"John Lennon & Paul McCartney their magic and thier music" by Bruce Glassman is a great book. I found it very hard to put it down ,because it was a great reference to learn how The Beatles were formed ,by two great song writers.There is also a lot of information on were they grew up and what happend to them in their childhood. You can also find out what pushed Paul McCartney and John lennon to write the music that change the music world. So if you ever want to read a book to find out how PoP music started. I recommend that you read "John Lennon & Paul McCartney their magic and thier music."

This is a book I would have LOVED to have owned as a child. This is a book I love NOW! Glassman does an excellent job of presenting the Beatles to a younger audience and his clear writing style compliments the intelligence of his readers.

The photographs are superb, as is the (I think) world's number one song writing duo, Lennon & McCartney, half of the world's number one band, THE BEATLES! This is such a treat to read. It's just what the doctor ordered and is just so much fun. Don't be surprised if you shake your bangs and start singing Beatle tunes.

I give this a round of thunderous applause and a hearty YEAH, YEAH, YEAH! I love it!

I couldn't put the book down. I read it from cover to cover without a single stop. Glassman did a good job at putting this one together. Of course almost anything you write about The Beatles will be great though.

Pete Shotton was John Lennon's best friend throughout his life, and this book gives a positive upbeat and revealing look at that friendship.

Starting from their rebellious childhood antics in Woolton and Quarrybank we are taken on a "Magical Mystery Tour" through the Quarrymen formation and onto Beatles superfame. Throughout it all Pete was the sane down-to-Earth component of John's life. Here's a glimpse of the Real John Lennon from getting every bird around (and the rest) to going off the deep end with Acid. It's sure to entertain you and keep you laughing with uncanny Lennon humor. The book is no whitewash, but neither is it the blackwash of Goldman's book. It's basically as close to the truth as a good friend can get. I also recommend The Man who Gave the Beatles Away and the new book, Lennon in America. I await the release of John's Diaries.

I very highly recommend this book to any Lennon/Beatles fan with a good sense of humour and an open mind. I Loved Every Page Of It. You wont be able to keep a straight face while you read it. What A Clown!

There are only three decent books on John Lennon: Albert Goldman's, Ray Connelly's and Pete Shotton's "In My LIfe". This book is almost completely free of the schmalz that ruins other biographies. It's truthful and frank and is quite fascinating. A good thing about the book, is that it focuses on the man rather than the music. From reading it, you do get an idea of what he was really like. Regrettably, I lent my copy to a friend who promptly left it on a table in a cafe or hostel in Paris (early '96). So if you found it - I want it back!

Everyone knows a book about The Beatles, or any one of them, especially Lennon, is a guaranteed sell/ source of income. And those who cannot resist will write one. Lennon's political "activism" is hyped beyond that it was. He was naive in politics, as especilly shown by his bothering with (being used by) Rubin and Peel, both of whom I knew, and knew for what they were.

This book amazed me on how accurate and truthful it was. It contains many many quotes of Lennon which supports every bit of information presented. I originally borrowed the book from a library for a school project and was very unhappy about having to give it back! I would have loved to have kept it. It is a must have for any John Lennon fan.

It is true that Lennon had much to learn about politics.It is also true that he had even more to learn about life.He even had much to learn about music (he would have been the first to agree with the last point),but he had something that only a select few people from his "genre" had,and that was desire to be heard.Naturally,when he was heard he had much to say.When he got the opportunity to say it,he had much tendency to speak it with words that made only sense to the ones who lived in his world (or at least wanted to).There were a few messages he made,however,that did not only affect millions of lives,but may have even changed it for the better.This was a power he began to realize during the height of his success with the Beatles,and it scared the hell out of him.Probably beyond what any of us could possibly concieve,it ripped him to shreads.Yoko helped much in the way of opening him up,but in using him as a puppet (as many did),she really only made matters worse.It was not until just before his death that he really began to realize that what he wanted in life was peace and good music.Not the peace of the world,but peace of mind for himself.The book Come together captures this emotional roller coaster ride better than any book written on the subject.Next to Barry Miles' "Paul Mccartney:many years from now" it is without question the most honest and well written account on one of the greatest pop culture stories ever told.And it is written with wit and wisdom,as well as sympathy for a man that was terribly misunderstood,even by his own self.Something to be read numerous times,especially the account on the "more popular than Christ" contreversey.Lennon is a true icon for this century,but he was also very human (more than most),and this book portrays this fact very well.

