Customer Reviews

Posh And Becks

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I just finished Victoria Beckham's autobiography "Learning to Fly". In it she discusses a horrible court case her and her husband had gone through with this author fighting for this book not to be made. The guy that Andrew Morton's information is based off of was Victoria's old bodygaurd. He was the man believed by the FBI to be the one sending the kidnap and death threats that held the family's lives in fear for years. I would never support a person that disrespected someone that i admire so much.

So why did I pay good money for a book which has ABSOLUTELY NOTHING NEW other than rehashed tabloid articles?? I could have just read through a newspaper archive. This book is full of "reportedly," "allegedly," "it was claimed," meanwhile, isn't Andrew Morton supposed to be a journalist?? Couldn't he have confirmed or investigated any of these allegations, reports and claims?? This was the worst biography I have read in my life.

I never read a book by this author before, so I didn't have any preconceptions. I was looking for a biography of two celebrities I admire so I could learn more about them and their rise to fame. This book was not a good choice. I can't say I learned anything new of any real interest, and I was put off by the hostile tone of the author, especially toward Victoria Beckham. No one is perfect, but this book really seemed to unfairly accentuate the couples' flaws and downplay their strengths. Nobody deserves to be criticized like that. It was unkind and not a pleasant read. I still admire the Beckhams for their many good qualites, however I'm not so sure about the author.

The simple introduction here would be, "Liked him but didn't like her." Of course, he has that warm, winning smile that makes him both attractive and seemingly approachable--while she favors a frowny pout that is very off-putting. (The book contains 16 pages of photographs, most of them in color.) But more importantly, he has real talent that he has worked all his life to cultivate, while her skills might be charitably described as modest and haphazardly developed. Morton makes the point that Posh has always pursued success rather than proficiency: "Victoria's supreme ambition, the goal she had had since childhood, was to be famous and admired . . . [and her] success was achieved quickly and in spite of, rather than because of, any real talent she could demonstrate." I am also not keen on promoting anorexic role models for today's youth, and there are many pages in this tome devoted to her slenderizing habits.

For a change of pace (although not a sports buff), I took the time while reading this book to watch clips of David's action on the soccer field. I was amazed at what I saw, both in terms of skill but also, and unexpectedly, in terms of joy--this man loves to play! Yet he is described as "nice but dim," and his wife is a high school dropout.

Morton provides his own analysis of this couple: "He seems content to be who he is, secure in his skin, a talented footballer doing what he has always wanted. On the other hand, Victoria is driven by the demons within; a woman who is at once dauntless, intrepid, and dynamic, and yet insecure, vulnerable, and needy." But they have found each other, they love their kids, and they have been successful at promoting "Brand Beckham." Maybe it will all work out in the end . . .

Andrew Morton is presented as the something between the devil incarnate and the Brit version of Kitty Kelley but this book, Posh and Becks isn't that bad actually. In fact, it's pretty fair. He makes it clear that the whole Girl Power thing that the Spice Girls had going was actually crap. They were invented by two busnessmen and their careers were guided by their male manager. They were a business venture first and musicians second. But hey, they entertained a whole lot of people and they all got rich so who can complain?

Morton says that the Adams/Beckham wedding was tacky. Well, that's a mater of opinion but the pictures of the wedding did provoke more derisive laughter than envy in most people who commented publicly.

Morton presents Beckham as a nice guy who let's his wife make the decisions... that could said for most happily married men. Morton also brings up a few alleged affairs but he makes it clear that the women involved all told their stories to the media so their actions have to be suspect.

As for Victoria Beckham herself, Morton spent less time talking about her relationships before Beckham than she did in her own book. She complains bitterly about Morton in her book but all in all, Posh and Becks isn't a hatchet job and seemed rather mild to me. Pity about Beckham's soccer career though.

Morton must receive his praise for putting together all the dirt there was on Posh and Becks. Is it morally wrong? By no means. Instead of digging through old glossy magazines you can check one book with a glossy cover.
One question which this book fails to answer is how a player who is apparently past his prime and a girl who never was a good singer could become and continue to be such celebrities world-wide. But this is not a question which has anything to do with this charming couple but with us.

