John by Cynthia Lennon (2005, Hardcover)

If you are a John Lennon fan and wish to know his life through the eyes of his first love and wife this is a great book. It expresses much of his journey with cynthia from college to marriage to the beatles. It is well written.

Cynthia Lennon’s “John” has been a long time coming, but it was worth the wait. Using straightforward, uncluttered prose, the former Mrs. Lennon uncovers the Beatle so many of us grew up with in the 60s, and whom we thought we knew. In fact, the Lennon legend has gone so far to deifying the late J. W. L., that much of what we did, in fact, know about him has been pushed aside, leaving a residue of half-truths (many of which may have been cleverly manipulated by a certain New Yorker of Japanese origin!). While Cynthia Lennon clearly has not set out to vilify Yoko Ono Lennon, she has done what I consider is a fair job of calling that good lady’s motives, over the years, into question. Since Yoko has not so far deigned to explain any of the thought processes that accompanied some of her darker acts, particularly as related to the disposal of John’s estate, we can gain some interesting insights from hearing the Lennon family side of things. Cynthia remained in close contact with many of the English Lennons over the years, and brings a non-accusatory but nonetheless critical light to bear on Yoko’s decidedly odd behaviour.

However, this is not a book about Yoko, no matter how tempting and perhaps cathartic it might have been to attempt to settle some old scores; it is a book about John. As such I believe it brings back the old John we all knew and loved (just as Cynthia says she always did and always will), in spite of his shenanigans, in spite of what appears to be almost the problems of a split personality at one stage, in spite of his heavy-handedness with those who were close to him, including son Julian. There’s no doubt that he was a “wee bit special,” and Cynthia Lennon, who should know as well as anybody, does nothing to try to take away from the legend that he eventually became. Instead, she tells a simple tale, in a candid voice, which left me thinking much the better of both of them, even though there are some bumps and contusions, as it were, along the way. Well done Cynthia.

If you read the first book Cynthia Lennon wrote about John Lennon you got the story. The only difference is she spells things out a little more plainly in John and she is more honest in her treatment of Yoko. She probably has no fear of retribution from John as she did when she wrote the first book.
If you have nto read the first book and are a fan of the Beatles then this is a book you will enjoy

John by Cynthia was a good read. While it wasn't exactly a book that was hard to put down, it did provide a very in-depth look at John Lennon in his early years. The book contains several photo's that I'd never seen before, which was interesting. What I found especially interesting was the dramatic change in John Lennon from his teenage years until his death in 1980. I feel that your average Beatles fan would probably not enjoy this book because it's more directed toward John Lennon fans, specifically. It tells of John pre, during and post Beatlemania. It's a book that could only be written by someone who was as close to John Lennon as Cynthia Lennon. I'm happen to be not only a huge Beatles fan but also a John Lennon fan, so I enjoyed the book.

I love John Lennon. I had read this book previously from the library and found it to be a great and different insight into John's early life. I think it makes a very nice addition to my Lennon collection.