This is a vital book for any fan, every piece of art & music John Lennon has ever done. John Robertson does a good job which other Lennon books miss: Detailed Account to all the art done with Yoko, solo music, and tour information. One of the best highlights is all the lost sessions, including the five year seclusion while John was house husband. Robertson covers so many songs that John has recorded that are not even released to this day. Robertson's book judges the man not for his mistakes, but for the works of art and music John Lennon has left behind for us all.

The pseudonymous John Robertson is one of the few writers on John Lennon (or the Beatles) who doesn't subscribe to any of the myths that clog this important artist's legacy. This book and his later chronology "Lennon 1940-1980" are essential reading for any serious fan, both scrupulously researched and entertaining, scholarly yet readable. From Lennon's teenage scribblings to his first recordings with the 'Quarry Men', to the years of Beatlemania and psychedelic experimentation, to Yoko Ono and avant-garde wackiness, to the 'Lost Weekend' and the shut-in Dakota years, to Lennon's final, sudden burst of creativity before the end - every twist and turn of this bizarre, brilliant career is chronicled with a sharp, critical but loving eye. There was a lot more to Lennon than 'Imagine', and a lot of it was truly surreal - whole books of stream-of-consciousness, pun-laden nonsense; 'art' exhibits filled with grapefruit, spoons and sponges; endless avant-noise recordings and live performances that came close to absolute madness; reviews, self-advertisements and letters to the editor; spoken word tapings, erotic lithographs and off-the-wall cartoons (Dali as done by Thurber) - the aesthetic debris cast off by a whirling dervish of creativity, a man who often did nothing but sleep for months on end but somehow could never squelch his burning desire to create and perform, the spark that dragged him from 'Please Please Me' to 'Cold Turkey', and then to 'Double Fantasy'. A definitive study of Lennon would require several volumes; in about 200 pages, Robertson provides a better (and mercifully shorter) analysis than almost anyone else so far.

This is certainly the best book that writer Guiliano has ever been involved in. It is interesting to hear about this untold side of John Lennon's family life, straight from a real member of that family. Nice.

This is a very interesting book about the family man John Lennon. His sister Julia tells all the true about the relationships between John and his mother, his stepfather, his little sisters, the tragedy when their mother was killed by a drunk policeman, and the beginnings of the group that four years later became the greatest phenomenon of the popular music, The Beatles. Also, Julia remembers for us, the phone conversations with John in the late 70's, near to John's death, and the feelings of all family when John was tragicly death by the gun of an out of mind man. Great book.

Judith Furedi's book is a devotional tribute to John Lennon, full of her own poems written directly to him, placed alongside artistic photos and sketches that reflect all phases of Lennon's life. She openly invites her readers to participate in the completion of this book by pasting their own poems or memorabilia about John alongside hers on blank pages. I was surprised that this "fun" book revealed such powerful and stunningly beautiful poetry that choked me up in unexpected emotion. The author's obvious fascination for John Lennon as a young fan who loved the Beatles transforms into a deeper devotion as she scales the walls of his youth and grasps the sadness of his separation from mother Julia in "The Blank Page." After following John through the exciting days of Beatlemania, she expresses concern at his new relationship with Yoko and the sadness of the break-up of the Beatles, then openly questions his initial dive into "Seclusion" in New York. After giving the nod to his new role as family man, twelve painful poems openly confront the horror of John's assassination and the mind of his killer. Her afterlife eulogies deal with John's philosophies which she mirrors back to him, and questions his whereabouts in the cosmos. I recommend this book for Lennon fans who care deeply about the impact he made during his life. You'll need to hurry--this is a very limited pressing and won't lsat long!

This is a book full of pure creation. This is a concept that Lennon himself would have loved. The creative process that Ms. Furedi has started here with her very strong poetry is not done after the work is published, to say the least. The reader is asked to join in this process to finish the book in any way they see fit. There are blank pages inserted throughout for the readers input, be it writing, drawing, photographs or any other form of self expression. The intent is for these books to all be one-of-a-kind stand alone works. There is also an intent in sharing these personalized volumes with others, either directly (person to person) or in a cyber forum. A novel approach, as a Beatle (and Lennon) fan, an artist and a writer myself this work has huge appeal. Get a copy of this and join in on the journey !

Judith Furedi not only captured the spirit of us all in her open and honest poetic style, she reached out and touched upon a life force that John Lennon exuded and which can still be felt now 23 years later.

Dear John: Letters From A Fan In NYC, is one of those books that affects positive change from within. It is powerful. It is truth. It is........really real.

Kudos and thanks to Judith for her honesty and her artistry.

