Love, Lucy by Lucille Ball Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Love, Lucy
Book Review: A "Politically Correct" Autobiography
Summary: 3 Stars
I read Lucille Ball's autobiography "Love, Lucy" and was impressed by the wealth of detail. It was so wonderful to get to finally see how Lucille Ball looked at life. And it was also inspiring to see the amount of work that Ball had to put in to attain super-stardom. But, as with many autobiographies, you need to take this work with a grain of salt. Ball obviously wasn't interested in making herself (or anyone else, for that matter,) look bad. She deliberately sidesteps issues regarding husband Desi Arnaz's marital fidelty, and she also downplays her own jealous and controlling nature.
So if you want to read a very "politically correct" version of Lucy's life, I suggest you read this autobiography. But if you want to read the hard facts, I suggest you look elsewhere.
Book Review: A Delightful Surprise
Summary: 5 Stars
Lucille Ball abandoned this book in 1964, out of concern that its contents would hurt Desi Arnaz. She then forgot about it (as did everyone else in her life, it seems), and it sat neglected in a box of papers until the mid-1990s. This is a phenomenal book, and easily the best I've read so far regarding Lucille Ball.
Love, Lucy should be read along with other biographies in order to get a balanced perspective (Miss Ball tends to be a bit circumspect, though not as private as I expected her to be, regarding her own shortcomings and her private life), but on the whole it is a fascinating glimpse into a legendary life when it was far from over. She had only recently divorced Desi Arnaz and was in the heart of working on The Lucy Show at the time she abandoned the project, and was still terribly active in the running of Desilu.
Lucille sometimes remembers things in a way that makes her seem a bit more moral than she really was. She doesn't discuss running wild and being naughty in her teen years, but since she had young children of her own at the time of the writing of Love, Lucy, I don't suppose I should have expected her to do so. Who wants to display their shortcomings to their kids and then say "don't do that!"
What is most beautiful about this book is the discussion of her love of Desi Arnaz and their marriage. Even though the marriage didn't survive, they adored one another and continued to do so until the ends of their lives. The quote that made me laugh out loud, and I could HEAR Lucy saying it was "It was not love at first sight; it took five minutes."
Book Review: A Touching Autobiograppy - I Read It Three Times
Summary: 5 Stars
This book, without a ghost writer, was taken from a munuscript composed by Lucy herself in 1966 and not discovered until several years after her death. That's the best feature of the book - you feel as though Lucy is sitting in front of you, recounting her life. Those looking for juicy, dirty gossip had better look elsewhere; Lucy was far too classy for that. Without getting into unnecessarily sordid, perhaps lewd details, characterstic of many divorces, she reveals the causes of her divorce from her dreamboat, Desi Arnaz. Her use of the English language, including her vocabulary and grammar belie the image of the scatter brained, mischievous bubbleheaded characters portrayed during her tremendous career, especially the I Love Lucy show. Lucy was indeed a very astute, insightful lady, equally at home in a luxurious ballroom gown and a hobo's costume. She could certainly do it all. In her own words, she was not easily taken in by others. It showed in this book. I would heartily recommend to any fan of the great T.V. legend, Lucille Ball. A bargain at three times the priceBook Review: A not-too personal personal story
Summary: 4 Stars
I love Lucy as much as any of her greatest fans. I loved how this book really lets you insider her younger years in show business. But, she keeps most of her Desi and Lucy life private. If you already knew about the troubles they had then reading this book gives just a little more insight into that. I don't blame her for not wanting to write personal and embarrassing things that were displayed publicly in the 1950s, but let's face it- it's what we all want to know. She also doesn't write too much about her later husband or her kids, which is surprising. The book still gives you an inside track into her heart and mind, which is something I was looking for in this novel.
Lucy seemed like a fabulous woman and wasn't afraid to write about the things she did wrong or mistakes she made along the way, and that takes courage. Often, I wonder what Lucy would have thought about all the reality-TV garbage that is on the tube today, making an abomination of the slapstick comedy that became a staple of American culture and television.
Book Review: A wonderful book!
Summary: 5 Stars
I really enjoyed reading Lucille Ball's biography. It was a great read. I highly recommend this to any Lucy fan. She was a wonderful and talented lady!