Posted 4:21 pm Sunday, August 05, 2012
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SHELF LIFE: 'Girls' Guide to Elvis' is great Summer read about Mr. Presley
BY VANESSA PEARSON
vpearson@tylerpaper.com
Elvis Presley is one of the most famous people in the world even 35 years after his death, and I've been a fan since I was little and watched the films he came to hate so much with my grandparents.
vpearson@tylerpaper.com
Elvis Presley is one of the most famous people in the world even 35 years after his death, and I've been a fan since I was little and watched the films he came to hate so much with my grandparents.
With Elvis Week coming up next week, I jumped at the opportunity to take a break from Jane Austen.
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I'm spending all this time reading high-brow literature and books so classic I could scream. So I skipped the "I was in Elvis' inner circle' tell-alls and serious tomes analyzing his life and work and went for the easy, breezy "The Girls' Guide to Elvis: The Clothes, the Hair, the Women, and More!" by Kim Adelman.
Elvis generated buzz around him everywhere he went. The world had its eyes trained on him quite frequently, but he lived (and died) in the day before the 24-hour celebrity stalking machine became the main source of all the secret things we know about our most popular musicians.
The "Girls' Guide" satisfies that need for all the gossip we can get with stories about prom dates, the set and how he felt about his home.
Sure, most of this information is out there for public consumption, but it's unlikely to be compiled in like it is in this fun romp.
It has plenty of photos of him -- with the prom date, on stage and with his lovely co-stars -- and other pieces of his life, including the infamous Jungle Room at Graceland.
According to one of the books interviews, Elvis never intended for the Jungle Room to stay that way, but he died before he could redecorate. Based on how the book describes his love of redecorating, it's probably true, but the home is forever stuck with green shag on the ceiling.
Perhaps one of the most intriguing parts of the book was about his struggle with weight. The crazy diets are master class in how not to lose weight.
It's a light read for sure -- I finished it in an hour, but I read fast -- and not going to effect societal change. But it's a delight to learn all these secret tidbits about the King of Rock 'n' Roll that I didn't know before.
I'd recommend it for anyone who is a fan or someone who keeps up with all the latest celebrity gossip.
