Customer Reviews

Don't Tell Dad: A Memoir

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I liked the writing, and more important, liked Peter. I read the Customer reviews and agree there could be less yachting, but as one reviewer said,"it's his book." Peter is a charmer, and his obvious love and sensitivity toward women is well-written and described. Nowadays, he would be called a "hyper-active" child, no doubt suffering from ADD. A gradually disappearing mother and a cold, stern father were devastating to such a sensitive child. As a reader, I tried to be empathetic with Peter always resorting to tears. (In my family, you die before you cry!)

Remember all the times you have been humiliated and later you think "what I shoulda said--" The Germans call this "the wit of the stairway" meaning your swift retorts when it is long over. I think Peter recalled many incidents the way he'd have LIKED them to turn out, but the truth might be a little different. But hey, it's his book. I don't doubt for a minute, he is very impulsive, feisty, loud and belligerent when the mood, the drugs, the drink, whatever are upon him. I remember I heard Peter had taken to roaring past his sister's home on his motorcycle after she married Tom Hayden, screaming what a worthless hanger on Hayden was; who couldn't afford breakfast unless Jane bought it for him, etc., etc. I don't know whether this is true or not, but after reading the book, I certainly believe Peter is capable of such behavior.

I was surprised he never mentioned his father's last film "On Golden Pond" which his sister Jane worked so hard to put together and Henry won an Academy Award. I don't know if Jane exercised a heavy editorial hand on his writing, or Peter didn't want her overshadowing him. I doubt the last because with all Peter's problems, low self-esteem does not seem a part of him. And it shouldn't be. He is a brilliant man and writer. It is definitely wrong to say he was gypped in family brains dept. He was not as visible as sis and dad, but he is strictly A-list.

I enjoyed this book and found it to be a fascinating glimpse into the lives of the rich and famous Fonda family. I agree that Peter contradicts himself often in this book by telling us the things he resents about his relationship with his father, then turning around and doing the same things to his own family. This is precisely _what_ makes this book interesting. Abused becomes abuser. Therapists will tell you that happens all the time. Here we get to see it spelled out in gory detail. Fascinating reading.

Self-serving? You bet. Self-centered? Uh huh. But also very fun! To all the others: You get over it! This was just one fun read. He was a bad husband/father/son/etc.!!! And I guess I just find it funny that he could be so--naive?--about it. He says in the book, often, that he is like an 8 year old child, and you know what? That is right on target. He responds to life like an 8 year old, and I guess I just find that very amusing. Spoiled child? Yes! Hedonistic? Yes! But I also enjoyed every minute of reading about the stuff he experienced (who wouldn't who has come of age in the sixties?) Full of gossip, often very sad, but also full of good humor and a revelry for LIFE that I find contagious.

Fonda reveals himself in his autobiography to be quite different from his public persona. Rather than the laid back hippie he shows himself to be a gun toting confrontational hedonist in search of emotional and spiritual healing. Because of this soujourn, the book often carefully describes the facts of his personal history and existence as he sees them. Also surprising is Fonda's behavior in accepting sub par acting roles and making commercial endorsements in order to support his (and his family's) extravangant lifestyle. Hippie not, capatalist, yes, is how I would describe him. I did find the book to be a good read and found Fonda's writing style to be both personal and conversational. I think most readers interested in learning about the man will not be disappointed.

I recently did an article on Peter for our school newspaper. Unlike the past two reviewers, I actually liked reading this book. Buried under all the sex, the drugs, and the arrogance, there is a finely crafted, well-written book. I think the first reviewer should read the preface again. I think what he meant about casually mentioning the drugs was that how he felt about using them at the time. As a matter of fact, Peter said in an interview that he wouldn't touch some of the drugs he's tried [in the past] today. At least Peter was honest about it. And Peter being a neglectful parent? I think I heard Bridget say in the same interview that she considers her dad her friend as well. And if wasn't for Bridget, Peter would still be using drugs. Though the book did leave me with a few questions. I would have liked to know more about what happened to Susan Brewer, (Peter's first wife) after they divorced, whether Mom2 is dead or alive, and Amy (Peter's adopted half-sister), who is mentioned maybe twice in the entire book. Otherwise, I liked what he had to say.

