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annie_l_h's review
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
In many ways, this book gave me new insight into Joni Mitchell as both an artist and as a human. I was rather unfamiliar with Joni’s discography/her musical timeline before reading this biography, and furthermore had no clue about some of the negative aspects of her character that the media brushes over (such as her racism when it comes to the persona of a Black man she created, performed in blackface, and named “Art Nouveau”; her appropriation of Indigenous persons and Indigenous culture; etc). From my perspective as a casual Joni admirer, none of this information is very well known publicly; considering it tarnishes the “ethereal and effeminate goddess” image of Mitchell it’s no surprise that it’s looked over by hardcore fans and critics. The insight into these negative aspects of her character, as well as some of the simply lesser known aspects of her life such as her relationship with motherhood, her attitude(s) towards aging, and her strategy to climbing in the music industry beyond just her talent was very intriguing to learn more about. Ann Powers inspired curiosity within me to learn more about and listen to more of Joni’s work, as well as the work of other artists that span beyond just music that were mentioned in the novel. That being said, Powers gets quite bogged down in the first few chapters with very time specific musical/artistic references. While she is a music journalist and it is the nature of her job, to the general reader it gets very tedious to read. Getting through the first four or five chapters took significantly longer than reading the rest of the book did, simply because they were so disinteresting and not super aimed for a general reader/Joni Mitchell fan. This was the main downfall of the book for me and the main reason I will not be rating it higher, despite the much needed perspective and multifaceted account of Mitchell.
owlizabeth's review against another edition
I just…don’t think I like Joni enough for all this.
oldtobegin's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
before I read this I would have said I didn't like Joni mitchell. I still don't, but I now believe she's one of the most interesting and important figures of 20th century music.
this is some of the best music writing I've ever read, the kind of writing that gets me really excited. it's literary and scholarly but clear and emotional, with a strong authorial voice and a powerful, thoughtful structure.
I can't wait to read more of Ann Powers' work.
this is some of the best music writing I've ever read, the kind of writing that gets me really excited. it's literary and scholarly but clear and emotional, with a strong authorial voice and a powerful, thoughtful structure.
I can't wait to read more of Ann Powers' work.
clarbineds's review
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
I felt better about my rating when I saw that other reviewers shared my opinions on the lack of an interview and the insertion of the author's personal anecdotes and criticisms. This book was not sold as a critical analysis or memoir. I will be looking for a biography in the future.
kumipaul's review
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
2.0
I made the mistake of thinking that I was going to read a biography of Joni, and I learned right in the introduction that I was mistaken. Ann Powers stated clearly that she is a music critic and not a biographer. My bad, and I can't blame the author for that. This was a book about musical influences for Joni, sometimes relationships, sometimes other artists, sometimes both simultaneously. This was also a book about Joni's albums, her most fascinating songs, and some of her most powerful and meaningful lyrics. So much detail about so many people that I got lost in it. One small thing that frustrated me was when the author would speculate about what Joni might have been thinking or whether she might have met some person. This happened enough times where I talked back to the book, telling the author to just ask the question: did you meet with so-and-so? The speculation bothered me each time. I will say, however, that Ann Powers has a way with words and with sentences and ideas that impressed me and tried to keep me interested despite the depth of detail. Unfortunately, after reading this I still know very little about Joni's personal life outside her musical relationships.