Lady Sings the Blues

By Billie Holiday, William Dufty,

Book cover of Lady Sings the Blues

Book description

Perfect for fans of The United States vs. Billie Holiday, this is the fiercely honest, no-holds-barred memoir of the legendary jazz, swing, and standards singing sensation—a fiftieth-anniversary edition updated with stunning new photos, a revised discography, and an insightful foreword by music writer David Ritz

Taking the reader on a…

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Why read it?

1 author picked Lady Sings the Blues as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

This is Billie Holiday's autobiography, first published in Britain in the 1950s. I picked it up in a charity shop in Leicester and found it a fascinating read. Billie Holiday's life had a certain tragedy about it and indeed she led, at times, a very difficult life, struggling with addictions and being in trouble with the law. Her childhood is vividly depicted too, as she suffered poverty, racism and abuse growing up in the pre-WWII USA. Her stardom, when it came, was hard won but so deserved. All in all, a memorable, moving book.

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