The Last Days of John Lennon by James Patterson & Casey Sherman ~ a Review

by Susan Roberts

 

The greatest true-crime story in music history, as only James Patterson can tell it.

 

"He turns back to the (cab) driver.  'I'm Mark Chapman  Remember my name if you hear it again.'"  (p X)

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

December 2020; Little, Brown and Company
978-0316429061; audio, ebook, print (448 pages)
biography

I will admit to being a major Beatles fan back in the 60s.  I remember their first appearance on Ed Sullivan and how they suddenly became the main topic of conversation among my friends.  We listened to their music over and over, read every article we could find and I was lucky enough to go attend their concerts in Detroit in 1965 and 1966.  So when I saw this new book about John on the 40th anniversary of his murder, I HAD to read it.

 

What I liked:  I enjoyed reading about the formation of the group and John's younger days in Liverpool and his attitudes toward their sudden superstardom.  It was also very interesting to read about his life after the breakup of the band.  Also, there is information from interviews with several popular artists of the time which I found very informative.

 

What I didn't like:  There wasn't much new in this book - it was mostly a regurgitation of previous articles over the last 50 years.  I also didn't like the way that Mark David Chapman (the man who murdered John) was humanized often in a sympathetic way.  Plain and simple, he was a killer and there is nothing sympathetic about what he did.

 

Overall, if you are a Beatles fan or a John Lennon fan, this is a great book to read to bring back the memories of the group that changed music during a simpler time in our world.

 

Buy The Last Days of John Lennon at Amazon

 

Here is a copy of my ticket stub for the Beatles concert in Detroit in 1966.  We were up in the balcony and we couldn't hear any of the music due to all of the screams from the girls in the audience!  I'm still glad that I had a chance to go to the concert and it's a great memory.

Susan Roberts lives in North Carolina with her husband of over 50 years.  She grew up in Michigan but now calls North Carolina home. Since her travel plans had to be canceled for this year, she is starting to make plans for travel in 2021. She reads almost anything (and the piles of books in her house prove that) but her favorite genres are Southern fiction, women's fiction, and historical fiction. Susan is a top 1% Goodreads Reviewer. You can connect with Susan on Facebook, Goodreads, or Twitter. 

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