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A review by jenmb
The Autobiography of Donovan: The Hurdy Gurdy Man by Donovan
4.0
Let me start by saying I'm a huge fan of Donovan's music, but I didn't know much about him as a person going into his autobiography.
The first 5 years of Donovan's musical career was meteoric; that timeframe is the focus of The Hurdy Gurdy Man. At times, the book is a bit disjointed and muddled. Considering he was writing about events from 4 decades ago (events often clouded by drugs, alcohol, and hormones), it's surprising that he is able to tell as cohesive story as he does. The book begins in his childhood in Glasgow and ends with him (temporarily) walking away from the music industry around 1970.
In the book's foreword, Donovan states that it's a story about his outsider status and "interior challenges." However, I think that it can also be read as the story of how Donovan met and (after many trials) ends up with the love of his life (Linda) since that is woven through about 3/4 of the book. However you read it, it's a colorful story interspersed with snippets of Donovan's lyrics and poetry.
Donovan often comes across as egotistical in his writing. I'm prepared to chalk that up to the age he's writing about (late teens/early 20s). But there's definite boasting about how he did different musical things "first" and his name-dropping seems forced at times. I don't know whether or not his boasts are true, but I'm inclined to chalk it up to his own searching for the threads of his life story.
What I love about autobiographies is that they allow people to tell their stories through their own lenses. I don't read them to get an objective view; if that's what you're looking for in a (auto)biography, this is not the book for you. If you're looking for an interesting read about Donovan or the "alternative" music scene of the late '60s, you'll probably enjoy The Hurdy Gurdy Man.
The first 5 years of Donovan's musical career was meteoric; that timeframe is the focus of The Hurdy Gurdy Man. At times, the book is a bit disjointed and muddled. Considering he was writing about events from 4 decades ago (events often clouded by drugs, alcohol, and hormones), it's surprising that he is able to tell as cohesive story as he does. The book begins in his childhood in Glasgow and ends with him (temporarily) walking away from the music industry around 1970.
In the book's foreword, Donovan states that it's a story about his outsider status and "interior challenges." However, I think that it can also be read as the story of how Donovan met and (after many trials) ends up with the love of his life (Linda) since that is woven through about 3/4 of the book. However you read it, it's a colorful story interspersed with snippets of Donovan's lyrics and poetry.
Donovan often comes across as egotistical in his writing. I'm prepared to chalk that up to the age he's writing about (late teens/early 20s). But there's definite boasting about how he did different musical things "first" and his name-dropping seems forced at times. I don't know whether or not his boasts are true, but I'm inclined to chalk it up to his own searching for the threads of his life story.
What I love about autobiographies is that they allow people to tell their stories through their own lenses. I don't read them to get an objective view; if that's what you're looking for in a (auto)biography, this is not the book for you. If you're looking for an interesting read about Donovan or the "alternative" music scene of the late '60s, you'll probably enjoy The Hurdy Gurdy Man.