A Natural Woman: A Memoir [Hardcover]

Like so many others of my generation, Carole King's "Tapestry" was the best of the best and years ago, living in a tiny basement apartment in Toronto, thought my vinyl record and stylus on the turntable were going to give out, as I played it continually!! What a singer, what a great songwriter - she embodied what I classed as amazing songs and lyrics at the time.

I'm afraid I was very disappointed unlike most of the reviewers here. I found the writing very child-like and was getting bored mid-way. Yes, I found snippets of her life that I didn't know but on the whole I found it focused WAY too much on Carole's relationships with men, that were for the most part physically and/or mentally abusive. These revelations took away from aspects of her personal and professional life that I would have like to have read.

Carole King needs no introduction, except maybe to those young enough to be tricked into considering Katy Perry as an accomplished songwriter. A music legend in spite of her reluctance towards fame, Carole has finally decided to let her fans find out about her life in "A Natural Woman: A Memoir". And although this autobiography doesn't always allow you close enough to gain a new understanding of her music, it certainly allows the readers to get to know her a little better.

The book briefly describes King's childhood, then moves on to her untypical ascension as one of the very few successful female songwriters and her eventual popularity as a recording artist in her own right. Although her marriages and family life form the core of the book, King provides stories about her extraordinary career and the friendships she has forged with some of her peers over the years. One of the most interesting elements of this book is that King has witnessed each decade of rock's golden era, both musically and culturally, and she has some insightful stories to share about the times that shaped her life and her music. Her description of New York's social and cultural scene in the 50s, and the way record companies were literally willing to give anyone a fair chance to develop their talent, makes you long for those days when making music came from a genuine desire to create something new and revolutionary. She tells those stories with warmth, simplicity and humor, reflecting some of the essential traits that have made her music so appealing.

Still, for all of its qualities, one can't help but feel that "A Natural Woman" could have been better. The book devotes way too much time and space to details of little interest, such as the decoration of Carole's houses, the everyday trials of the rural life that she chose to lead in the 70s (domestic chores, pets, transportation...), the technicalities of recording studios and the names of endless record company executives. While these elements are significant parts of King's life, they're not that interesting to read about. Paradoxically, there are times where the sources of inspiration behind her music are approached without much depth, and it sometimes feels as though King is looking at her own creations from a distance - too much distance, perhaps, like a casual observer of events or a narrator. Even the description of the "Tapestry" sessions provides little information about the making of this timeless masterpiece, and many of its songs are not even mentioned. This comes as a surprise, considering the striking degree of intimacy that King has often reached in her songwriting and performances.

King's book is much more interesting when it really allows the reader to really come close to her - when she's discussing the domestic abuse that she tolerated for years, when she discusses her decision to lead a "normal life" instead of a Hollywood pastiche, when she remembers her excitement about becoming a professional songwriter, when she discusses the unfortunate events that led to the dissolution of her marriage to Gerry Goffin or when she tells of the effects that her parents' own divorce had on her. These are the moments where you really feel as though the book is matching the intimacy of Carole King's musical legacy. Fortunately, there are enough of these moments to sustain the reader's interest. King's book tells an untypical rock and roll tale, which is precisely why it succeeds; best of all, it makes you want to dig up your Carole King albums and bask in the glow of this uncommonly talented woman's music.

When I listened to Carole read and sing her memoir, it was like listening to my best friend speak on the phone. I was hooked from the beginning. Until this audiobook, I only knew her music. Now I call her my friend.