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nick_poe's review
3.0
This was an interesting and fair look at Bing Crosby's early years.
My only issue is that Giddins has a tendency to get lost in the weeds. I don't need to know the plot of every movie Bing ever made. I don't need to know the intricate details of every piece of art he had a hand in. I am far more interested in the story of Bing: who he was and what got him to that point.
Giddins does touch on that stuff, and when he does it is the most entertaining and engaging portions of the book, but it's too rare. He seems focused on the character of Bing Crosby, the public persona and the parts he played in film and recording. I wanted to look beneath the veneer at the real Bing more often than Giddins did.
My only issue is that Giddins has a tendency to get lost in the weeds. I don't need to know the plot of every movie Bing ever made. I don't need to know the intricate details of every piece of art he had a hand in. I am far more interested in the story of Bing: who he was and what got him to that point.
Giddins does touch on that stuff, and when he does it is the most entertaining and engaging portions of the book, but it's too rare. He seems focused on the character of Bing Crosby, the public persona and the parts he played in film and recording. I wanted to look beneath the veneer at the real Bing more often than Giddins did.
pussreboots's review
4.0
A Pocketful of Dreams: The Early Years only covers the first half of Bing Crosby's life. My favorite example of a biography written about a celebrity is The Real Mary Tyler Moore by Chris Bryers.
The book starts of slow as so many biographies do with unnecessarily details about Crosby's family background. I would have been happiest if the book had started the birth of Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby in Tacoma Washington. Yes, it's interesting that he had some sea captain relatives but I really didn't get into the book until he left Washington for California. No, that's not quite correct. The book gets interesting around the time that he takes on the nickname "Bing."
The best part of the book though is all the time spent on the business of music, radio and film, three industries that Bing was a star of. I especially liked the chapters about the Brunswick and Decca labels and the early performances on fledgling CBS radio. The CBS section made a nice follow up to CBS: Reflections in a Bloodshot Eye by Robert Metz.
The book starts of slow as so many biographies do with unnecessarily details about Crosby's family background. I would have been happiest if the book had started the birth of Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby in Tacoma Washington. Yes, it's interesting that he had some sea captain relatives but I really didn't get into the book until he left Washington for California. No, that's not quite correct. The book gets interesting around the time that he takes on the nickname "Bing."
The best part of the book though is all the time spent on the business of music, radio and film, three industries that Bing was a star of. I especially liked the chapters about the Brunswick and Decca labels and the early performances on fledgling CBS radio. The CBS section made a nice follow up to CBS: Reflections in a Bloodshot Eye by Robert Metz.
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