Colored by the recent break up of The Beatles, Lennon Remembers can't completely be taken at face value. Lennon himself later dismissed many of the comments he makes in the book. Still, there are many sections where Lennon comes clean about The Beatles and his own problems. While it lacks objectivity, Lennon Remembers does provide a snapshot glimpse into The Beatles and their contemporaries that other books fail to do.

There's a boatload of bitterness that colors Lennon's comments about his working relationship with Paul McCartney. Lennon would later retract many of the things he said and elaborate on why he fibbed or didn't tell the whole story. For a fuller, more complete view of The Beatles and Lennon, I'd recommend Lennon's Playboy interview published shortly before his death as well as The Beatles Anthology. Both provide a bit of fair balance missing from Jann Werner's interview. Lennon himself was initially upset when Werner published these interviews in book form as he agreed to do them provided that didn't occur.

In the "Forward" by Yoko Ono, she says, "There was no one like him and there never will be. And I miss him." If you are like me, I'm sure you will agree that these are the truest words in the book for each of us. All profits from this book go to gun control projects.

Let me describe what this book is. It contains a fully retranscribed and corrected complete text of the interview that Jann Wenner did with John Lennon and Yoko Ono in early December 1970, parts of which later appeared in Rolling Stone. Much of this material you have never read before. There are also reproductions of Lennon's handwritten notes of song lyrics from the album "John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band" that are discussed in the interview.

In the introduction to this new edition, Jann Wenner characterizes the material here as "a candid, often painful, running commentary on fresh and urgent matters . . . and a self-portrait . . . ." "[I]n 1970 the Beatles were the biggest phenomenon on earth . . . ." [This was] "the first time . . . any of the Beatles stepped outside of that protected beloved fairy tale and told the truth." John Lennon later said that he didn't really believe everything he divulged in this interview. But it sounds pretty real to me as I reread it now. This is a man in intense psychological pain, and who has been for some time.

What, then, is revealed in the book? Aside from the usual stories about drugs and sex from touring, what struck me as most interesting was that Lennon considered what the Beatles had been a fraud artistically. "We were just a band who made it very, very big -- that's all." "But as soon as we made it, the edges were knocked off." "I'm not technically very good [on guitar]." ". . . I don't like many of the Beatles records either." "The only true songs I ever wrote were 'Help!' and 'Strawberry Fields.'"

His other source of pain was the reaction that Paul McCartney and George Harrison had to Yoko Ono. "They despised her." "They insulted her and they still do." "Ringo was alright and so was Maureen [Ringo's wife then]."

The commitment to peace is described often, and without the anger, pain, and regret that show up with all the other subjects. You feel like that was the only area where he could continually be himself. The interview is laced with constant references to his need "to be real."

He expressed a lot of regrets about having been a Beatle. "If I could be a f . . . ing [offensive word shortened] fisherman, I would!" "One has to completely humiliate oneself to be what the Beatles were, and that's what I resent." The interview contains many stories about how the families of local politicians and police departments would invade their privacy in offensive ways to Lennon.

The interview also goes into the details of the Beatles' breakup, contradicting the public story originally put out by Paul McCartney.

Music fans will enjoy his candid comments about the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, and other well-known recording artists.

On the other hand, he is encouraged about the future. He describes his new album with Yoko Ono as "the best thing I've ever done." He also finds his relationship with her to be rewarding emotionally and artistically. She is open to new influences, and helps him to be also. We owe her a debt of gratitude for granting permission to release this new book. It must be painful for her now.

His hopes for the future were the most poignant part of the book:

"Do you have pictures of 'When I'm 64?'"

"No, no. I hope we're a nice old couple . . . looking at a scrapbook of madness."

After you have finished savoring this searing dialogue, I suggest that you ask yourself the kind of questions that John Lennon was asking. How real is your life? Are you doing what you think is important? How can you start doing better? If you do this, you will be honoring the best part of John Lennon's wonderful legacy to us all.

Be real and be at peace!

If you have any interest whatsoever in the life of John Lennon or his take on Beatle history, this book is a must. The read is fascinating; spat out with dizzying wit, brilliance, venom and passion by Lennon at the apex of his primal scream years. Whereas Lennon's views changed several times in his life -- and certainly softened by the time of his death -- there is nothing false from the man who would soon cry, "Gimme Some Truth". This was John's world in 1970...politics, love, then-contemporary musicians (esp. Mick and Dylan, here called Zimmerman), The Beatles, his past and his dreams of the future. When he recounts his wish for where he'll be with Yoko, "When (he's) 64" it's heartbreaking...especially since Oct. 9th, 2000 would have been his 60th birthday. Forget all the revisionism and theorizing from those whose agenda is only to sell a book. Revel in Lennon's own words. You won't want to put it down.

