Me and My Shadows: A Family Memoir

Rating:
Summary: An honest, anecdote-filled memoir.
Review: Lorna Luft's book exceeded any expectations I had about how interesting or entertaining it would be. It was by turns illuminating, funny, sad, wistful, and ultimately hopeful. She is truly learning the lessons of her (often tragic) heritage, and this book is a tribute to that process, as well as an honest portrait of her amazingly talented mother. She includes anecdotes you won't read anywhere else, and anyone interested in Judy Garland will find these stories revelatory. Luft has been accused of merely name-dropping here, but if her career and life-experiences have taken her into the paths of numerous famous individuals, why shouldn't she mention them? It would be ridiculous to expect her to write an honest memoir about her life and her mother's without naming names along the way. Ditto for her comments about Liza, who, judging from recent public appearances, looks to be headed further down that road of addiction and chemical dependency. More's the shame. There isn't anything extraordinarily graceful or eloquent about this book, but it is better than you'd expect it to be. And if you get the chance to see Lorna live doing her tribute to her mother, don't miss it.

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Summary: Mikes Review
Review: I've read practically every book there is out there on Judy Garland. I'm not claiming to be an expert on the subject, but Ms. Luft certainly is. I found the book to be very acurrate in facts, funny and at times, and extremely sad. Judy had everything in the world and she lost it to drugs. What a waste!

Rating:
Summary: Eh...
Review: First few pages are well-written and engaging, and then it's down hill from there. Luft's tone is slightly self-aggrandizing, the book surprisingly sloppy in its editing, which makes it a less than satisfying read. Not much new material here, though the perspective is different from countless other Garland biographies. To give Luft her due, she was saddled with a crushing legacy, and all things considered, she has weathered it more successfully than her more famous sibling, Liza.

Rating:
Summary: Honest and engrossing
Review: Just finished this book and it was better than I anticipated. Lorna doesn't spare her mother, herself, or anyone in her family, but neither does she demonize them while she tries to make sense of the burgeoning dysfunction in her mother's (and later her own) life. The first half of the book is mostly about Judy Garland and gives a good sense of what she was like -- a good mother when she wasn't zonked on drugs, funny, an awesome performer, but also very manipulative, and into creating destructive drama fueled by her addiciton to Ritalin and star status. The second half of the book is mostly about Lorna. While it isn't as gripping as the first half, it is still an interesting read about the daughter of a legend trying to break into show business and unwittingly falling into some of the same traps as her mother. I think Lorna has emerged pretty clear-eyed from it all.

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Summary: A tender, loving, fascinating memoir
Review: What a wonderful book. It's very clear that, despite the trials and tribulations of Lorna Luft's childhood, she loved her mother very much. I can't wait to see the movie version on TV!

Rating:
Summary: After an impressive start, a major let down.
Review: After an impressive, highly readable start, this book descended into a name-dropping, dishy bore. Lorna Luft comes off as a Judy/Liza wannabe, with only a fraction of either one of their talents. What struck me most about this book is that it was a cheap, vulgar attempt to make a buck. How sad is it that you have to dish the deepest secrets about your half-sisters highly personal problems to make some money. Pathetic. That this book ever got published, or even more unimaginable, be made into a mini-series is one of the biggest mysteries of all time. Lorna: shame on you.

Rating:
Summary: Not bad for a singer...
Review: I brought this book on a recent trip to NY hoping I could read a few pages here and there. I devoured the book in about 2 days. It's certainly no piece of literature, but it's entertaining, interesting, and honest. Luft doesn't paint herself in the light I assumed she would (confident, talented, etc.) Instead she honestly portrays her many rejections, bad affairs, and dysfunctional family life. I'm not a Judy Garland fan, but I was riveted by the early stories about growing up with Judy as "Mama". Book is also full of family photos - Liza's face has not changed since she was a toddler!!

Rating:
Summary: A real page-turner; I couldn't put it down
Review: Lorna Luft tells her personal story about growing up the daughter of an adored and afflicted mother. As the child of one of the world's truly legendary stars, Luft tells what it was like to love and live with the tragedy and triumph that was Judy Garland. She pulls no punches, opens herself up honestly, presenting both the positive and negative sides of all the members of this difficult family from her own perspective. Yet, the the love and admiration she has for all of them is clear. Her feelings are honest and open (for good or bad). Luft givews you an insight into the real life that the publicity mills hid. Her devotion to her mother AND her father is a testament to true love which loves in spite of as much as because of who you are. Her ability to rise above her own fears and weaknesses, problems and addictions as well as her vivid storytelling makes this a real page-turner. Is it all true? Is it exaggerated? Is it fair? I'm not here to judge that. It's a great read. THAT, I can judge.

Rating:
Summary: Could have been better, but pretty good
Review: I hadn't known much about Lorna Luft, Judy Garland's "other daughter", until I read this book. I enjoyed it very much, and learned many things about Lorna, Judy Garland, and Liza Minelli. Yes, it's dishy, but I like that kind of stuff, like most people, so that didn't really bother me. And for those who were disappointed that there was more about Lorna than Judy, well, THE FIRST THREE CHAPTERS WERE NOTHING BUT JUDY, and the next five or six were about her life after Lorna was born. Besides, Lorna said that it would be her story in the introduction. I do wish, though, that she'd devoted more space to her father's life before her birth than just a few paragraphs. Still, she gave a good portrayal of him, apparently better than most others. And she gave a very loving portrayal of her mother, never a "Mommie Dearest"-type one. She is very candid, and tries to see both sides of the argument, which must have been hard for her to do. You have to wonder if she exaggerates in some sections, but I do believe that Liza has a drug problem, not only after reading this book but seeing her on TV recently. She looks so much like Judy in her last years, when the drugs had ruined her, that it's scary. I do hope that she and Sid Luft will reconcile their differences with Lorna before it's too late.

Rating:
Summary: If you don't have any talent - write a book.
Review: Lorna Luft's book called me and my shadow is more of a complaint about being in the shadow of Judy and Liza. The book is homophobic and I feel incredbily sad that Lorna is trying to pass her own dauther off as the heir to Judy's throne.