Stardust: The David Bowie Story

what a great ,entertaining read; can't put it down! we want a sequal, with more on Wayne County and Cherry Vanilla....

Henry Edwards was one of the 22 American journalists flown to London in 1972 especially to interview David and witness the Ziggy Stardust hoopla - even if he does not disclose in the book that the journalist whose 15-minute conversation with David is described in detail is himself. Tony Zanetta worked with David in the 70's as a MainMan employee and got a co-writing credit in this book for his collaboration. This may not be the best book ever written about Bowie (David Buckley's "Strange Fascination" will probably never be surpassed), but it does provide a fascinating angle of his life, especially in the so-called Ziggy years. And most of all, it is the book the movie "Velvet Goldmine" was based on. The book is never credited in the movie, but you just have to read it to realize the connection. Also, the book includes exclusive Polaroid pictures taken by Dana Gillespie which are quite revealing. There is a candid picture of David Bowie and Mick Jagger in 1974 which is literally worth a thousand words!

I found this book to be quite entertaining. True, it tends to focus on Bowie's betrayal of a variety of people who helped his career take off, but there's enough valuable information about his development as artist. Many of the colorful individuals who surrounded Bowie down the years are vividly described, as well as many interesting happenings. The black & white photographs (some quite rare) are truly impressive. The index, discography and bibliography of books and articles make a valuable contribution. It takes the Bowie story up to 1986, and the gossipy writing style is entertaining enough. Not a classic work, but not bad either.

Being a huge fan of David Bowie, I enjoyed this book emensly, getting a good peek at what Davids life was like. Very easily written, I found the book very hard to put down. When I was finished I was left with a feeling of satisfication and a very stronge (stronger?) desire to meet this man. Very highly recommended for a DB fan.