... of the autobiographical stuff in the first part of the book. John's good at telling what and how, not so good at delving into the why. Whose bright idea was it to use heroin? Why can't he muster anything warmer toward the Beatles than "I bear them no ill will"? Why did he and Yoko allow themselves to get sucked into the revolutionary peace movement when he plainly says it was at odds with his own beliefs? The few morsels we get here really make me wish he had sat down long enough to write a proper autobiography. I guess he figured he had plenty of time... or else had already said what he wanted to say in his songs.

In the later writings, certain turns of phrase and wordplay jump out amidst the (sometimes unreadable) jumble of a restless and always innovative mind. This is a man in love with language for its own sake - "making sense" is beside the point. But it's quite obvious that had he wanted to write stories that made sense in the conventional way, he would've been damn good at it.

The drawings are spare of line, but full of charm. Pretty much like the man himself.

Skywriting by word of mouth. A very interesting book filled with very unique passages of writings and prose. I have read of all of John Lennon's works, and this one stands out to me. Like his other writings (In His Own Write and A Spaniard in the Works), there is a style that incorporates wit, charm, humour, with a whole pile of puns: "He was very attached to his dog" takes a literal turn. Unlike his other writings, Skywriting is a culmination of many short stories with several resurfacing characters that can be understood, to a point. All-in-all, this is a book that is sure to provide amusement.

Anyone who enjoys Edward Lear will love Lennon's book of nonsense. He masterfully crafts the English language to suit his desires and needs, giving the reader a non-sensical trip into his before-his-time mind. Filled with classic Lennon-isms, Skywriting is a must for any fan of John's. There is something new to be seen every time you pick it up!

Ok, I figure I'll be labelled a New Age wacko for giving this book four stars, but that's ok. Things aren't always what they seem, is my opinion. Linda Keen gives us her experience of dialogue with the late, great Mr. Lennon, and the workings of the afterlife. I've never been a particularly religious person, but choose to take from many spiritual systems, Hinduism, Theosophy, Buddhism, Paganism, etc. I found that many of the things Keen says, through John, relate to ideas I've always had about the afterlife, that we go there to learn things, work through problems in our previous lives, and hopefully learn something in the process. And that there is no fame there, and people have the same bodies just once in many lifetimes. My ideal of the afterlife would be to be able to walk up to F. Scott Fitzgerald, Van Gogh, Charles Chaplin or any other of my idols and have a good chit-chat. Supposedly, this is true. Then again, Keen could just have been spouting her ideas from reading them from esoteric texts. However, these ideas are what strike me most about the book, not necessarily the writing, which isn't all that great, and Keen spends too much time focusing on her own life, and how it related, supposedly, to John. Kinda brings back an old quote from the movie 'Bull Durham', when Kevin Costner says something to the effect of 'Why does everyone have these famous past lives, like 'I used to be Queen Elizabeth'? Why couldn't they just have been Joe Schmo?'
The idea of John having been Mozart in a past life doesn't seem quite as far fetched as at first glance (and believe me, I was thinking, what a crock!). Think about it, from what I know, Mozart died a pauper, dismissed as a crazy man with little talent, who is now considered the greatest composer of all time. Why wouldn't John come back, to be more wildly famous than virtually anyone up to that point? Karmic, if you ask me.
He was getting back what was due him; but he also had to pay a lot for it. I am not sure I disagree when Keen divulges that John almost inititated his own death. This was a man with many demons, and John himself did foray into spiritual matters, like astrology, in his secluded years, as if searching for an answer to overcome those demons.
I'd only recommend this book to those with an open mind toward spiritual ideas. The text may be a bit cloudy and not have all the answers, but I feel it's a worthwhile read for those who are curious and can deal with contradictions. Who knows what exists in the universe?!

I have watched the progression of this book and its author for ten years. I first encountered it in a very synchronistic way in a bookshop in San Francisco: it fell off the shelf at my friend not a day after we had been discussing John Lennon having been Mozart in a past life. I was compelled by this astonishing occurence to write to Linda as a fellow writer and long-time student of philosophy. I found her to be a very straightforward and down to earth person, not in the least a Beatlefan of the typical mould. Having some fifteen years' experiece at that time studying psychical phenomena, I was convinced that what she had experienced was quite genuine, as it fit exactly with what I had heard from other people who also had contact with John in other dimensions.

