Bob Dylan - Chronicles

Pros: Wonderful language; some good insight about songwriting
Cons: Frustrating gaps in the history while trivial details abound

I've been a Bob Dylan fan since the 1960s but the ardor died down to a barely detectable smolder years ago. He has always been capable of knocking a song out of the park but his early songs really did it for me. I'd read a couple of books about Dylan ...

Pros: Lots of "clues"
Cons: A small case of the rambles

Bob Dylan. Chronicles. Let's view Chronicles from a distance. Things are harder to see from out here, but simpler. As we head out for the broader view let me fill you in on the reasons for the trip. We’re dealing with ...

Pros: Surprisingly wonderful prose, funny, insightful and highly enjoyable.
Cons: Not strictly an autobiography

Some years ago, when asked who he would like to interview, Bob Dylan replied, "I'd like to interview people who died leaving a great unsolved mess behind, who left people for nothing to do for ages but speculate". Which is how, we all presumed, ...

Pros: Well written, interesting, informative, c'mon it's Dylan!
Cons: A little slow in places, deeper than most fans care to go.

This book was fascinating for me. Then again, I'm more a Dylan fan than your average person. I recommended it to my wife, who was bored stiff, as she is only a mediocre Dylan fan. Dylan is one artist who has a lot of "greatest hits" type fans out there. This isn't really for you. If you're interested in learning about Dylan, you'll certainly do so while reading this book. It's filled with insights from the man himself and contains stories only Bob would know such as a story about a motorcycle ride through New Orleans with his wife, etc. For those basic Dylan fans, the Martin Scorsese documentary No Direction Home would probably do more to tickle your Dylan fancy. If you are a Dylan fan and gobble up everything Dylan you can get your mitts on (like myself) this book will be a quick and enrapturing read. Fantastic!