Just Desserts: Martha Stewart the Unauthorized Biography

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Summary: A fascinating look at one of America's pop culture icons
Review: Before the story broke about the insider trading scandal involving Martha Stewart, I did not have a good idea of who she was. I was curious to find out so I purchased "Just Desserts". The book did not seem to be a "hit piece", as others have portrayed this book. What I found was a writer who disected the image from the the real person. It is a very interesting study on Martha Stewart's troubled past regarding her domineering father and Martha's need to become rich and famous no matter what the cost and no matter who got in the way. I came away feeling very sorry for her. Whether you are a fan of her's or not, the book does a very good job of showing the fake from the real. The onscreen personae and her real actiions behind the scenes will shock and astound. The author also delves into the fantastic business savy that Stewart displayed throughout her career. She was very often underestimated, but always a step ahead of the competition. A real modern day Jeckyl and Hide story.

Not only does the book describe the interesting antics and unreal behavior of Stewart, it also touches on the gullibility of the people who surrounded her and how they naively followed her every whim. It is an interesting study of how people will believe in the image of a person and cling onto it no matter what the true reality is. In the case of several people such as her former husband and several business associates, they finally saw past the facade and saw the real person behind the disguise. This is a tragic story but very revealing on what motivates some people towards ultimate fame and power.

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Summary: Writer Oppenheimer is a major league talent! Bravo!
Review: I am not surprised that Martha tried to stop this book from being published; Jerry Oppenheimer was threatened by Stewart and her legal arms--so he wisely attributed every single comment to the source. And there are many sources! "If it is true you can't sue." Everyone, it seems, wants to tell his or her personal story about this bizarre public figure that makes life hell for everyone around her.

This author must be smiling now because he wrote this 5 years before the current scandal over Martha's insider trading with Sam Waksal. And sure enough, this book contains a mid 1990's photo of Martha dating Sam Waksal!

The writing is New Yorker Magazine quality--erudite, well constructed, with the talent to get the characters under your skin. I really found myself sympathizing with family and friends who have suffered from Martha's tyranny. In the end it makes me think that Stewart is a warning to us all. A reminder that the "good thing" is not how material possessions look but how you feel inside. I'd rather have pizza with happy friends than suffer the stress of a "perfect" Stewart meal.

This book should be reprinted with an update on the last few years of the Martha story. Maybe this author will one day interview her cellmates?

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Summary: Gossip and MORE
Review: I recently read "Martha, Inc." and decided to try "Just Desserts". To say that I have overdosed on Martha is an understatement.

My voyeuristic look into her life and business dealings ending up making me feel very uncomfortable - I was overwhelmed with all the excess and with what is prioritized in her life. I like beautiful furnishings in my homes, tasteful decorating and good cooking -- but to elevate these to the level of sacraments the way Martha has is pretty pitiful. She is, however, a brilliant businesswoman to have achieved such success.

I know more than I ever wanted to know about this domestic diva. And even if only 10 % of what both authors wrote is true, I am glad I am not Martha's neighbor/sister/friend. Of course, It appears that she has no real friends, just people who serve and tolerate her.

There is not a lot I can add to the wonderful review written by Nancy Kay Owens - she wrote so well about all of the things that bother me about the superficiality of Martha Stewart and her empire.

I am glad I read this book. I still like looking at Martha's magazines (in the library - I do not add to her wealth)because once in a great while there is something practical I can use. But I am no admirer. And I have tried several recipes that were total failures!

I think Jerry Oppenheimer did a fairly good job of researching and depicting the life of this woman who has become a cultural icon.

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Summary: To quote HRH Stewart, "It's a GOOD thing!"
Review: In reading the reviews by other readers of this book, it strikes me how naive a reading and buying public we are. Come on, folks! Did we honestly believe all along that this woman was the sweet, selfless, hardworking creature personified in her TV shows, books and RARE guest appearances on "talk" shows? Ms. Stewart learned early on NOT to talk. Why tarnish the created version? That wouldn't sell. I used to watch her show, thinking, "What is she, nuts?? Who has the time and patience for this type of obsessive nonsense? Well, apparently a LOT! Martha wanna-be's are everywhere and she cashed in on that "loyalty". Not her fault, but ours. The first hint of trouble came from the article describing her walking out of a book-signing engagement in Buffalo. Remember that? You should. It's the only bad publicity I've ever seen on the woman. She has become a multimillion dollar powerhouse and I'm amazed that Mr. Oppenheimer still retains his citizenship because she is one charmer I wouldn't want on my back! More power to him for revealing the "real" Ms. Stewart. And, for those poor souls who follow her blindly because they have no self-confidence of their own and would rather choose scrubbing their plumbing accouterment the "Martha" way, for God's sake, read this book, wake up and get a life of your own! When did we give up our individuality and accept people such as the Martha Stewarts as the be-all and end-all of American life? This book was worth every penny I paid. When your own family will agree to interviews, something's wrong in the kitchen, Martha, which won't be perfected with Bon Ami and a kid glove! Buy this book!! I only hope Mr. Oppenheimer decides to take on more of our "icons", such as Oprah! I'm sure there's another trove of psychodrama! God, I have to ask, when did we become as like lemmings rushing to the sea???

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Summary: It's Hot in the Kitchen
Review: Long before the O.J. Simpson case, a good number of people had a sense that, although he had charisma and presence, he was not a nice person. The same holds true for Martha Stewart, in cloves. Sure Oppenheimer's book is a hatchet job and he doesn't give Stewart her due for the positive feel she fabricates (and for which there is a huge audience), but it is darn tasty reading nonetheless. After coming off "Bad Land" and "Citizen Soldiers," I was looking for some juicy summer non-fiction reading, and "Just Desserts" fit the bill of fare. Driven, ultra-focused people change the world, but their own worlds are for the most part empty, heartless, and sad. Oppenheimer, at bottom, makes us happy we're not Martha Stewart. Maybe, down the road, she'll find someone more like herself, someone from... say, Arkansas.

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Summary: The Ultimate Stepford Wife-Martha!!!!!
Review: Ok, first off, let me say that I have nothing wrong with a woman that is independent, hard working and creative.

What I do have a problem with is a woman that won't get therapy for her lack of people skills due to her lousy childhood.

Look Martha, not all women feel "inadequate" becaue they don't spend lots of time on silly compulsive activites such as gathering fall leaves from the backyard and matching them! (when you're rich and have a staff, then you can do these things)

Do I feel rage or jealousy becaue I don't do these things? No.

Do I realize that Martha would be nobody without her PR machine and spin doctors? Yes.

Does she make pretty stuff? Yes,

Does she have some serious interpersonal problems? Yes.

Good book all around.

I do feel sorry for her family.

And yes to some reviewers, even men have to contend with this.

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Summary: Not for Stewart Fans
Review: This book is not for Martha Stewart fans. It is for the rest of us - those bewildered by the whole Martha Stewart phenomenon. It turns out to be not all that different from most media phenomena. We already knew that people armed with nothing but fanatical self-promotion can become famous singers, actors, authors, politicians, businessmen, etc. Now we know that they can also become whatever it is Martha Stewart is supposed to be. This is an interesting story but hardly unique: a self-made media personality whose image is largely artificial. To give her her due, Stewart is an extreme example: she manages to be a cook without cooking, a writer without writing, an editor without editing, and a salesman without selling much except herself. Perhaps Oppenheimer's treatment is too harsh - the person he describes is clearly suffering from a personality disorder - but he has talked to a lot of people and names names. He focuses on the seamy side but has written an interesting look at an unpleasant woman's strong-willed triumph over truth, honesty, and integrity.