Girls Like Us

Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon & the Journey of a Generation

By: Sheila Weller

Narrated by: Susan Ericksen

Joni Mitchell, Carole King, and Carly Simon remain among the most enduring and important women in popular music. Each woman is distinct: King is the product of outer-borough, middle-class New York City; Mitchell is the granddaughter of Canadian farmers; and Simon is a child of the Manhattan intellectual upper crust.

Collectively, they represent, in their lives and their songs, a great swath of American girls who came of age in the late 1960s. Their stories trace the arc of the now-mythic generation known as "the 60s" - the female version - but in a bracingly specific and deeply recalled way, far from cliché.

The history of the women of that generation had never been written - until now - and it is told through the resonant lives and emblematic songs of Mitchell, Simon, and King.

Filled with the voices of dozens of these women's intimates, this alternating biography reads like a novel - except it's all true, and the heroines are famous and beloved. Sheila Weller captures the character of each woman and gives a balanced portrayal, enriched by a wealth of new information.

Girls Like Us is an epic treatment of midcentury women who dared to break tradition and become what none had been before them: confessors in song, rock superstars, and adventurers of heart and soul.

©2008 Kellwell Inc. (P)2008 Tantor

Critic reviews

"An exhilarating look at three of the most creative talents of their era....Wonderfully detailed." ( The Boston Globe)

Interesting take on the times

An interesting way to weave these women together and shine light on a large part of my history, but the writer seems intent on impressing us with her vocabulary straining when simple words would work so well. Ms Erickssen has a lovely voice, but should do homework before recording and know how to pronounce names and the strained words of Ms Weller.

But, do they have innies or outies?

Yes, this book contains every detail of the lives of these three women except that one... Unlike several other reviewers, I like lots of detail and often choose books for their length. (I wish I had counted every occurrence of the phrase "in an interview before his death in xxxx..." That sure made me feel mortal, since I'm only a decade younger than the subjects.)

I chose the book because I liked Carole King and Joni Mitchell both pretty well, although I wasn't that familiar with the work of Carly Simon. In the end, I liked them all a lot LESS as people, but had greater respect for their work. It almost became laughable that there was so much swapping and hopping going on, but in an era of great sexual freedom, it's not difficult to believe. And, hey, who knew James Taylor got around so much, and that Crosby, Still and Nash were so interchangeable in the boudoir?

The narrator has a pleasant enough voice, but I agree that the mispronunciations were irritating! Why don't producers of audio books do a better job of preparing readers so they don't do this?! Mispronouncing words is bad enough, but mispronouncing names is egregious! And her recitation of lyrics was awful - especially when it was a drawn out word, like in "Anticipation". Wouldn't it have been lovely if the reader had SUNG the few lyrics in the book?

social history lite (and middle class)

I had waited eagerly to listen to this and was VERY disappointed. It seemed as though sections from three distinct documents had gotten mixed in together: an earnest masters thesis on the reciprocal effects of 60s-70s pop music and social change, a pop analysis of the lyrics of the three artisits, and pages of back issues of People magazine. I'd give the social history pages four stars and the chatty People-esque
sections none, especially the "sez a intimate friend/ elementary school classmate" parts.

Perhaps the text version did a better job of showing what was primary versus secondary and tertiary reserach, but as a listen, the gossip was mostly indistinguishable from new research conducted for the book. I think if you like any of these artists enough to know this much detail about their love affairs, then you would have already gleamed the info from Rolling Stone yourself by now.

The narrator was good, but as noted, prone to mispronunciations, and why oh why did the producer decide that she would deliver the lyrics in a stilted through gritted teeth pace rather than just READ them to us.

I think the similarly themed "Laurel Canyon" did a better overall job. By the end, I started disliking all three woman as people, but gained new respect for King and Mitchel as artists. As Kris Kristofferson suppposedly said to Simon while having an affair: "Buck up. Toughen up!" and lose the self-absorption, ladies.

The story behind the soundtrack of our lives

Where does Girls Like Us rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This book takes you behind the scene and into the real life stories of Joni, Carole & Carly.Their lives take us on their journey to make the music, which has become the soundtracks of our lives. The book reveals their stories of life, love and fame. It is also a historical look back on the times we grew up in. How the songs got written and more important, who the songs were about. I loved and learned a lot from this book.I have recommended to many girls like me.

What other book might you compare Girls Like Us to and why?

Not sure. It's very unique

What does Susan Ericksen bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The book is well read. She took on each character. It was very enjoyable to listen to her read.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, I savored it, and I was sad when I finished it.

Any additional comments?

A must read for any musical loving Boomer.

great stuff

It was chock full of info and details about each woman. Really enjoyed it. I think music lovers will like this book!

Took me back

Where does Girls Like Us rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Very high. It was fun to learn more about singers I have listened to for most of my life

Have you listened to any of Susan Ericksen’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

no. The only thing about her reading that was challenging was when she quoted lines from a song. If I were reading it instead of listening, I would have heard the song in my head. Other than that I liked her performance.

Any additional comments?

I have been listening to Carly Simon constantly since I listened to this book. I loved Carly and Carole King though I didn't know Joni's work as well.

Long!

But so so worth the listen. Some amazing women, super talented empowered artist and all with such amazing backstories. Great lead. Lol

Interesting picture of an era

Great research to tell the stories of these three women--and of the great changes that they were part of as their generation came of age. A wonderful book for the information about their lives, music, and milieu, less great for the actual writing, which was often unclear and clunky.

The narration, while lively and listenable, contained lots of egregious pronunciation errors that distracted from the text. The attempt to rhythmically but tunelessly speak song lyrics was also painful. I'd prefer to hear either a "straight" reading--i.e., as if the verses were poetry--or a reasonable singer replicating the tune a little bit.

Girls Like...

Art and music reflects a culture at a particular time. The music/lyrics from these women have stood the test of time. Weller captures the time and the emotions that the lyrics describes. I have a better understanding of this period as I was a teenager/young adult during this period. An awesome "read".

Encyclopedic? No, just too much irrelevant info.

whule the book covered just about any possible bit onto on this awesome trio, it included Ed far too many irrelevance. it seems the author wanted to include every little bit of info she came across her very thorough research. How Joni's great grandmother may have affected Joni maybe, just maybe, of some little relevance. On the other hand whhet the professions of the great-grandfather, grandfather and father of Carly' sister's boyfriend are definitely are not relevant.