Rating: 
Summary: Makes You Pine for Your Clinch Mountain Home
Review: "Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone" represents a real step up from the typical celebrity bio it might have been. As you might expect, it chronicles the hard times and triumphs of the first two generations of the musical Carter family, starting with A.P. and his then-wife Sara, and Sara's cousin and sister-in-law Maybelle, and continuing on through Maybelle's daughters (Helen, Anita, and June Carter Cash), in-laws (Johnny Cash) and even granddaughters. The author(s) received the full cooperation of the surviving members of the family; the book has benefited tremendously, for example, from interviews with June Carter Cash and Johnny Cash.Hirshberg and Zwonitzer's aim, however, goes beyond the tell-all. They are trying to convey not just the fundamental integrity of the Carters and their music, but also the rise of country `hillbilly' music in the 20s and 30s and what it meant to the people that heard it. As a result the reader leaves the book wanting to hear more of the music, which to my mind is a mighty fine result.
Rating:
Summary: Makes You Pine for Your Clinch Mountain Home
Review: "Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone" represents a real step up from the typical celebrity bio it might have been. As you might expect, it chronicles the hard times and triumphs of the first two generations of the musical Carter family, starting with A.P. and his then-wife Sara, and Sara's cousin and sister-in-law Maybelle, and continuing on through Maybelle's daughters (Helen, Anita, and June Carter Cash), in-laws (Johnny Cash) and even granddaughters. The author(s) received the full cooperation of the surviving members of the family; the book has benefited tremendously, for example, from interviews with June Carter Cash and Johnny Cash. Hirshberg and Zwonitzer's aim, however, goes beyond the tell-all. They are trying to convey not just the fundamental integrity of the Carters and their music, but also the rise of country 'hillbilly' music in the 20s and 30s and what it meant to the people that heard it. As a result the reader leaves the book wanting to hear more of the music, which to my mind is a mighty fine result.
Rating: 
Summary: A Real Winner
Review: "Will You Miss Me When I'm Gone" is not only an exceptional history of the Carter family but also a fine history of rural America in the 20's, 30's and 40's. From the mountains of Virginia, the powerful radio stations in Mexico across the river from Texas, the great depression, and life in the 60's and 70's. If you have the slightest interest in country music this book should be on your must read list. You will not only read a great history of the Carter family but find stories of Johnny Cash, Chet Atkins, Tom T.Hall, Hank Williams and others. I have read this book three times thus far and each time I find it hard to lay the book down.
Rating:
Summary: A Real Story About Real Music And Real Folks
Review: Before The Jackson 5, before The Osmonds, before any of the other family or sibling musical bands, the Carter Family laid the foundations of modern music and the formula for success. The job of tracking the multiple personalities and their varied personal interests and depth of commitment to their craft is a collossal research effort. Making sense of this is a writing task from hell. Presenting the story in the same down-to-earth language and approach of the Carters' humble Virginia roots is genius! The book moves slowly, but is never dull. Reading cadence is at the same tempo of the time period and the Carters as musicians and artists. Thank you co-writers for this genuine treasure. It's one of the definitive studies of a legendary American family and the raw beginnings of our entertainment world. It's so nice to remember that once radio was this vital and not just today's centally programmed, demographic-driven, focus-group-approved "formats."
Rating:
Summary: A Real Story About Real Music And Real Folks
Review: Before The Jackson 5, before The Osmonds, before any of the other family or sibling musical bands, the Carter Family laid the foundations of modern music and the formula for success. The job of tracking the multiple personalities and their varied personal interests and depth of commitment to their craft is a collossal research effort. Making sense of this is a writing task from hell. Presenting the story in the same down-to-earth language and approach of the Carters' humble Virginia roots is genius! The book moves slowly, but is never dull. Reading cadence is at the same tempo of the time period and the Carters as musicians and artists. Thank you co-writers for this genuine treasure. It's one of the definitive studies of a legendary American family and the raw beginnings of our entertainment world. It's so nice to remember that once radio was this vital and not just today's centally programmed, demographic-driven, focus-group-approved "formats."
Rating:
Summary: A Must-Have for Carter Family Fans
Review: I feel there's nothing significant to add to the running commentary here, only that I reveled in every word of this book and it is an absolute MUST for Carter Family fans. Don't live without this one! Zwonitzer's ability to tell a living story and weave the rich tapestry of early 20th century America -- especially Appalachia -- into the background simply amazes me. It feels like A.P. and Sara, Eck and Maybelle, plus a host of others are my next-door neighbors now, and I can pop over and discuss the book with them any time I want. The characters seem that alive and that intimate because of Zwonitzer's fine writing. I do, however, share some of the resevations of "T.B. from Louisianna": the book REALLY should give us source lists, and Zwonitzer did make some extremely personal judgements. In fact, he insulted Minnie Pearl not once but twice. I think he thought he was being funny rather than vicious, so I'm inclined to look askance from these remarks, but T.B. is correct -- this is not very tidy scholarship. ...
Rating: 
Summary: Good book, bad scholarship
Review: I largely agree with previous reviewers who praise this book's fine writing and intelligent analysis. The book is indeed a valuable addition to the literature on early country music and roots music in general. Clearly this is a labor of clear-headed love backed by prodigious research. But here is a major problem that should disturb any conscientious reader: the book cites no sources and has no notes or bibliography. This is just indefensible in a work of scholarship -- lazy at best and dishonest at worst. Even if one gives the author a pass on citing his own interviews, there is an enormous amount of information in this book that simply goes uncredited. It's not enough to thank a few people in the acknowledgements. Not only does the book plunder others' work without giving due credit, it also gives the reader no way to follow up on subjects of interest -- one of the joys of the reading life. One hopes that the author and Simon & Schuster will do the right thing for the paperback edition and supply at least a minimum of documentation for what is otherwise an excellent study.
Rating:
Summary: A great book about America's greatest country stars
Review: I learned so much about my favourite country music family from this book. It takes you from the cradle to the grave, and it's hard not to shed a tear when it ends. Their triumphs and their tragedys are all here and written in a way that makes for interesting reading. As a matter of fact I could not put this book down and will probably re-read it again very soon. If you want to learn more about the Carter Family I highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent recounting of the Carters as People
Review: It is a difficult task to accumulate the information for a good biography. It is more difficult to write it in a way that makes the people in it come alive. I thought that the author accomplished both. Settings are well described - you know what kind of a world surrounded the Carters.
There are many individuals in the story, and some of their designations changed with time. Sometimes I wasn't sure who the author was talking about. Part of that was probably my own shortcoming, but I would have liked a family tree, a diagram(with all of the nicknames for each individual). Ann Rowe Seaman provides such a chart in her biography on Jimmy Swaggart. Her chart includes Jerry Lee Lewis and Mickey Gilley, both cousins of Swaggart.
Rating:
Summary: A Country Music Hit !!
Review: Mark Zwonitzer traces the history and musical evolution of one of the World's most productive and loved Country Music families. While the all 'original' members of the Original Carter family are no longer with us, this book will make you miss them as if they were your lifelong friends. This book is a must read for anyone with even a passing interest in American music and its roots. Thanks Mark!
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