John Lennon: The Life - by Philip Norman (Paperback)

About the Book

From the bestselling author of "Shout" comes an extraordinarily detailed, vibrant, in-depth account of the life of John Lennon--the most deeply researched and comprehensive biography of Lennon to date. 16-page color photo insert; 16-page b&w photo insert.

Book Synopsis

For more than a quarter century, biographer Philip Norman's internationally bestselling Shout! has been unchallenged as the definitive biography of the Beatles. Now, at last, Norman turns his formidable talent to the Beatle for whom being a Beatle was never enough. Drawing on previously untapped sources, and with unprecedented access to all the major characters, Norman presents the comprehensive and most revealing portrait of John Lennon ever published.

This masterly biography takes a fresh and penetrating look at every aspect of Lennon's much-chronicled life, including the songs that have turned him, posthumously, into a near-secular saint. In three years of research, Norman has turned up an extraordinary amount of new information about even the best-known episodes of Lennon folklore--his upbringing by his strict Aunt Mimi; his allegedly wasted school and student days; the evolution of his peerless creative partnership with Paul McCartney; his Beatle-busting love affair with a Japanese performance artist; his forays into painting and literature; his experiments with Transcendental Meditation, primal scream therapy, and drugs. The book's numerous key informants and interviewees include Sir Paul McCartney, Sir George Martin, Sean Lennon--whose moving reminiscence reveals his father as never seen before--and Yoko Ono, who speaks with sometimes shocking candor about the inner workings of her marriage to John.

"[A] haunting, mammoth, terrific piece of work." -New York Times

Honest and unflinching, as John himself would wish, Norman gives us the whole man in all his endless contradictions--tough and cynical, hilariously funny but also naive, vulnerable and insecure--and reveals how the mother who gave him away as a toddler haunted his mind and his music for the rest of his days.

From the Back Cover

For more than a quarter century, Philip Norman's internationally bestselling Shout! has been unchallenged as the definitive biography of the Beatles. Now, at last, Norman turns his formidable talent to the Beatle for whom belonging to the world's most beloved pop group was never enough. Drawing on pre-viously untapped sources, and with unprecedented access to all the major characters, here is the comprehensive and most revealing portrait of John Lennon that is ever likely to be published.

This masterly biography takes a fresh and penetrating look at every aspect of Lennon's much-chronicled life, including the songs that have turned him, posthumously, into a near-secular saint. In three years of research, Norman has turned up an extra-ordinary amount of new information about even the best-known episodes of Lennon folklore--his upbringing by his strict Aunt Mimi; his allegedly wasted school and student days; the evolution of his peerless creative partnership with Paul McCartney; his Beatle-busting love affair with a Japanese performance artist; his forays into painting and literature; his experiments with Transcendental Meditation, primal scream therapy, and drugs. The book's numerous key informants and interviewees include Sir Paul McCartney, Sir George Martin, Sean Lennon--whose moving reminiscence reveals his father as never before--and Yoko Ono, who speaks with sometimes shocking candor about the inner workings of her marriage to John.

Honest and unflinching, as John himself would wish, Norman gives us the whole man in all his endless contradictions--tough and cynical, hilariously funny but also naive, vulnerable and insecure--and reveals how the mother who gave him away as a toddler haunted his mind and his music for the rest of his days.

Review Quotes

"[A] haunting, mammoth, terrific piece of work." - New York Times Book Review
"Densely detailed, intricately woven, and elegantly told, John Lennon: The Life neither condemns nor condones, nor does it consecrate its subject. It does, however, examine the lingering myths and uncomfortable realities of the life of Lennon--some of them shocking even today. . . . Norman says he sought to portray Lennon candidly as 'both a massive influence on twentieth-century culture and an ultimately adorable human being, ' and, tabloid headlines aside, he has succeeded." - USA Today
"The most complete account of the genius and madness of an insecure misfit." - Los Angeles Times
"This will surely come to be regarded as the definitive portrait of the Beatle. . . . Norman carries out the task with a kind of quiet heroism. Neither hagiography nor hatchet job, John Lennon: the life is beautifully written and acutely perceptive, and the story it has to tell is epic." - The Independent
"It's this level of detail that makes Norman's 822 pages such compulsive reading." - Bloomberg News
"Powerful and heartfelt. . . . Norman displays the same gift for brisk, what-happened-next narrative that made Shout! a page turner." - Washington Book World
"So rich and enveloping that it demands to be read. . . . It's a clear-eyed and compassionate study of a man. . . . Norman coaxes fresh insights out of both Ono and producer George Martin. And, thanks to a rare interview with Sean Ono Lennon, he turns the postscript into a touching sort of hymn to a lost dad. A-" - Entertainment Weekly
"Devotees will relish the new information, while casual readers will find a familiar story told more truly than ever before." - Rolling Stone
"[Norman's] definitive biography draws impressively on exclusive and extensive interviews with Yoko Ono and, for the first time on the record, their son Sean...densely detailed, intricately woven and elegantly told, John Lennon: The Life neither condemns nor condones, nor does it consecrate its subject. - USA Today
"The bad news is that John Lennon: The Life is so rich and enveloping that it demands to be read...it's a clear-eyed and compassionate study of a man...Grade: A-." - Entertainment Weekly
"Powerful and heartfelt." - Washington Post Book World
"[Norman] sharpens what we know about Lennon at just about every turn...devotees will relish the new information, while casual readers will find a familiar story told more truly than ever before." - Rolling Stone