A review by barnesstorming
Shake It Up: Great American Writing on Rock and Pop from Elvis to Jay Z: A Library of America Special Publication by Kevin J.H. Dettmar, Jonathan Lethem

4.0

Some 600 pages of essays on rock 'n' roll and I, who for years was a professional music writer, had read maybe 3 of these before. That's probably all you need to know about the eclectic, deep-dive curation that's happening here (and about my career as a music writer). I guess that shouldn't be a surprise, considering Jonathan Lethem is the core editor of this collection. But, I mean, seriously: Even the piece on doo-wop is gripping. My only grouse is that the only piece on Springsteen is a very short, dismissive essay. But that's personal. I spent nearly a year with this book, taking the pieces one at a time as the mood fit, and it was worth it.