I Don't Mean to be Rude But ...
Backstage Gossip from American Idol & the Secrets that Can Make You a Star
by Simon Cowell
Reviewed by Claudine
If you are an ardent American Idol fan, this book is for you. Known for his astute but brutal remarks on the show, Simon takes you behind the scenes and gives you his honest comments on almost everybody – the contestants, Ryan Seacrest, the other judges and most interestingly, on other famous artistes - he calls Michael Jackson a ‘spoilt brat’ and declares that Madonna’s time is over.
The book is unabashedly all about Simon and he makes no apologies about this book being egotistical. It offers you a glimpse of his childhood, his determined climb up the ranks of the music industry from a lowly mailroom boy to becoming a top producer and why he should have THE final word on the contestants who part hate, part fear him and rightly so. You can't help but give credit to his foresight and judgment since he does manage artists and produce records which top the charts and sell by the million.
For aspiring stars, he has also included a candid section “So You Wanna Be a Pop Star” and what to do when you are almost “Reaching the Finish Line”, if you ever get past the audition, that is.
Even if you are not an American Idol fan, you might like to flip through the book for his take and gossip on various artistes and other aspects of the music industry. It’s very easy reading – Adelynn finished it in one day! So even if you are not a mean reading machine like her, you might be able to breeze through the book in just a few days.
I don’t mean to be rude (Simon) but if you readers, like me, don’t deem his book worthy of purchase for your home collection, you might want to borrow it from the library, which was what I did. It is worth making a trip down to the library, at the very least.
Spending a day with Simon won't be a letdown.