Whatever certain reviewers here may think, based on what they think they know of the private Lennon, John was a deeply spiritual man, and one of his abiding concerns was to open up people's minds to the fact that there is more to us than the everyday workaday world would admit. As many people asked in early Beatle days 'Why was a man who could write the like of "Tomorrow Never Knows" jumping around on the stages of the world singing "Twist and Shout"?'

I found this book deeply moving the first time I read it ten years ago and every time since; it is, I believe, a gift to us from John, a loving remnder that life is not meaningless, crass and stupid, that we do go on, and that loving each other and learning is what we're about. For those who are sceptical, or enquiring, or just beginning on a spiritual path this book is a good friend; it explains much commonly accepted basic information in a way that is palatable and not stuffy, by a pair of guides (John and Linda) who are unafraid to stand up and reveal themselves for what they are. There are no social masks, and, on Linda's part, no grandiosity.

By writing this enlightening, thought-provoking book, Linda Keen has opened up a necessary dialogue about life-after-death and the probability of the continued existence of the spirit of the man who was known as "John Lennon." Why would such a brilliant light as Lennon be extinguished upon leaving the body in which he accomplished such wondrous things in the world? Lennon's own documented ideas about spirit and the hereafter resonate clearly with Keen's descriptions of his "afterlife" spiritual communications with her and their mutual exploration of love and light. It matters not whether you believe, but if you love and respect the memory of John Lennon, take this beautiful journey into the unknown in honor of one of the greatest visionaries of all time. John Lennon lives! Highly recommended.

Being a Southern California-based mystery writer who counts Robert S. Levinson among my friends, I freely admit that I might be biased here. Regardless, I believe THE JOHN LENNON AFFAIR is Mr. Levinson's strongest work. As I read the previous statement, I realize it is quite strong. After all, Mr. Levinson's previous mystery, THE JAMES DEAN AFFAIR, camped at the top of the LA TIMES Bestseller List so long that everyone stopped counting the weeks. In THE JOHN LENNON AFFAIR, Mr. Levinson draws upon his vast experience in the recording industry to give this work's backdrop a realistic feel. Being of the generation that can tell you what I was doing when I heard John was shot--listening to a Wings LP--I enjoyed the novel's opening sequence involving the events immediately following John's murder. Mr. Levinson then brings us to the present day and involves his series characters Neil, the journalist, and Stevie, the soap opera star, in a complicated scheme involving a music festival. The festival is being held in John's memory in a small desert town near Palm Springs, yet not all with the festival is on the up and up. The plot twists and turns. The characters are loads of fun. The Gulliver-Marriner divorce continues to stumble along; their divorce seems not to be finalized. The dialog is crisp. The setting is so realistically rendered that I instantly identified the actual locations in the fictionalized locales. THE JOHN LENNON AFFAIR is a top-notch mystery, Robert S. Levinson's best.

In "The John Lennon Affair," Robert S. Levinson whisks us back in time to John Lennon's murder, when his recurring characters, Neil Gulliver and Stevie Marriner are 20 years younger. This device is a perfect set-up for the present day adventure and we join Neil and Stevie as they attend a rock festival honoring Lennon's memory on an Indian reservation in the California desert.

The story races along. I couldn't put the book down. The characters are superb. There are federal agents, a crime boss, scheming gamblers, and an Indian mystic. If that isn't enough, Stevie's ex-boyfriend and Neil's ex-girlfriend show up to keep them on an uneven keel.

Read this book. You'll love it. And if you somehow missed the author's earlier books, don't forget to order "The Elvis and Marilyn Affair," and "The James Dean Affair." They're also superb and they'll keep you on the edge of your chair.

What's next Mr. Levinson? I can hardly wait!

"The John Lennon Affair" by Robert S. Levinson, whisks us back in time to John Lennon's murder, when his recurring characters Neil Gulliver and Stevie Marriner are 20 years younger. This trip down memory lane is a perfect set-up for Neil and Stevie's present day adventure and we join them as they attend a rock festival honoring Lennon at an Indian reservation in the California desert.

The story practically zooms along -- I couldn't put the book down. The character are remarkably diverse and tremendously appealing. There are federal agents, a crime boss, scheming gamblers, and an Indian mystic. And if that isn't enough for you, Stevie's ex-boyfriend and Neil ex-girlfriend show up to cause havoc.

Read this book. You'll love it! And if you somehow missed the author's earlier books, remedy that by getting your copies of "The Elvis and Marilyn Affair" and "The James Dean Affair." All three books are so superb, they'll keep you on the edge of your chair.

What's next Mr. Levinson? I can hardly wait!