I have read many books this is the second time and last time I ever read a book from this author. I happen to like the Beckhams, and feel that every single public personality deserves a key word privacy. When you cannot trust your nannies, cleaning people that is really sad, especially since they are a normal couple with children that fight and have their difficulties like everyone else in the world, they are the upper 3% of the world with money, they worked hard for it and deserve every single penny if we buy into them and their branding..and strong family values.
I am sad if David did have affairs on his wife because that is a lack of respect for her and his boys and if they even have an agreement to an open marriage it is still no ones business but their own. there is a saying men like blueberry pie, once in awhile they like a little apple but than they return to the bluebuerry pie men love history they never leave their wives!
To Victoria if you want your fashion sense to soar like an eagle think globally not locally to size 0.,go larger bring your books sell it all and than use some of it for charity or a training school for homeless teenagers to get them off the streets.
I would go QVC or Shopping channel with your fragrances and clothing and sunglasses the more units you sell the more you make it is simple math. Do Jewlery too and anything you can brand your name on because Beckham sells because everyone wants a piece of you it represents wealth and abundance.
You go Beckhams and when the press hate you it is because you are doing well. No one wants your sucess it is a famous saying. Andrew Morton can you never write a book that is pleasant I challenge you to do it my gosh man you are a negative and jealous writter and no better than the thousands of papparazzi that chase these people daily for their fix!

this book didn't tell me anything i didn't already know. i guess i was hoping it would go more into friendships and events these two had been involved with but it seemed to just skim over their life with the bare minimum of details. i wasted my money.

This is a great easy read.
You won't believe the amount of Harassment That Victoria Beckham,
endured, she is so young and talented.
The book is about her rise to fame and marriage etc.
Nothing would have stopped her career and her Millions.
There are some shocking photos in this book but you get a good idea of who she really is.

"A couple of kids stealing grocery money" was Larry King's comment on Posh & David Beckham: Casey Kassem was similarly dismissive. What we've seen in this book is a long way from the truth. Morton narrates a perceptive and well-told story about the pair of outlaws. You'll find that David ran the show: Victoria, for the last year of her life couldn't even walk, due to the crippling effects of a bad car accident: she had to be carried around. Beckham had been driving along a dirt road at night, doing 70mph and ran through a barricade and off the road where a bridge was down. Pure recklessness on David's part--a recklessness and carelessness that cost Victoria Beckham the ability to walk, and cost the lives of many people, including Posh & Beck themselves.

David was a skilled footballer--he rarely drove anything except his favored Mercedes--and car thief, but he didn't know when to take his foot off the gas. He liked fast cars and flashy, more mature women--the trappings of glamor. But the careful thought and planning that helped Dillinger and others was lacking--Morton describes how the couple would drive into Manchester in their Mercedes, wearing flashy clothes, and walk about casing the different stores for possible robbery: again and again, this aroused suspicions--it was if they wanted to call attention to themselves. They robbed some banks--the maximum haul that I recall from the book was under $4000 (about half that ammount when you consider that these are English Pounds) but spent much more time robbing grocery stores for $40 or so, and often grabbing for loose change. The book describes how David Beckham stole a Ford Cortina, drove it for a distance, and abandoned it for another Ford Cortina, but switched the license plate to the newly-stolen vehicle: when suspicions were aroused, the license plate quickly was traced to the original stolen car. The couple also liked taking pictures of themselves, and the pictures sometimes showed the license plates of the car they were driving--not smart!

Sir Alex Ferguson, the legendary Man U. manager, traded David to the U.S.A.'s Los Angeles Galaxy football team. His posse ambushed Victoria and David in London, with Ferguson repeatedly shooting his mouth out at Victoria calling her a "two-bit hussie." The aftermath did nobody credit: the Beckham family wanted all the guns, which were all stolen or (rarely) bought with stolen money. Ferguson wanted to retire David's number but kept the old jerseys to auction off. Los Angeles county sheriff Jordan, part of Ferguson's ambush team, may have grabbed a suitcase full of money for himself: he wanted the bullet-pierced death car to auction off. The car's owner (it was, of course, stolen) wanted it, and in a court case a federal judge returned it to the owner, who rented it out to what might best be termed an "exhibitionist" who charged admission for people to see it.

The title of the book comes from both of their nicknames. There are occasional errors--such as accepting the FBI's line that David Beckham was involved in the Kansas City Wizards Massacre (see, for example, Robert Unger's book)--but nothing major. So--a well-done and interesting look at Posh & Becks.