Bob Dylan Jewish Roots, American Soil by Harry Freedman

 I found the first part of this book interesting and well-written. Freedman studied the influences onDylan, his Jewishness and his relationship to it and his fast journey to fame and fortune as a protest and folk singer. However, it seemed to tail off and become a bit dull after that, unfortunately.

He led a fascinating life but I am probably not the right person to review this book because I am not a big fan and I’ve only heard his most famous songs so I didn’t know of many of the songs mentioned here. Having said that, I did read his autobiography.

I received this free ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Comments

Hels said…
Perfect timing. At the Limmud Oz conference in Melbourne a fortnight ago, Myer Bloom gave a paper called "Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan - Torah, Kabbalah, the Holocaust, Sholem Aleichem: themes and connections". I, Helen Webberley, gave a paper called "Leonard Cohen: the greatest Jewish modern poet, singer and writer". Both papers seemed to be very popular.

6:17 AM
Viola said…
Thank you so much for your comment, Helen. Your paper would be very interesting. I watched the new film about Bob yesterday, which I enjoyed. It’s quite light, though. The series on SBS about Leonard Cohen is also enjoyable, although depressing.
4:04 PM
MELODY JACOB said…
It’s always tricky when a book starts strong but loses momentum especially with someone like Dylan, whose story is so rich. I get that if you’re not deep into his music, some parts might not hit as hard. Still, it’s good you gave it a go.
1:20 PM
Viola said…
I have rather sad personal reasons for not listening to Dylan’s music, Melody but his life is certainly fascinating. I also watched a documentary on the Hurricane case with my husband and the way that Dylan almost single-handedly drew attention to his case was truly admirable.
3:31 AM
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