You're History: The Twelve Strangest Women in Music, by Lesley Chow, is every bit as incorrectly hyperbolic as the title. Between opinions and falsities she passes off as facts and her inability to make coherent arguments, this book is a pleasure less for her opinions than for the nostalgia of remembering these artists and their music.

Don't get me wrong, Chow makes some good points, but if you condensed her original ideas that are supportable down to an essay it would be a very short essay. The rest is either unsubstantiated overblown opinion or rehashed ideas she passes off as her own. Not to mention she is one of those people who feel the need, when trying to elevate something, to tear down other things. That is an illustration of her own weakness both within music knowledge and as a writer. I would say she should stick to film but I searched out some of her stuff in that field and it is not much better than this.

You may wonder why I rate this as a book I would still recommend. I would recommend it carefully, mostly to those who can read critically and extract the good from the bad. I have no doubt that those who enjoy reading self-indulgent fluff will like this too, I just try to avoid adding more junk to their diets so my friends who fall into that category probably wouldn't get this recommendation from me.

Having been so negative I should also mention that I did enjoy reading this. Once it became evident that Chow really didn't know what she was writing about it was easier to read it strictly for the nostalgia and the few pieces of insight (usually someone else's, not hers). I loved these artists back in the day (though I feel less strong about Swift but I certainly respect her self-marketing skills) and appreciated the opportunity to pull out my old music and listen again.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley. ( )