All His Jazz: The Life & Death of Bob Fosse

Rating:
Summary: Fascinating Guy, Fascinating Book
Review: I'll tell you right off the top, I'm not a huge fan of Broadway musicals. Mostly I'm a fan of Fosse because of his films, which rank among my favorites. But regardless of any of that, Fosse's personality and his life make him a fascinating subject for biographical study.

Gottfried's book is heavily detailed, describing the events of Fosse's life, exploring his work and his personal realtionships, and really getting inside the man's head, all the while maintaining a very readable, and appropriately jazzy style. There's also enough quoted dialogue to keep the book flowing almost like a work of fiction.

A great read and an informative one. Highly recommended to fans of Fosse and his work, or those simply interested in one of the most intriguing of showbiz lives.

Rating:
Summary: Pure Fun
Review: Maybe I'm biased: I'm a shrink. I lived in New York in the early 80's. I knew some of the people mentioned in the book. But this was the most fun I've had reading since Letters from a Nut. Full of tidbits about a raft of celebrities. Another reviewer complained about the lack of pictures. Why stop there? We need all the films, too. Must watch All That Jazz again ASAP, AND try to get my hands on Sweet Charity and Cabaret. A great ride!

Rating:
Summary: Jazzed out!
Review: The book is very thorough and does give a very accurate blow by blow description of every moment in Bob Fosse's life. If you love the man and want to relive his life for him, read this book. On the other hand, if you are trying to do a paper, you might want to start reading this about 6 months before your paper is due. It is very hard to weigh through the many, colorful words and facts in this book in any small amount of time. I will someday read this book for pleasure but right now, after only reading three chapters (though be very interesting), I am totally jazzed out! phew!