Diana's Dogs: Diana Ross and the Definition of a Diva [Hardcover]

Ed Ifkovic (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 12, 2007

The Guinness Book of World Records calls her the best-selling female singer in history. Billboard named her the Celebrity of the Century. Diana Ross, lead singer of the most popular girl group of the 1960s and later a consummate solo artist, has been in the public eye for over four decades. From 1964—when “Where Did Our Love Go?” rose to number one on the pop charts—to the present day, she has been the ultimate diva, an artist worshiped by fanatical fans, yet pilloried in the press for her temper tantrums and untoward demands.

Ed Ifkovic delivers his own spin on this international celebrity, an idiosyncratic collection of short pieces that create a portrait of the mercurial star. From a Detroit housing project to a Connecticut mansion—who is this woman who exacts such loyalty from her fans and such vitriol from her detractors? There are pieces on Diana’s tantrums, true, but also jottings on the homes she’s lived in, the food she eats, the cars she drives, even her role as muse for writers. There is a collection of poetic similes commentators have employed to describe her, as well as a mind-boggling catalogue of garish tabloid headlines. This off-beat book, admittedly an obsessive fan’s unembarrassed send-up—equal parts delight and censure—is a spirited yet sardonic tale that also explores the integration of black music into the white mainstream. Frankly, Diana led that noble charge. What the author delights in is the unorthodox observation and gossipy tidbit that accompanied that revolution.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Ed Ifkovic is the author of the novels Ella Moon: A Novel Based on the Life of Ella Wheeler Wilcox (2001), A Girl Holding Lilacs (2002), and David at Thirty (2005). With Eric Minh Tang he wrote the young-adult novel Dragon on a Ten-Speed (2004).

Cover design by Eric M. Tang

Product Details

• Hardcover: 278 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse, Inc. (October 12, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595708935
• ISBN-13: 978-0595708932
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,002,212 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essence of a Singer, November 22, 2007

By 

Chelsea Ryan "Chelsea R" (Providence, RI) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Diana's Dogs: Diana Ross and the Definition of a Diva (Hardcover)

I was at the Central Park concert in 1983. So I naturally gravitated toward Ifkovic's version of the events. He must have been in a different part of the lawn. I was on the fringe, and got out when things got messy. So I enjoyed what he had to say. For me, too, it was a memorable night. I didn't go back the second night either. I'm sorry I didn't.

This is not a biography in any traditional sense. Rather, it's labeled a commentary on music, specifically the musical career of ex-Supreme Diana Ross. Oddly, the lingering effect of reading the book, well after the last page is turned, is that of somehow coming to understand the life of this international superstar. What I mean is that, through the wide-ranging chapters--from actual history to analyses of music and fashion and even hairdos--the author captures the essence of the woman. I suppose that makes it the equivalent of a biography. Sort of. What I'm saying is that when I finished the book I felt I knew Diana Ross in ways I'd never considered before--and I've read the various biographies out there, from the scandalous to the benign. This book falls somewhere in the middle, truth to say.

The structure of the book--that is, three acts and an intermission--serves the book well. We meet the Supremes in Act One, then Diana solo in Act Two. The intermission deals with the world around her, like her relationships with Oprah Winfrey, Michael Jackson, even Jackie Onassis, and the final Act takes us into her later years--her growing old, the aging fan base, a valedictory of a great career. Ironically, he ends on childhood--a look back at the child "Diane," that embryonic star before she was "Diana." It's a clever way to conceive of a book.

I have the feeling lots of fans will not like it. But they should read it.

The small, spitfire chapters propel the reader along, if only to see what he has to say about the very public career. I thought he was too harsh on Mary Wilson, but what do I know? His chapter on Berry Gordy, however, rang true.

Now I want to re-listen to my Diana CDs. I think I'll hear something I never heard before. Something even better than I expected!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Supreme Book, January 18, 2008

By 

Dr. Joe Kort "(www.JoeKort.com)" (Royal Oak, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Diana's Dogs: Diana Ross and the Definition of a Diva (Hardcover)

This is the most realistic book on Diana Ross I have read to date. So much about this woman that is written is either slanted too far against her or in favor of her. This book is balanced and explores Diana Ross in both positive and negative ways.

I agreed wholeheartedly with the author when he critiqued the Return to Love Tour where Diana Ross partnered with two former Supremes with whom she had never performed with in the past. It was a poor choice for her career and that certainly showed the years that followed. She should have either made the real reunion happen and do all she could to get Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong on that tour or not do it at all.

Still I have to say I went because I am a diehard fan! And it was great!

Even so, I love this DIVA and have since the day I heard her on the radio and watched her perform. I appreciated the author talking about how embarrassed he was to admit he was a fan of Diana Ross. I have felt that way throughout my life thinking that people would see my celebrity worship as less than and inferior to others who worship sport celebrities or classic writers or even the Beatles or the Stones.

I no longer feel this way. I am a proud fan of Diana Ross and the Supremes.

Thank you for this realistic view of this wonderful woman!

I have always been able to see the good side of this star and her "dark" side which we all have.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Surprising Read, December 10, 2007

By 

David Gillon - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Diana's Dogs: Diana Ross and the Definition of a Diva (Hardcover)

I was given a copy of this book by a fan who bought it, read it over night, disliked it, and said it was too negative. He knows of my love for Diana's music, so he thought I'd join him in not liking it. To the contrary, I think he misread the book's intent. Yes, there's a lot of dark stuff about the great diva, but that's what makes a diva, no? The great divas of history are bigger-than-life, impetuous, over-the-top, furious, willful, wonderful. What's also there is a lot of the great, wonderful, compelling stuff--Diana as the singular singer of our time.

But what makes me write these comments is the fact hat the book seems to be to tell a large, comprehensive story. There is so much ground covered here, there is so much information packed into the smallish chapters. It's a comprehensive look at the singer. I learned stuff I've never known before, and I've read all the bios and the magazine articles (I own them all!). I've been a fan for over 30 years, and thought I know what needed to be known about her. But the author seems to pull gossip and facts and observation together into a seamless package that somehow tells me some things I didn't know. And that takes some doing.

Oh yeah: there are no pictures inside, like in the biographies. That's why my friend handed it over (aside for the belief that it's a negative screed intended to smear the reputation of the untouchable lady). No pictures. Just commentary. Lots of it. A thousand words are sometimes better than one picture. Believe me.