''John'' is a 2005 book by
Cynthia Lennon
Cynthia Lennon (' Powell; 10 September 1939 – 1 April 2015) was a British artist and author, and the first wife of John Lennon.
Born in Blackpool and raised in Hoylake on the Wirral Peninsula, Powell attended the Liverpool College of Art, whe ...
about the life of her first husband, musician
John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...
,
as well as her own life. First published by
,
the book chronicles her relationship with Lennon prior to, during, and after his period as a member of
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
, including the birth of their son
Julian Lennon
Julian Charles John Lennon (born John Charles Julian Lennon; 8 April 1963) is an English musician, photographer, author, and philanthropist. He is the son of Beatles member John Lennon and his first wife Cynthia; Julian is named after his pate ...
, her and John's divorce, John's subsequent remarriage to
Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono (, usually spelled in katakana as ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking.
Ono grew up in Tokyo and moved to New York ...
, and Cynthia and Julian's life following
John's 1980 murder.
''John'' was Cynthia's second book, following her 1978 memoir ''A Twist of Lennon''.
Reception
Michel Faber
Michel Faber (born 13 April 1960) is a Dutch-born writer of English-language fiction, including his 2002 novel ''The Crimson Petal and the White'', and '' Under the Skin'' (2000) which was adapted for film by Jonathan Glazer, starring Scarlett ...
of ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' gave the book a mostly negative review, writing that its "stated purpose is to counteract the way she's
ynthia'sbeen airbrushed out of history, to prove that her marriage to John was not the irrelevance he claimed it was. Instead, she paints herself even further into the background, with prose so characterless and bland it might as well have been produced by a half-asleep hack."
''
The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
''s
Mark Timlin wrote that, in comparison to other books about the Beatles, ''John'' "has the ring of truth that most do not", and called it "the story of a one-man woman whose man got away in one of the most public demonstrations of adultery ever. But I've got to tell you, given a choice between going out with Cynthia or Yoko,
..I'd choose Cynthia every time."
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:John (2005 book)
2005 non-fiction books
British memoirs
Books about the Beatles