Unbiased book?

Can anyone recommend an unbiased yet accurate book about The Beatles? I have a lot of books and my son would like to read some more about the Beatles but I find so many of them are biased toward John Lennon and dismiss Paul as being uncreative, unoriginal and just downright sappy. I do have Paul's autobiography Many Years From Now which is nice and I think he is very diplomatic in it but it doesn't say a lot about the other Beatles. One I have which is horribly biased is Two of Us Lennon and McCartney behind the myth. That one is downright mean in my opinion. So any suggestions? My son is 11.

Originally Posted by Simba7666

I find so many of them are biased toward John Lennon and dismiss Paul as being uncreative, unoriginal and just downright sappy.

I have read many Beatle books–and, as a Lennon fan, that includes all the supposedly "biased toward John" books–and I have never seen one that dismisses "Paul as being uncreative, unoriginal and just downright sappy."

That being said, if you are looking for a book with unbiased facts, reason, and scrupulous research, then there's really only one answer.

Most books seemed to be biased in telling Lennon's life in a way that would not offend the myth, the family and the fans ..... that said, I really enjoyed Ray Coleman bio as well has the new one by Philip Norman John Lennon: The Life and as we all know the talents of both Lennon and McCartney have be laid in stone as Paul being the romantic tunes smith and John the surreal wordsmith I would not think that those statements could be denied and if they are then it's just another way of tearing down a myth and replacing it with another view it all depends now on your personal taste what one believes.

Originally Posted by Maia 66

I have read many Beatle books–and, as a Lennon fan, that includes all the supposedly "biased toward John" books–and I have never seen one that dismisses "Paul as being uncreative, unoriginal and just downright sappy."

That being said, if you are looking for a book with unbiased facts, reason, and scrupulous research, then there's really only one answer.

Then you have obviously never read "Two of Us, John Lennon and Paul McCartney Behind the Myth"

Thanks for the info.

Nothing by Geoffrey Giuliano is worth reading. He's never been known to let facts get in the way of salaciousness.

A lot of people consider Philip Norman's Shout! to be biased against Paul (including Paul himself; I think that book is what inspired his "Martin Luther Lennon" complaint)...but the truth is, the bias is actually against George, who apparently must have ran over Philip's dog and banged his mother or something. Even the obituary Philip Norman wrote for George was soaking in bitterness.

A great biography for young and old fans alike is Nicholas Schaffner's The Beatles Forever. It's been a while since I read it, but I don't remember there being any serious bias against any of the Beatles in general, although the author does make his honest opinions about the merit of certain solo records. It's a pretty quick, fun read. The only thing that might work against it is that it's from the late 70s and written by a nostalgic (but still enthusiastic) fan, so parts of it might require a little context on Dad's part.

he bias is actually against George, who apparently must have ran over Philip's dog and banged his mother or something. Even the obituary Philip Norman wrote for George was soaking in bitterness.

What happened there? I never understood what Norman's problem was with George.

Just came across this book in my Goodwill bag and glanced at it to see if it was as horrible as I thought. It was. Here is a small quote:
No one can blame Macca for the passage of time but it is unfortunate that so few dynamics of the young, adventurous Paul are apparent in the old, puffy one. As seemingly self satisfied as he is smug, Sir Paul has gotten just about everything he wanted out of life with the exception of John Lennon's reputation as the creative inspiration behind the Beatles. It was his jealously of John Lennon that motivated much of his great work. Now that his best years are long behind him, one wonders what he actually thinks about late at night lying in bed. Just about everyone who care realizes that John was THE MAN in The Beatles and that's the way it always will be.

McCartney is my favorite but I'm a fan of them all. I read Geoff Emerick's book which was really good but I cringed over the way he wrote about George. Very unfair. Basically said he was a jerk who could barely play the guitar.

here's one list...

http://everyrecordtellsastory.com/th...beatles-books/

Originally Posted by Maia 66

I have read many Beatle books–and, as a Lennon fan, that includes all the supposedly "biased toward John" books–and I have never seen one that dismisses "Paul as being uncreative, unoriginal and just downright sappy."

That being said, if you are looking for a book with unbiased facts, reason, and scrupulous research, then there's really only one answer.

Phillip Norman's Shout is very Lennon biased and in the original printing even used the phrase, "Stupid Cow eyes" in describing Paul. His reprinting is even worse.

Unbiased? Spitz's book. He obviously favors Paul but tried to give every Beatle a fair shake. It's an odd book in that at first he seems to gloss over or skip famous legends but then talks about what I thought was missing in another chapter. He also stated that his book is only about the stuff he knew to be actually true, not one where it seemed someone made stuff up even the Beatles themselves which puts an interesting perspective on it.

Mark Lewishon's book I think is quite even and unbiased. It's huge and something like 900 pages, but I'm reading it and I find it quite accessible and easy to read so don't let the thickness of it put you off! It goes between John, Paul, George, Ringo and others to try and show the whole story - not just all about John or all about Paul as some are.

Originally Posted by wallrus59

here's one list...

http://everyrecordtellsastory.com/th...beatles-books/

Thank you for that list. I love to read things that come from all different perspectives. I just read Love Me Do by Michael Braun and it was great. It showed the beatles as they were not as we saw in the press. Though they were rather jaded and rude to the press too in my opinion.

Originally Posted by Miss O'Dell

Mark Lewishon's book I think is quite even and unbiased. It's huge and something like 900 pages, but I'm reading it and I find it quite accessible and easy to read so don't let the thickness of it put you off! It goes between John, Paul, George, Ringo and others to try and show the whole story - not just all about John or all about Paul as some are.

I agree that Mark's work is excellent, but I wouldn't recommend it to an 11 year old for a couple of reasons. First, it's TOO much detail for a newbie to Beatles books, and second (and more importantly), it doesn't cover the part of the Beatles career that I'd expect an 11 year old to be interested in--the music/films.

I have to echo the suggestion of THE BEATLES FOREVER as the one for a young beginner. I remember lending it to my nephews when they were in their early teens. It is factual, it covers the first six or seven years of the solo years (the reader can stop after 1970 if he wants), and it has a lot of photos with the text.

The book is 35 years old, and is still in my top five Beatles book EV-AH.

JcS