“I wonder why she tries so hard for laughs. It seems that her native cant is studded with rueful humor—if any at all—as she views the world through her Lizz-colored glasses.”
“When it comes to memoirs, things don’t get more heartfelt than this. And when it comes to storytelling, few could match the humor, passion, and humanity of these pages.
“In so many other places in Look, I Made a Hat, as here, Stephen Sondheim has tales to tell, names to drop and wonderful, rich, savory mincemeat to make of others, all in his own i
“In following this kid from the back blocks, who not only graces the covers of Modern Drummer and of Guitar World in one lifetime, who has made and held a fortune, owns hi
“I’ve strugged in the past to articulate exactly why Bruce Springsteen’s music cuts so deeply for me. Thanks to Robert Wiersema’s heartfelt book, though, I think I’m a little closer.”
“Patti Smith adulates the imagination, especially childhood imagination, mysticism or spirituality, dreams, sensations, nature, the sublime and individualism.
“Miraculously, however, there isn’t an ounce of self-pity in the book. Instead, Mr. Doughty proceeds with a healthy mix of objectivity and irony. . . .
“From page 435 onward, Spencer Tracy is an excellent biography indeed, albeit one that would have benefited greatly from losing at least a good 200 of those first 400 pages. . . .
“Those seeking a history of the music of the 1960s and those who made it, a somewhat gossipy account of what Joni Mitchell referred to as ‘the refuge of the road,’ will find much to admire
“This biography could have easily been titled The Tale of Two Colberts; however, Colbert’s signature ‘truthiness’ seems to befit the style and enjoyment Ms.
“What we have here is a collection of vaguely amusing errata corralled together with the slightest of lassos, a book with all the organizational clarity of a stand-up act. . . .
