Review By Patrick Challis
Written By Alan Shayne and Norman Sunshine
Foreword By Mike Nichols
Published By Open Road Media
Genre
Memoir
Synopsis
Gay marriage is at the forefront of America’s political battles.
The human story at the center of this debate is told in Double Life,
a dual memoir by a gay male couple in a fifty-plus year relationship.
With high profiles in the entertainment, advertising, and art
communities, the authors offer a virtual timeline of how gay
relationships have gained acceptance in the last half-century.
At the
same time, they share inside stories from film, television, and media
featuring the likes of Marlon Brando, Katharine Hepburn, Rock Hudson,
Barbra Streisand, Laurence Olivier, Truman Capote, Bette Davis, Robert
Redford, Lee Radziwill, and Frances Lear.
Double Life is a
trip through the entertainment world and a gay partnership in the latter
half of the twentieth century. As more and more same sex couples find
it possible to say “I do,” the book serves as an important document of
how far we’ve come.
Review
I absolutely love reading memoirs of all kinds. Doesn't matter if the person writing it is in films, music, an author or anything else. I just love to read why people live the way they do or why they do the things they do.
This one by Alan Shayne and Norman Sunshine and chronicles their long life together and really tells a great story of just how far the world has come with accepting gay marriage and to be honest, it's about time. I'm of the firm belief that a person should be able to love who they want regardless sexual orientation or race. Love is love and that's exactly the point that this memoir is trying to make.
One of the best lines in this memoir is when they say that they were "gay before it was fashionable" and it's that gentle humor that makes this book so endearing. The best parts of the memoir was when they were just talking about themselves and the story of their love affair.
When the book veers in to celebrity gossip, it just doesn't grip nearly as much as it does when it's just talking about Norman and Alan. Don't get me wrong, those little stories are interesting, it's just that their story is much more interesting.
One of the things that you end up taking from this book is that no matter what they had to go through in their lives, this is a story of two people that love each other. What more could you want from a love story?
Presentation 3.5/5
Informative 4/5
Recommended 3.5/5
Overall 11/15
Freddie and Me is a wonderfully funny and moving graphic memoir of Mike Dawson’s lifelong obsession with Freddie Mercury and Queen.
Told alternately from Mike’s childhood, teenage and adult perspectives, Freddie and Me
explores the way in which music changes and shapes our lives, and the
way in which random memories can both prop up and undermine the stories
we tell ourselves.
The counterpoint toMike’s obsession is his younger
sister’s love of George Michael and Wham –including several deliciously
funny imagined scenes featuring a post-break-up Andrew Ridgeley – which,
like the book as a whole, is written and drawn with a brilliant
combination of exuberance and subtlety.
Review
Here Mike Dawson has crafted a graphic novel about his life, his childhood and his obsession with the legendary rock band Queen.
Told in black and white and in short bursts, this graphic novel is
strangely enjoyable. As well as the scenes of his life, he has also
included imagined scenes involving some of the bands of the time such as
Wham. This scenes are a bit hit and miss humor wise but mostly work.
The short story like moments of his life here are told in a competent
manner but there are flashes of beauty and some absolutely hysterical
scenes that had me nearly crying with laughter.
The scenes between Dawson and his sister show so many moments of sibling
relationship and infighting that it really reflects the real life
moments with brothers and sisters.
The artwork itself is stark in it's black and white nature but it works
with this story, especially the scenes involving his hero worship of
Queen and in particular Freddie Mercury. I absolutely loved these
scenes and for me, they made it worth the cheap price of the book on
it's own.
While a bit hit and miss, it's still a good and humorous look at a life
full of love and loss as well as the writers obsession with his favorite
band.
Recommended although probably more for Queen fans more than others but
give it a go. Considering the cheapness of the price of the book, it
could be worth giving it a go.
Story 3.5/5
Art 4/5
Overall 7.5/10