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bartonstanley's review against another edition
5.0
As a long time Neil Young listener I enjoyed this book immensely. Some have noted here that it is not an autobiography and I agree, though I part company with those who see that as a negative. It has made me realize that biographies and autobiographies attempt to fit some expected form and in doing that they paradoxically lose the essence of the subject.
Reading this work (of art) I have a better understanding of Mr. Young as an artist and human being, and precisely because it eschews expected forms. On example is a few paragraphs about a bow and two arrows that he purchased at an antique shop. There is no big reveal at the end of that narrative but it gives the reader a glimpse of something important and meaningful to him, something that would likely not be shared in a more formal autobiography. It is almost like a window into his soul.
Before you read this book, throw out any ideas of a neat, chronological narrative and of getting a clear understanding about the trajectory of his career. Instead, open your mind and heart to letting the author tell you about himself in his own way, for what better way is there to get to know someone that you may never really know?
Reading this work (of art) I have a better understanding of Mr. Young as an artist and human being, and precisely because it eschews expected forms. On example is a few paragraphs about a bow and two arrows that he purchased at an antique shop. There is no big reveal at the end of that narrative but it gives the reader a glimpse of something important and meaningful to him, something that would likely not be shared in a more formal autobiography. It is almost like a window into his soul.
Before you read this book, throw out any ideas of a neat, chronological narrative and of getting a clear understanding about the trajectory of his career. Instead, open your mind and heart to letting the author tell you about himself in his own way, for what better way is there to get to know someone that you may never really know?
duparker's review against another edition
5.0
What a great memoir. For all the reasons that Roger Ebert's Life Itself was so perfect, this book excels. The book is not linear, nor is it thematic. It is a conversation with the author in written form. You get bits and pieces along the way about his life, his loves, and his mind set. I expected more about certain albums, but wasn't disappointed that it wasn't a encyclopedia of albums. Instead it worked really well to read through and learn what Neil felt you should know.
The cars, and dogs and all the side aspects of the book come at the right time. I found it fun to learn about the different cars he's had and why he values them. His various dogs and his relationships with them are fun, as a dog owner. Most interesting are his relationships with friends and family. Sometimes it is easy to forget that celebrities are people too. Reading stories about how Neil and Bruce Springsteen worked through the loss of friends and sidemen. Celebrities need support networks just like the reader does. This love and trueness to the writing was refreshing and alive.
I don't think you need to be a Neil Young fan to enjoy this book. It will help, but isn't required. A word of warning is that there is repetition and redundancy. I didn't find this to be a problem, because it wasn't rambling, or done in an annoying way. It was just part of the conversation. It was the same sort've repetition that old friends have hanging out and telling stories, you get caught up and tell some things over and over, and enjoy them each time.
That made the book feel all that more honest and clearly written by someone who enjoys life and values the successes and failures they have experienced.
Best part: I learned a new mantra "Life is a shit sandwich, eat it or starve."
The cars, and dogs and all the side aspects of the book come at the right time. I found it fun to learn about the different cars he's had and why he values them. His various dogs and his relationships with them are fun, as a dog owner. Most interesting are his relationships with friends and family. Sometimes it is easy to forget that celebrities are people too. Reading stories about how Neil and Bruce Springsteen worked through the loss of friends and sidemen. Celebrities need support networks just like the reader does. This love and trueness to the writing was refreshing and alive.
I don't think you need to be a Neil Young fan to enjoy this book. It will help, but isn't required. A word of warning is that there is repetition and redundancy. I didn't find this to be a problem, because it wasn't rambling, or done in an annoying way. It was just part of the conversation. It was the same sort've repetition that old friends have hanging out and telling stories, you get caught up and tell some things over and over, and enjoy them each time.
That made the book feel all that more honest and clearly written by someone who enjoys life and values the successes and failures they have experienced.
Best part: I learned a new mantra "Life is a shit sandwich, eat it or starve."
ellenczuba's review against another edition
1.0
Even if you're Neil Young's #1 fan, this book is hard to get through. It contains nothing but totally random, incoherent ramblings and he continuously tells some of the same stories over and over. I was hoping to read this - not knowing a ton about Neil Young - and then fall in love with him and his music afterwards; like when I read Scar Tissue without knowing much about the RHCP and fell in love with that band. Not the case. Unfortunately this book is probably most interesting for those who love random musings about stupid cars. I'll revisit Neil's music in more depth once I've forgotten about this book. 2 stars because the story about Charlie Manson was pretty funny.
thelucyfan's review against another edition
2.0
I so wanted to love it but I found myself asking “ who cares?”
emmamgregory's review against another edition
1.0
You would have to be a real fan of Neil Young to like his autobiography, this is one of the only times I've given up on a book, I couldn't get past the first 100 pages. Neil darts from one topic to another never really finishing his thoughts, he throws random names into sentences that would mean nothing to even his die-hard fans. I'll stick to loving his song Harvest Moon and maybe he should have stuck to writing it.
jelek86's review against another edition
3.0
I adore Neil Young, but this book was a struggle to get through. Imagine if your aging uncle decided one day to start a blog: "I'll just write about whatever is on my mind every day for three months. It will be great!"
Well, it's not great. But if you can get past the poorly organized, poorly written nature of the book, you might learn one or two things about Young that can't be found in a much better book about one of the greatest rockers of all time, like Shakey.
Well, it's not great. But if you can get past the poorly organized, poorly written nature of the book, you might learn one or two things about Young that can't be found in a much better book about one of the greatest rockers of all time, like Shakey.
ikoperiko's review against another edition
5.0
Reading this was like spending time with a wise person, listening to many an anecdote by the fire. It took me a while to finish this book but not for lack of interest. Still, every time I picked it up it was easy to get back to the story because Neil Young is just as amazing a story teller as he is a lyricist. Even though this book was published ten years ago, certain subjects he expands on, such as online music streaming, are still relevant today. It helped me understand in a way why he is so emphatic on certain ideas and decided to pull his music from Spotify. The non-linear composition adds to the feeling of being in the company of Young, listening to him tell you his experiences as opposed to reading it from the book.