Katie: The Real Story Summary and Reviews

Katie: The Real Story
by Edward Klein

Katie: The Real Story
List Price: $14.95
Our Price: $3.00
You Save: $11.95 (80%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.75 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions


or

Book Summary Information

Author: Edward Klein
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-09-16
ISBN: 0307353516
Number of pages: 288
Publisher: Three Rivers Press

Book Reviews of Katie: The Real Story

Book Review: Oh, Katie, Shut the Door!
Summary: 4 Stars

I've read through the other Amazon reviews regarding `Katie: The Real Story' and I find myself surprised by two things: 1) how little the public seems to resonate with such a public figure in this forum (only 20 such reviews as of this writing) as compared to, say, Sarah Palin's `Going Rogue' (851 reviews!); and 2) how much behind the times I seem to be in responding in cyber-space to this biography.

Well, maybe there's a question here also: "What's the Big Fuss regarding Katie Couric at CBS News?" I've found her competent, forthright and dynamic, and frankly prefer her to the alternatives. And if she carries a bit of Liberal bias into her journalism, so what? Take a look at Fox and you'll find the same sort of thing from the Conservative perspective. And you'll probably find anything in between if you look about. That's one of the things I find compelling about the 21st Century - Diversity of perspective and personal Choice!

My early presumption of Mr Klein's book was that it would be more of a gossip-oriented, tell-all tabloid-styled exposé. It was the only thing I could find at the time and I had become interested in Katie's back-story and persona. But through the author's lens of a popularly focused career biography I found the work to be thoroughly researched and carefully documented, including its almost 200 interviews. Mr Klein ascribes to attempting to be scrupulously fair and I accept the book on these terms.

The biography is said to be `unauthorized,' which as defined by the author means that Ms Couric neither participated in the research of nor in the writing of the book. She refused to be interviewed or otherwise contribute or respond. In addition, she apparently encouraged family, friends and colleagues not to participate. It is intimated that she actively tried to squelch publication as well.

Mr Klein focuses on Ms Couric's professional climbing through the ranks of local television markets, television magazines and national broadcast news. If the author seems less than complimentary regarding Katie's choices, it may be because she became such an excellent student of working the system. He avers that her goals were lofty and significant enough that even romantic choices and personal behaviors were often the means to an end. That she assumed this strategy is well-supported and very persuasive. She is presented as yet one more public figure that's sometimes less than appealing under the facade of her professional image.

Tell you what though - and here's a place for continuing debate - this writer feels that even public figures have the assumption of a personal life and a basic right to privacy. How well would the common folk among us respond to such scrutiny?

I found the writing to be crisp, focused, compelling, interesting and well paced. It's a good bit of work and will fill a void until Katie (or someone else) comes back with something more substantive and `complete.'

Four Stars out of Five then.

Russell de Ville
26 December 2009




Entertainers Books

Book Subjects
Most talked about in Entertainers Books
El Sid: Saint Vicious ImageEl Sid: Saint Vicious
by David Dalton
Griffin; Published: 1998-07; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.79
Price in other shops: $11.95
Moonwalk ImageMoonwalk
by Michael Jackson
Crown Archetype; Published: 2009-10-13; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $12.44
Price in other shops: $25.00
High Society: The Life of Grace Kelly ImageHigh Society: The Life of Grace Kelly
by Donald Spoto
Three Rivers Press; Published: 2010-10-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.73
Price in other shops: $16.00
Stand & Deliver: The Autobiography ImageStand & Deliver: The Autobiography
by Adam Ant
Pan Macmillan; Published: 2007-04-30; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $105.86
San Antonio Rose: THE LIFE AND MUSIC OF BOB WILLS (Music in American Life) ImageSan Antonio Rose: THE LIFE AND MUSIC OF BOB WILLS (Music in American Life)
by Charles Townsend
University of Illinois Press; Published: 1986-10-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $33.50
Price in other shops: $37.50
Orson Welles: Volume 1: The Road to Xanadu ImageOrson Welles: Volume 1: The Road to Xanadu
by Simon Callow
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 1997-02-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.22
Price in other shops: $18.00
The Basketball Diaries ImageThe Basketball Diaries
by Jim Carroll
Penguin (Non-Classics); Published: 1987-07-07; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.52
Price in other shops: $15.00
Hollywood Animal ImageHollywood Animal
by Joe Eszterhas
Hutchinson; Published: 2004; Paperback; Book
Love, Janis ImageLove, Janis
by Laura Joplin
It Books; Published: 2005-08-16; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.50
Price in other shops: $14.99
A Paper Life CD ImageA Paper Life CD
by Tatum O'Neal
HarperAudio; Published: 2004-10-12; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $17.77
Price in other shops: $24.95
Similar books summaries and other product reviews
Audition: A Memoir ImageAudition: A Memoir
by Barbara Walters
Vintage; Published: 2009-05-05; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.45
Price in other shops: $15.95
Peter Jennings: A Reporter's Life ImagePeter Jennings: A Reporter's Life
PublicAffairs; Published: 2008-10-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $0.24
Price in other shops: $14.95
Oprah: A Biography ImageOprah: A Biography
by Kitty Kelley
Crown Archetype; Published: 2010-04-13; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $2.02
Price in other shops: $30.00
Katie Couric: Groundbreaking TV Journalist (Life Portraits) ImageKatie Couric: Groundbreaking TV Journalist (Life Portraits)
by Rachel A. Koestler-Grack
Gareth Stevens Publishing; Published: 2009-01; Library Binding; Book
Best price: $24.75
Price in other shops: $36.00
A Reporter's Life ImageA Reporter's Life
by Walter Cronkite
Ballantine Books; Published: 1997-10-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $1.67
Price in other shops: $17.00
Peter Jennings: A Reporter's Life ImagePeter Jennings: A Reporter's Life
PublicAffairs; Published: 2008-10-27; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.42
Price in other shops: $14.95
The Best Advice I Ever Got: Lessons from Extraordinary Lives ImageThe Best Advice I Ever Got: Lessons from Extraordinary Lives
by Katie Couric
Random House; Published: 2011-04-12; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $10.50
Price in other shops: $26.00