The Private John Lennon: The Untold Story from His Sister [Paperback]

Julia Baird (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 28, 2008

In this moving memoir, John Lennon's sister Julia finally reveals the full extent of the pain and difficulties — as well as the happier times — of life inside John Lennon's family. Julia introduces readers to the various strong, self-willed women who surrounded John as he grew up and offers an insider's look at the cruel consequences of five-year-old John being taken from his mother's custody and put in the care of his aunt Mimi. Later, the author holds nothing back as she tells how she and then 17-year-old John confronted their mother's sudden and tragic death in an auto accident. Poignant, raw and beautifully written, The Private John Lennon casts new light on the source of his emotional fragility and musical genius. It is also one family's extraordinary story of the love they held for each other, their struggles with fame, and the terrible series of tragedies that culminated in John's murder.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Read this one before the movie comes out in the US early next year! This book is the basis for the film Nowhere Boy. The same title also goes by the name _Imagine This_ in the UK.

About the Author

Julia Baird is John Lennon half sister. They have the same mother. They lived in the same house until John moved in with his aunt. After which Julia would see John regularily when he would come to visit his mother. After, their mothers tragic death, then continued a private, out-of-the-public-eye relationship until John's death.

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Ulysses Press (March 28, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1569756465
• ISBN-13: 978-1569756461
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #376,751 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #31 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( L ) > Lennon, John

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars More Julia than John, April 21, 2009

By 

Violetta1485 - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Private John Lennon: The Untold Story from His Sister (Paperback)

This book really tells more about Julia, not the writer and sister, but John's much-maligned mother. Apparently, although John always felt abandoned by his mother and the feeling did much to destroy his life (despite his professional success), the real story is quite different. Readers of first-wife Cynthia's 2nd book already know that "Auntie Mimi" was hardly the paragon of stability she has been portrayed, and she appears to have done John tremendous damage in the name of helping him. Baird makes a pretty convincing case that her mother was truly devoted to all her children, and that they were all caught up in the feuding of the Stanley clan, as dysfunctional a pack as you'll ever see outside of a Tennessee Williams play.
In addition, Baird provides a few anecdotes demonstrating that John's relationship with Cynthia was more than just a shotgun wedding: he was quite keen on her at one point, even if he got tired of her later. As for Yoko Ono, Baird acknowledges that her brother had the right to make his own choices, but it's clear that Ono did nothing to heal this already-damaged extended family and was malicious way beyond any standard second-wife/stepmother rivalry.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars So I sing a song of love for Julia, March 26, 2010

By 

Anna "    " (Mass) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Private John Lennon: The Untold Story from His Sister (Paperback)

This book is Julia (John's sister) pouring her heart out. Its more about her childhood, growing up and the crazy-dysfunctional Stanley clan than anything, but definitely worth the read!

There are plenty of happy childhood memories at start! Their loving mother Julia, time spent with John, warm memories of Cynthia and... plenty of heartbreaking drama. Waaaaay too much drama for one person to have at such a young age: her mother's death, nobody telling them of it for weeks, her & her sister getting removed from their father by court order & being sent to an auntie who clearly didn't want them, then death of her father some years later... it just goes on and on

No Beatles book is complete w/out at least a few pages of Yoko Ono of course. And once again, Yoko manages to come thru in just 2 pages as teh most heartless woman on the planet.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars good book on John's family life, March 23, 2010

By 

Sheena Carver "dazeerae" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Private John Lennon: The Untold Story from His Sister (Paperback)

So much of what has been said about John Lennon's childhood is patently false. It's been said that John was raised by an aunt after his mom died. FALSE. He was 17 when his mother was killed and he'd been living with his aunt for years. It's been written that his mom didn't want to or was unable to care for him. FALSE. She was a loving mother who desperately wanted to keep him, but she was forced by disapproving parents and controlling sisters into giving John to her sister Mimi, as well as give up an illegitimate infant daughter for adoption. John's father, Alfred "Alfie" Lennon's job kept him away for months - even years - at a time. Julia's unwillingness to stay in a lonely marriage resulted in affairs which were particularly shocking during the 1940s-50s. She eventually set up house with her partner, Bobby Dykins, and gave birth to their two daughters Julia and Jackie. When John discovered that his mother and family were living nearby, he began to visit frequently. It was during these visits that John's mother taught him how to play the banjo, spurring his interest in music.

Just as John was reconnecting with his mother, she was tragically killed by a speeding motorist as she crossed the street. Her daughters' grieving father was unable to care for his children. As a result, the girls were shuffled between their mother's family members who refused to recognize them as true family since they were born out of wedlock, despite the fact that their mother had been with the girls' father for years. They were not told of their mother's death for weeks, and when they were finally told they were forced to mourn privately. The girls were treated as a problem that had to be dealt with, rather than being loved as grieving children whose life had been turned upside down.

There is so much more to say about this book, including Yoko's treatment of John's sisters, but this review is already so long. If you are a Lennon fan, you'll enjoy getting one more piece to the puzzle of his life. Some of the book drags, but mostly the tale helps lay the foundation of how John became a troubled and ultimately tragic icon.