Michael Jackson: Life of a Legend 1958-2009 [Hardcover]

For any Michael Jackson fan that has been a fan since the early 80s (or even earlier), it's always difficult to pick out which reading material to recommend and which to avoid. Michael was one of the most divisive public figures in recent history and reading matter on him was positive and negative.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It promises to be a tribute to Michael and that's exactly what it is. No rumours, no innuendo, no nonsense. It's a beautifully laid out book and some of the photos are absolutely unbelievable. There are photos of him at his peak, during the 80s Victory and Bad tours, which are simply incredible and bring back great memories of the man in his prime.

The book takes you through Michael's career, from the start with his brothers to his stratospheric climb to solo megastardom. For many fans, one of the great fears was always 'how would history remember Michael Jackson' and, for most fans, they would have wanted history to remember him like this book remembers him - the greatest, most consummate artist of all time. A phenomenal songwriter - he wrote Don't Stop Till You Get Enough before he was 21 and Billie Jean before he was 24!! An incredible vocalist. An incredible dancer. An incredible showman. At his peak, he was everything. So it's nice to read him remembered for being just that. The book discusses Michael's final years but doesn't leave the reader with that as the final thought. After taking us through to Michael's untimely passing, the book goes back to "Michael Jackson The Performer" and reminds us all WHO and WHAT Michael Jackson was.

It's also full of trivia that, even as a seasoned fan, I'd either forgotten or wasn't aware of like what song from Off The Wall Michael referred to as sounding like a ''a conch shell's insides on a beach' and what Stevie Wonder song the Jackson 5 recorded backing vocals on (and was the last time they got to number one as the Jackson 5).

There are many tributes from fans around the world which shows the lengths that the publishers went to in order to reach out to the fans. Some of them will reduce you to tears... reading how much Michael Jackson meant to people around the world.

If you love Michael Jackson and care about his legacy and how he is remembered, this is the perfect book. Highly recommended. A beautiful book.

I took one look at this book and knew I must have it! But having taken it home and sat down to read and look at the wonderful pictures of Michael's life. I was disappointed to see in the first few lines a mistake that as a avid fan I cannot accept. The mistake was the date of his passing. The author had it down as July 2009 and any true fan knows that Michael Jackson died on the 25th June. It makes me wonder if you can't even get the date of his death right, what other information is actually correct or just made up because you can't be bothered to research the correct details.

I was very disappointed and will be trying to get my money back for this mistake alone.

It may be trivial to some people and they may feel like the pictures make up for the mistake, but it feels to me that this book rather than trying to give a respectful account of Michael and his life is only interested in cashing in on one of the most gifted musicians of my life.

I would say spend your money eslewhere. Where the person writing knows his subject or is aleast a fan!

I really enjoyed reading this book and accompanied with some brilliant photos. Not being a massive Jackson fan I was trying to get an honest insight into the life of a great artist and this book hit the mark. Being a very popular subject it is stands out well against other books on Michael Jackson helping the reader understand why he this man is considered a legend while being an excellent tribute to a great artist.