I knew very little about Peter Fonda before reading his book. He is a very interesting man who bares his soul to the reader. How can you critique what should have been written about (read other reviews)in his book. He loved his days sailing in the Tatoosh (spelled wrong?)The worlds finest wooden sailing yacht. so why wouldn't he write about his adventures on it, with such fond memories. This book was one of the best I have read. He is a very sensitive man who has overcome many odds and has turned his life in a very positive way. What a great book!!!

I have to admit that before reading this book, I knew nothing about Peter Fonda. All I knew was he was Henry's son, Jane's brother, Bridget's father, had starred in and written a counterculture film called "Easy Rider" and did drugs in the 1960's. This book showed that he is so much more than that. This is an excellently written memoir that takes us through his life. It's not pretty but it's honest. Yes, it's a story that includes lots of drugs and a fiery temper when it came to authority figures but that's who he was and I commend him for being honest. After reading the book, I came away really liking Peter.

Opinions are pretty useless. So I'll write a review. :) That could set the tone for this book. Peter is a good writer. I found the books continuity got screwed up a little, (names given before introduced) but, not much. So as a writer, he's good. And hell, he has some stories to tell. I found his descriptions vivid. He paints a picture with words and he should be commended on that. As far as his approach to telling his story how can that be picked on, it's his frigging story. Is he a whiner, I don't think so, he had Henry Fonda as a Dad! Unfortunately, I can relate to the mother thing. Just one thing Peter, in the book you score $500,000 and a few pages later it's gone and you're making $90.00 a week. What the ..... Also, I would have thought Lennon would have liked you...go figure.

A nicely written book about Fonda's life, although I found it strange that, having dedicated the book to his sister, there is very little about her and how their adult lives crossed. Far, far too much information about his yachts and their voyages. The story of Easy Rider was well told but overall I felt I gained more insight into Fonda from Peter Biskind's book: Easy Riders and Raging Bulls.

I am not given to reading Hollywood autobiorgraphies, but after a very prominent interviewer gushed over this book with stirring accolades, I acquiesced. 498 pages later of endless ramblings, Im angry for not going with my gut instincts. There is no defined beginning, middle or end, just non-stop viewpoints and antedotes that are poorly written. The one constant; self-pity!.

Mr. Fonda begins his book with a disclaimer on the use of drugs and yet gleefully shares with his readers the wonders of his usage of mind altering drugs from puberty to present.. He bemoans the lonely, distant relationship he had with his father, and yet subjects his children to the same. It is a book of constant hypocrisies that insult the intelligence and the sensibility of the reader. Fonda seems proud of his angry, embittered image and regales the reader with language befitting a drunken sailor.

Endless chapters are devoted to the forgetable movies in Fonda's repertoire, discussing camera angles, location problems, stars egos and habitual drug rituals. Even "Easy Rider" is discussed so profusely that it's magic is lost forever. One or two chapters would have been ample on these subjects.

Throughout the book, we journey with Peter in search of the love he felt deprived of as a child. We are subjected to countless sexual encounters described with much zeal by Fonda. Only so many bed romps are interesting and then it becomes rote and a matter of "belt notching."

So little is explored intellectually with his father or sisters or multiple mothers. Too much is discussed about drug binges and sex. In the last chapter, Peter desperately attempts to put rhyme and reason to the story, but it is a case of much too little, much too late. This book is self-seving, self-absorbed, self-obsessed drival and no reader should waste the hours and efforts to wade through the rubble that is "Dont Tell Dad." Let me tell you to easily r!ide by this one at the bookstore.