<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: Would it hurt just to have the book IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER??
Review: He said the reason he shot John Lennon was so that he'd be a "somebody" instead of a "nobody." He said he'd always wanted to have a book written about him. Is this book just feeding his narcisism? I sort of think the book can't decide whether it wants to be a legitimate psychological portrait or sensationalistic. The highlights of the book, for me, were the chapters "All the Lonely People" and "Fan Mail." These chapters examined the culture we live in that leads people to obsess over famous people. I was disappointed in the book because I thought it would examine that more than it did, and also because it glamourized Mark David Chapman. I mean, it includes a short story he wrote. I don't care about that, I don't care about HIM. I care about the sociological and psychological factors that made him do what he did. I don't want to know his life story, and I REALLY don't want to empathize with him.
Rating: 
Summary: Junk
Review: It hurts me a bit to read that Chapman was a nice guy, appreciated for some of the things he did. A picture even shows him playing a "guitar during a meeting of his prayer group from the Chapel Woods Presbyterian Church in Decatur, Georgia." Someone who was six years old when Chapman shot John Lennon in 1980 would have been 18 in 1992, when this book was published, and decided to remain a nobody in American society, could have been 25 in 1999 and taken part in the bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. A real nobody wouldn't have known that the bombs were falling on an embassy, and nobody would really be held responsible, either, because everybody wants to maintain their rights to be nobody. The frightening thing about this book is its consideration of options for anyone to be somebody in a global society which encompasses millions of people in the United States and billions in the world. There are pages in this book about drug use. Is this book the reason that so many more people in our prisons are serving time for drugs than back in 1980, when some people were surprised that John Lennon was shot?
Rating: 
Summary: A Not a Nobody Book
Review: It hurts me a bit to read that Chapman was a nice guy, appreciated for some of the things he did. A picture even shows him playing a "guitar during a meeting of his prayer group from the Chapel Woods Presbyterian Church in Decatur, Georgia." Someone who was six years old when Chapman shot John Lennon in 1980 would have been 18 in 1992, when this book was published, and decided to remain a nobody in American society, could have been 25 in 1999 and taken part in the bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. A real nobody wouldn't have known that the bombs were falling on an embassy, and nobody would really be held responsible, either, because everybody wants to maintain their rights to be nobody. The frightening thing about this book is its consideration of options for anyone to be somebody in a global society which encompasses millions of people in the United States and billions in the world. There are pages in this book about drug use. Is this book the reason that so many more people in our prisons are serving time for drugs than back in 1980, when some people were surprised that John Lennon was shot?
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent
Review: It was entertaining and extremely informative. I really cannot say enough good things about this book. What I love is that most text in the book is dialogue taken from interviews with MD Chapman, and you really get a chance to know him through his words. Terrific. You see an emotional, logical, artistic, and human side of him.
Rating:
Summary: Thought provoking. Can we prevent future killings?
Review: The book takes you back to Mark's childhood and offers the reader an inside understanding of the experiences that shaped his twisted thoughts. In looking at current tragedies such as the killings at Columbine High School, Jonesborough, Arkansas and others, books like this that delve into the minds of unlikely killers offer educators a reflective look and may help in the identification of future killers, before they kill. The information gained offers one a reflective look into the mind of a child and brings up the question, "What can we do to help prevent killings in the future." It turns a child from a number into a human being that needs to be understood during their developmental years. There are two emotions felt while reading: compassion for the man whose childhood experiences broke your heart, enmity as he describes his cold calculating plan of murder. Well done.
Rating:
Summary: Nothing Is Real
Review: This book is not necessarily one for Lennon fans, and I can imagine that plenty would avoid it because they can't forgive Chapman for what he did.However, the story that unfolds helps to explain why Chapman did what he did, and is a chilling examination of an unsound mind. It is also compelling evidence why handgun law reform is essential, and Lennon's death is a perfect example of what can happen when madmen can buy a gun and carry it around. Don't judge the book by its subject..judge it by the fact that it is a superbly written explanation of why a tragedy happened.
Rating:
Summary: Junk
Review: This book was nothing more than an attempt to capitalize on John Lennon's death. The man who killed John Lennon wanted this book to try and further his spotlight. I started to read this book and realized this after I realized it was telling me nothing. I suggest turning you back on this kind of gross attempt at fame and fortune.
Rating: 
Summary: Where is Mark David Chapman today?
Review: Why has this book not been reprinted? Parole December, 2000? Jones' book recorded death threats towards Mark Chapman. Where is he today? Why is there no press coverage of his impending release. Would you like to live next door to this man? Well in less than a year that will be a possibility. My searches on the web have so far come up fruitless. Anyway, the book appeared to be objective and was an interesting read for anyone who was a fan.
<< 1 >>
|
