broad, and deep impact on multiple musical artists and genres. It speaks to and about the consumers of her music rather than painting a full picture of her personality, both out of respect for her humanity and out of necessity given her untimely death.
Kennedy, a Black writer who covered Houston as a music reporter during her lifetime, does a lot of soul-searching related to how the Black community and reporters in general talked about her and what that meant in terms of societal compassion, tolerance, and understanding of addiction and abuse.
While I don't identify as a member of the "we" that Kennedy often refers to, as someone who was alive at the time and listened to her hits on the radio as a kid, I could still relate to his musings and regrets. Given the book's structure, the writing is at times repetitive, but it still kept me hooked right to the end.
Kennedy, a Black writer who covered Houston as a music reporter during her lifetime, does a lot of soul-searching related to how the Black community and reporters in general talked about her and what that meant in terms of societal compassion, tolerance, and understanding of addiction and abuse.
While I don't identify as a member of the "we" that Kennedy often refers to, as someone who was alive at the time and listened to her hits on the radio as a kid, I could still relate to his musings and regrets. Given the book's structure, the writing is at times repetitive, but it still kept me hooked right to the end.
claire60's review
4.0
Such an important and interesting book, I really enjoyed the way that this book, reflected on Whitney's life but also the social/political context in which she lived and found success. Whitney's life was incredibly complex, going way beyond the tabloid drama that people love to focus on. The author has a good understanding of that and explores some of the wider issues of the racism and misogyny that was even more toxic and restrictive in the 80's and 90's music business. Not to mention the wider political issues of how life was changing in Reagan's America especially for Black people. All of this adds to the richness of the book, which is a fitting tribute to The Voice of her generation. Highly recommended.
harleighthornton's review
4.0
A must read for any true fan of Whitney. This story is not an exposé on Whitney’s scandals, but rather a deep analysis of how society failed her and how she could not thrive under the immense pressure of stardom that existed during her height of fame. The true tragedy in this book is the unanswered question of would Whitney have survived if she was able to surpass the crushing expectations of her community, of her fans, and of her family.
esselleayy's review
3.0
Not a straight-forward biography, but a series of essays placing Whitney's life in a greater context of what it meant to be a Black woman, Christian, sexually fluid, an addict all in a specific time and place. I loved Whitney as a kid (a white kid at that) and so much I didn't know and never considered. I think the essays here can be repetitive at times, but there's a lot of respectful and loving dialogue to be found. This made for an excellent book club discussion if you need one!
kathys1977's review
3.0
I am not sure where to start with this review, so I guess I will start at the beginning. I was really excited to get to read this book early, Whitney Houston was one of my favorite singers growing up.
I really liked this book over all. I did think that the author presented all facets of Whitney Houston's life, but mostly the good. it talks about her struggles as well but is certainly not a tell all book which I really liked. ( we already have number of these and we don't need to have another one).
My one thing that I didn't like about the book was I thought that at times we lost focus of our subject. I understand the author was trying to give cultural context for what he was talking about, I thought sometimes he went a little off center.
Over all I really did like this book, and thought it was a great read. I would certainly recommend it to any Whitney Houston fan, or anyone who would like to get some more information about her life.
I really liked this book over all. I did think that the author presented all facets of Whitney Houston's life, but mostly the good. it talks about her struggles as well but is certainly not a tell all book which I really liked. ( we already have number of these and we don't need to have another one).
My one thing that I didn't like about the book was I thought that at times we lost focus of our subject. I understand the author was trying to give cultural context for what he was talking about, I thought sometimes he went a little off center.
Over all I really did like this book, and thought it was a great read. I would certainly recommend it to any Whitney Houston fan, or anyone who would like to get some more information about her life.
mstriceyb's review
Let me start by saying that I have been Whitney’s BIGGEST fan since I was a little girl! Through the albums, movies, marriages, star spangled banner, drugs and all, I’ve remained a fan. I mean how could I not be… THAT VOICE is amazing!
Now down to business… I’m not going to give this book a rating with stars because I didn’t listen thoroughly. I skipped through some parts just to get through it.
It seemed like half of the book was about other people. I understand speaking about the people who were parts of her life, but I didn’t need so much about them.
He also quoted several other books that were written about Whitney such as Cissy’s, Robin’s, Clive’s etc. several times. It was too much.
I used the audiobook this time, maybe in the future I’ll read the physical copy and update this review.
Now down to business… I’m not going to give this book a rating with stars because I didn’t listen thoroughly. I skipped through some parts just to get through it.
It seemed like half of the book was about other people. I understand speaking about the people who were parts of her life, but I didn’t need so much about them.
He also quoted several other books that were written about Whitney such as Cissy’s, Robin’s, Clive’s etc. several times. It was too much.
I used the audiobook this time, maybe in the future I’ll read the physical copy and update this review.
amyjoy's review
4.0
I didn't really know much about Whitney Houston before reading this; my family were country music listeners, so I am really only familiar with her biggest hits and a small amount of her life story. I thought it was time I learned more about her and her music, and this was a timely read for Black History Month.
Kennedy tells you upfront that this isn't a straight up biography of her life; it's a bit more scholarly than that, and he examines her music's place in pop culture and how the public reacted to it and her life. He is someone who obviously cares about Whitney Houston a great deal, and he approaches the whole books with a great deal of kindness and empathy. The writing is excellent, but her life so, so sad.
(Obviously, there's lots of discussion of drug use and abuse and this is maybe not the right book for anyone sensitive to those things.)
Kennedy tells you upfront that this isn't a straight up biography of her life; it's a bit more scholarly than that, and he examines her music's place in pop culture and how the public reacted to it and her life. He is someone who obviously cares about Whitney Houston a great deal, and he approaches the whole books with a great deal of kindness and empathy. The writing is excellent, but her life so, so sad.
(Obviously, there's lots of discussion of drug use and abuse and this is maybe not the right book for anyone sensitive to those things.)