Customer Reviews

Bob Marley: My Son

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a compelling book. I agree with the reviewer who said that at the beginning of the book there was more about Cedella and her background than about Bob Marley, but the end justified the means. You get to know and understand Cedella Marley as her son takes her through her journey. Her description of "Nesta's" last months are heart wrenching. Her voice as a mother comes through - I was sobbing at the end. But she added credit where credit is due namely to Chris Blackwell, when all of Marley's "entourage" left after his death, Blackwell remained to ask what was needed and to make sure Cedella would be taken care of for the rest of her life. Not many people are aware of Blackwell's genuine care and concern.
As I kept reading throughout the book, I was becoming more aware of how beautifully written her words are and how strong her love is for "Nesta" and all of her family.
This is, indeed, a beautiful book and one that belongs in everyone's collection of all that is written about Nesta Robert Marley.
Sue Few

I read this book in ONE DAY! It is an incredible book! You get such an understanding of Bob Marley (born: Nesta Robert Marley) that you are enveloped into the life of this musical legend! Once you read this book, you know exactly where Bob Marley got his character and his strength--from his mother. Her account of how she watched her son die from cancer is tearjerking and for me was personal, as I saw my mother waste away from cancer. It is truly the greatest and best account of the life of Bob Marley ever written and die-hard Marley fans should own this book at all cost! This literally is as close to Bob Marley anyone will ever get to understanding the man behind the music.

I guess this book was okay, however, I've read other books on Bob Marley and his mother's version seems very bias towards her son and herself looking good. She totally downplays his infidelites as a man will do what a man will do but focuses on Rita Marley getting pregnant with another man's baby. She mentioned this numerous times in the book giving this as one main reason for conflict between Bob and Rita. She focuses on Rita being unfaithful but barely talks about the numerous children he had outside his marriage. She states her son was tormented about this child and that he would divorce Rita if he found out it was not his. She later claims Rita did tell him that this was not his child- he never got a divorce. I read Rita's version in No Woman, No Cry and tend to somewhat believe that version of events a lot better. Other than the conflictual information and her focusing on herself a lot, it was an okay read.

I really enjoyed this book from a perspective of a mother, supporter and oracle sharing her experience, her truths and beliefs with insertions of Jamaican patois about her life and Bob's life.

Cedella describes the unique relationship between she and "Captain", a common tale of race, power, and lust in colonial Caribbean. She discusses the trials and tribulations that helped her rear Bob and how her perserverance helped Bob discover his own voice. Cedella was a powerful, vocal and honest woman whose observations of Bob's life gives a compelling spin on how women raise men in the Caribbean and how her technqiues are typical of Displaced African women throughout the globe.

For the true Bob Marley spiritual connection, I think this book is vital. Very rarely do we read the perspective of the family especially for Black heroes. All too often peripheral, white, powerful authors are given access to publish print and make money off of our spiritual prophets and artists.

I fully support more books like this that tell the tale of Black women, men and children via our experiences, using our language and depicting vivid imagery that can transplant us to their space and time.

... This book is much different than most biographies because it is written by the subject's actual mother. Readers are allowed to view Marley in the eyes of his mom rather than in the eyes of a fan or historian. The book does a decent job of retelling Marley's life and rise to international fame. It is an interesting read and does not take very long as it is rather short.
... One thing I did not like about the book was the fact that at times, it begins to feel like more of a autobiography about Bob's mother than about him. The book, in fact, begins with her childhood. It is a good twenty minutes before Bob Marley is even introduced: something I find strange in a biography that is supposed to be about him. Once you make it through these sections however, the author does try to tie them into ordeals and stories that focus on Bob.
... The vast selections of pictures from Bob's childhood were both a positive and a negative. It was nice to have access to visuals of all the people talked about in the book. It makes it easier to picture people when you know what they look like. It was annoying, however, to be stopped in the middle of a sentence by 8 to 10 pages of pictures. By the time you flipped through them you would have to flip back and try to remember what fragment you had read to try and complete the sentence.

This is a great alternate look into the life of Bob that has never been told in any other book on BOB. BOB had a very special relationship with his mother that lasted his entire life. Mother B lets us into their relationship. A fantastic book that can be read in a day.

if anyone could fully speak on Bob Marley than it's only fitting it's His Mother&this Book gives an interesting take on the Career&Life of Bob Marley from His Mother.very much to the point.