Customer Reviews

Private Dreams of Public People

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Who would have thought Paris Hilton was sensitive enough to dream? This is the beauty of the book. It is filled with the dreams of celebrities from Madonna to Sophia Loren to Kurt Vonnegut, and yes, Paris Hilton! While the interpretations are terse and insightful it seems Lawrence is softer on the celebs than she is on stock traders in her column in Trader Monthly. She kills them ... but always with humor. All in all the book is a must read.

Guests that sit in my livingroom repeatedly pick up Private Dreams of Public People, and once opened, cannot put the book down. An absolute page turner, there is always just one more celebrity's dream that you want to read. Thoroughly engrossing in a gossipy, voyeuristic way, Lawrence's interpretations are gloriously intuitive, and revealing...they squeeze the person out of the celebrity. A wonderful addition---reading this book helps us understand our own dreams.

I received this book as a gift, and intended to glance at it before going to bed. Instead, I ended up reading and thinking about it for hours. If you're interested in the human condition and if you want more insight, not only into celebrities, but also into yourself, read this book. I loved it.

Entering into the lucid and enthralling world of Lauren Lawrence is a magical journey into the hearts, minds and imaginations of the most fascinating and acclaimed people of our time. More significantly, it is a powerful mirror to our common experience of self-discovery and a guidebook for the adventure of life we all share. I simply cannot say enough great things about this profound book; Private Dreams of Public People is in a class by itself.

What particularly impressed me is how Lawrence gets right down to business answering some of the deepest, soul searching questions I'd had for years concerning dreams but didn't know whom to ask. She creates a tapestry based on her wealth of experience in the often puzzling and baffling inner world that dreamers visit when they are asleep.

In her own inimitable way Lawrence employs images, thoughts and emotions to help guide individuals to becoming fuller and more complete. I was totally captivated by her interpretations of the most personal dreams of people like Paul McCartney, Sophia Loren, Gore Vidal, Luciano Pavarotti, Madonna and a host of other luminaries we only know from their external presentations. The intimacy was so great I felt almost like an intruder in their innermost beings.



Larry Geller, author of "Leaves of Elvis' Garden"

Lawrence shows us the interior life of stars. This is a first. Usually stars hide behind personnas. Lawrence lifts these veils and gets at the inner core of the stars dream lives. Particularly liked Paris Hilton before she became Paris Hilton.

I was amazed at how well this book was put together. I loved the analysis on the different people. You learn so much from this book, like information you could never find out. When you buy this book you will rate this book 5 stars just like me, because you we'll see how good it was.

Reading the various dream iterpretations that Lauren Lawrence writes about introduced me to an entirely new level of personal understanding. While I enjoyed reading the dreams of "celebrities", what I really found enlightening is how I was able to relate to some of the fears, desires and hopes expressed by these dreams. Some of my dreams have been very similar to those she has written about. In addition to finding the interpretations interesting, I was able to learn about myself and see the similarites between us all. I really enjoyed this book.

This is a gorgeous book! The photos are beautiful and artistic. The dreams are maps into the mind. And the analyses are insightful and interesting. This is a book you can have on your coffee table or your nightstand. It's like everything you always wanted to know about your favorite stars but they wanted to keep private. They're sharing such interesting secrets about themselves. The main one is, we're all the same when we're under the sheets -- dreaming, that is. It's just that when we wake up, they're famous and we're not.

Lawrence's Private Dreams of Public People peels off the topmost layer of consciousness and examines the celebrity unconscious like no other media has done. This exquisite book is a veritable voyeur's delight, and should be mandatory reading not just for psychology majors, but for every film class and acting student as there is much insight to be gained about the subtle nature of talent. Entertaining beyond belief, I could not close the book as there was always one more fascinating, famous individual's dream that I just had to read. As a film major I was particularly intrigued by Oliver Stone's dream, and was amazed at how it revealed this brilliant director's inner persona. His dream was like a movie, full of the well executed drama and action we expect from a Stone feature film. Lawrence's well written analyses are provocative and inspirational, and leave you wanting to read more. Psychology was never so glamorous!

I guess you could say I am a celebraholic, meaning I read everything I can about my fave celebs. I thought I had read everything until Private Dreams of Public People. So intense... this beautiful coffee-table book reveals the private, sleep dreams of the most amazing celebrities including Michael Douglas and Sophia Loren. From writers to supermodels, from musicians to senators, this book is awesome. The dream interpretations are bite sized but extremely well written, breezy but to the point. I never realized how clever we are when we dream. The photographs are beautifully done. There are even some celebs photographed in their bedrooms. Diane Von Furstenberg appears to be naked under Porthault sheets! There is a wonderful photo of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis' bedroom when she was first lady. In historic context, her dream was amazingly prophetic!I try to read one dream every night but I warn you, it is hard to put down once you start. ---a reviewer from downtown Manhattan