titanic's review against another edition
2.0
"Charlie Manson was always the wrong man in the right place at the right time."
I really wanted to like this book. I would try and hype it up, try and make it more enjoyable than it was. It just didn't work, the book bored me and I lacked interest. I went two full days without even touching the thing. I'll give credit where it's due, the beginning was good. I enjoyed reading about Manson's family, and his early life, however, I started losing interest around the time the author began describing the times of Manson. I know I should have expected it, the book is literally titled "The life and TIMES of Charles Manson" but it still shocked me that the author could describe the times of Manson with a whole chapter this early on. Point blank, I did not enjoy any of the chapters that were dedicated to the times of Manson. I longed for information about Manson and his Family, but during the last few chapters, even that bored me. Nothing about this book really held my interest for long, which is a shame because Manson and his Family are interesting to me, this book just seemed to take every interesting factor and talk about it for so long that it lost anything special about it. A shame.
I really wanted to like this book. I would try and hype it up, try and make it more enjoyable than it was. It just didn't work, the book bored me and I lacked interest. I went two full days without even touching the thing. I'll give credit where it's due, the beginning was good. I enjoyed reading about Manson's family, and his early life, however, I started losing interest around the time the author began describing the times of Manson. I know I should have expected it, the book is literally titled "The life and TIMES of Charles Manson" but it still shocked me that the author could describe the times of Manson with a whole chapter this early on. Point blank, I did not enjoy any of the chapters that were dedicated to the times of Manson. I longed for information about Manson and his Family, but during the last few chapters, even that bored me. Nothing about this book really held my interest for long, which is a shame because Manson and his Family are interesting to me, this book just seemed to take every interesting factor and talk about it for so long that it lost anything special about it. A shame.
shannonjorgenfelt's review against another edition
4.0
Though dry at times, the book is extremely informative, and expounds upon the notions presented in "Helter Skelter". Definitely a must read for anyone interested in Manson.
sageofthe6pack's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
slow-paced
2.75
i really liked this author's jim jones biography, and i don't know if it's because manson is just not at all a compelling figure the way jones was, but this book was a slog compared to the other.
breakofdae's review against another edition
4.0
Only read this if you have a strong stomach.
Guinn not only provides a well researched and detailed biography of "Charlie" Manson, but also a history of social and political developments in America at the time. If you are interested in the topic, I highly recommend this book. It's a page turner. As it was published in 2013, the author is able to give very recent histories on everyone involved.
Guinn not only provides a well researched and detailed biography of "Charlie" Manson, but also a history of social and political developments in America at the time. If you are interested in the topic, I highly recommend this book. It's a page turner. As it was published in 2013, the author is able to give very recent histories on everyone involved.
rosesosa's review against another edition
4.0
the ultimate book to understand roman polanski's "chinatown", lana del rey's "norman fucking rockwell", and the alternative ending for quentin tarantino's "once upon a time in hollywood".
jokes aside, an excellent book for people who are fixated on the chaotic 60s. the chapter focused on sharon tate's murder is the most shocking experience I had while reading a book.
jokes aside, an excellent book for people who are fixated on the chaotic 60s. the chapter focused on sharon tate's murder is the most shocking experience I had while reading a book.
lordcheez's review against another edition
5.0
Incredible narrative of a monster. Less pulpy than the classic Helter Skelter, but I couldn't put it down. Remarkable.
littlefoot10's review
5.0
I've wanted to get my hands on this novel for quite some time. My mother was a teenager during this time, and I remember asking her a bit about it once I got older and learned about Charles Manson. Ever since then I was curious.. how could someone have so much influence over others.. so much so that they were willing to die for him (my brain just couldn't wrap my head around it). This was what I needed to read to understand better how he did it and how people we were willing to follow him to the ends of the earth. This novel had me hooked from the very beginning, the author has a great narrative that flows easily through the events (even the gory ones). I left this novel feeling very heart-broken but satisfied the questions that I had prior were resolved. I liked that the author incorporated other things going on in the world other than just The Family and their murders because they were relevant to why certain events unfolded the way that they did. Would definitely recommend this book.
perusinghannah's review against another edition
3.0
(6.1/10) - ⭐⭐⭐
Just like the author’s biography of Jim Jones, Manson gives a very detailed account of the life and ‘rise’ of Charles Manson and his followers. My main complaint is that it was just so damn long. Guinn is a big fan of ‘setting the scene’, and while it does add to the story, he went way overboard on multiple occasions. It made it feel somewhat sensationalized in places, and, if I’m being brutally honest, like grandpa explaining counterculture while trying to make it sound hip for the teens. However, there is a lot of information in here that I hadn’t encountered anywhere else, and I had to study the guy for psych classes on multiple occasions. Had Guinn just gotten to the point faster from time to time, my rating would’ve easily shot up a star.
Just like the author’s biography of Jim Jones, Manson gives a very detailed account of the life and ‘rise’ of Charles Manson and his followers. My main complaint is that it was just so damn long. Guinn is a big fan of ‘setting the scene’, and while it does add to the story, he went way overboard on multiple occasions. It made it feel somewhat sensationalized in places, and, if I’m being brutally honest, like grandpa explaining counterculture while trying to make it sound hip for the teens. However, there is a lot of information in here that I hadn’t encountered anywhere else, and I had to study the guy for psych classes on multiple occasions. Had Guinn just gotten to the point faster from time to time, my rating would’ve easily shot up a star.
princesszinza's review against another edition
4.0
It's strange how much Charles Manson's actions and thought processes remind me of someone I've known well throughout my life. No names or further description will be given but it is a bit eerie.
This book is well-researched. I learned that Charlie developed his weirdly charismatic ways from reading Dale Carnegie's How to Gain Friends and Influence People and from studying Scientology techniques. He was a very calculating person, not at all the insane hippie I saw Geraldo Rivera interview on his show.
I've lived in both San Francisco and Los Angeles and I can't say that I 100% agree with all of Jeff Guinn's descriptions of the two cities. I do think he was fair and captured the 1960's well.
This book is well-researched. I learned that Charlie developed his weirdly charismatic ways from reading Dale Carnegie's How to Gain Friends and Influence People and from studying Scientology techniques. He was a very calculating person, not at all the insane hippie I saw Geraldo Rivera interview on his show.
I've lived in both San Francisco and Los Angeles and I can't say that I 100% agree with all of Jeff Guinn's descriptions of the two cities. I do think he was fair and captured the 1960's well.