REVIEW: Me - Elton John

Title: Me
Author: Elton John
Publisher: Macmillan
Format: Audiobook
Time: 11HRS 47MINS
Narrator: Taron Egerton
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Goodreads Blurb

Christened Reginald Dwight, he was a shy boy with Buddy Holly glasses who grew up in the London suburb of Pinner and dreamed of becoming a pop star. By the age of twenty-three, he was on his first tour of America, facing an astonished audience in his tight silver hotpants, bare legs and a T-shirt with ROCK AND ROLL emblazoned across it in sequins. Elton John had arrived and the music world would never be the same again.

His life has been full of drama, from the early rejection of his work with song-writing partner Bernie Taupin to spinning out of control as a chart-topping superstar; from half-heartedly trying to drown himself in his LA swimming pool to disco-dancing with the Queen; from friendships with John Lennon, Freddie Mercury and George Michael to setting up his AIDS Foundation. All the while, Elton was hiding a drug addiction that would grip him for over a decade.

In Me Elton also writes powerfully about getting clean and changing his life, about finding love with David Furnish and becoming a father. In a voice that is warm, humble and open, this is Elton on his music and his relationships, his passions and his mistakes. This is a story that will stay with you, by a living legend.

Thoughts

I picked this up as Elton John reminds me of my dad, I know you are wondering how, and it is that he was one of my dad's favourite artists. I will also admit I picked it up as it was narrated by Taron Egerton (so sue me).

I was surprised by how much I absolutely enjoyed this book and found John to be such a good writer, he's writing just flowed, and through the writing, you could feel that he is such a funny person, and such an acerbic wit. I have heard so many times through news reports about Elton John's tantrums, and through hearing about them from the man himself, you can see that all of them were so blown out of context by the media, that he manages to laugh about it and doesn't apologise.

Hearing about John's relationship with his parents, was an insight into how much we are moulded by our parents and how much it affects us in later life.

I would recommend listening to this on audiobook, Egerton is such a brilliant narrator, he brings such gravitas to the story, and he reads it with so much enthusiasm

Overall, a great book and one I would recommend picking up