Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
I have so many feelings about this book, especially since I read it after watching Sofia Coppola's film adaptation. While it's an incredibly interesting piece of pop culture history, told by someone so close to Elvis, I can't help but feel kind of sad reading the book.
Priscilla has so many anecdotes about her time with Elvis, so if you enjoy celebrity memoirs, this is definitely worth the read. I felt at times like she laughed off things that were actually pretty disturbing or sad though. Setting aside their age difference, there were tantrums, affairs, and jealousy and control issues on both sides of the relationship that just read as so toxic. Then you remember that Priscilla was 14 when they met and you can't help but think about how she really had no other experience with a relationship, she had little way of knowing these things weren't healthy in an adult relationship. It's hard to reckon with Elvis the person and the partner when I have so many memories that I treasure of listening to Elvis in the car with my grandpa. Were this relationship taking place now, especially in front of a very watchful and chronically online public eye, I don't think we'd look at it or at Elvis quite as fondly.
Regardless of all of that, I did really enjoy it and think Priscilla has such a fun written voice. If you liked the movie or you haven't seen it yet but were interested, this is definitely a book to pick up, especially since there were some funny, more lighthearted moments that weren't in the film (like Elvis buying Priscilla a horse, realizing he wanted a horse, then buying himself and his whole entourage horses, totaling 18 horses after all was said and done).
Priscilla has so many anecdotes about her time with Elvis, so if you enjoy celebrity memoirs, this is definitely worth the read. I felt at times like she laughed off things that were actually pretty disturbing or sad though. Setting aside their age difference, there were tantrums, affairs, and jealousy and control issues on both sides of the relationship that just read as so toxic. Then you remember that Priscilla was 14 when they met and you can't help but think about how she really had no other experience with a relationship, she had little way of knowing these things weren't healthy in an adult relationship. It's hard to reckon with Elvis the person and the partner when I have so many memories that I treasure of listening to Elvis in the car with my grandpa. Were this relationship taking place now, especially in front of a very watchful and chronically online public eye, I don't think we'd look at it or at Elvis quite as fondly.
Regardless of all of that, I did really enjoy it and think Priscilla has such a fun written voice. If you liked the movie or you haven't seen it yet but were interested, this is definitely a book to pick up, especially since there were some funny, more lighthearted moments that weren't in the film (like Elvis buying Priscilla a horse, realizing he wanted a horse, then buying himself and his whole entourage horses, totaling 18 horses after all was said and done).
Revealing in a way I don't think Priscilla Presley intended.
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse
dark
sad
fast-paced
At the writing of this book (1985, less than 10 years after Elvis' death), Priscilla had clearly not faced the trauma of her life. Listening to her read the audiobook (which was recorded in 2022), tells me she still hasn't recovered. She kept giggling every time she spoke of Elvis' behaviours that were giant red flags, which felt like she had been groomed to always keep things light, and like she was afraid of the consequences of telling people what a monster he was so if she just giggled she wouldn't get in trouble because she was letting us know that she was cool with it. Broke my heart. I hope she gets some well-deserved trauma therapy soon
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse
Personally I am not a fan of Elvis and didnt know anything about him besides what I learned from Lilo and Stitch. I decided to listen this honestly just because the audiobook was free and Ive been getting into Celebrity Memoirs. I don't usually give Memoirs less than a 4 star review since it feels weird to rate someones life but honestly this whole story irritated me. ESPECIALLY THE EPILOGUE!! She reads the audiobook for this and she is very breathy and kind of childlike and tends to do a weird giggle at odd parts I had this really fast forwarded to try and not deal with it but something about it was weird for me. There were so many things wrong with this relationship but TBH Priscillas parents decisions really irritated me. Some random adult man invites your 14 year old over to an adult celebrities home and they let her go ALONE. He immediately had an unnatural interest in her and her parents continued to let her see him. I was kind of happy when he left Germany to back to the states but of course after a while they then let their 16 year old take a flight from germany to LA to meet up with him again and then moved her out there. They seemed to be really okay with the relationship especially after he said he might want to marry her. I honestly felt bad for her when reading this. She was a young girl who had moved around alot and was in a foreign new country. She seemed kind of insecure and lonely. She let so much stuff go because she was "in love" and didnt want him to leave. The way he continued to act when she was pregnant and had the baby made me even sadder for her. I personally had my own experiences being young and "in love" so when she FINALLY decided to leave him I was happy for her. I wanted the end of her story to be different though. I was hoping that after getting distance she would realize all the terrible things about the relationship. I was INCREDIBLY disappointed listening to the epilogue where she continued professing her love for him 10+ years after she left him. She even went as far as saying people write about him alot in bad ways saying hes a drug addict, a pervert, and a terrible person (which from reading her book it sounds true) and how she just wanted to write a story about love. After reading other Reviews it doesnt sound like Priscilla is a very good person now but I would really like to know if she still felt that way up until the day she died (since this was written in 1985). I really hope that before she died she got therapy and realized the way he treated her wasnt okay. I did google if she remarried after Elvis and she didnt which kind of makes me still feel sad for her. I hope she didnt die still thinking this was her once in a lifetime love story.
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
really nice to read this after watching sofia coppolas film adaptation! gave a lot of explanation of things that were kind of unexplained or rushed in the film. very good companion piece, highly recommend reading after watching the film. very faithful adaptation. a dreamy romanticised story in both film and book.
it wasn't that good, but priscillas story is sad and i feel bad for her. she was so young and seems to think she is aware of how much her naivety and youth influenced her relationship with elvis, but i really don't think she understands (at least at the time of writing the book). she was just a girl and i am sure anyone else in her position would have done the same thing! its elvis!
it wasn't that good, but priscillas story is sad and i feel bad for her. she was so young and seems to think she is aware of how much her naivety and youth influenced her relationship with elvis, but i really don't think she understands (at least at the time of writing the book). she was just a girl and i am sure anyone else in her position would have done the same thing! its elvis!
me while reading: "omg this was just like that scene in priscilla!"