Reviewed by Laura
Ahhh the New Kids on The Block, yep I was one of the many young teenage girls wildly in love with them. I remember buying their album
Hangin Tough, their Christmas album vhs of their videos, every magazine they were in and the list goes on. I couldn't decide which band mate I wanted, it was between Joey with those amazing eyes or Jon the quiet one. I wanted nothing more than to go to their concert where I was sure they would lock eyes with me and well do I need to go any more about my teenage self? Needless to say, when the band got back together I was thrilled! And now today I get the opportunity to review the NKOTB authorized biography.
From Goodreads:
An intimate, all-access, backstage pass to everything New Kids on the Block, from their rise to fame in the 1980s to their fall from grace in the 1990s--and their triumphant comeback today.Jordan, Jon, Joe, Donnie, and Danny. They set the bar for every boy band to come and changed the course of pop music forever. In the 1980s, for millions of young people around the world, they were gods. But behind the scenes, they were just kids. In this completely authorized biography of the band, the New Kids tell it all to rock author Nikki Van Noy.
From makeshift stages in Boston clubs to sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden, through winning American Music Awards and selling 80 million records, the New Kids on the Block (NKOTB) were a rite of passage and a touchstone of youthful memories. Scoring platinum albums, and with a series of sold-out international tours, NKOTB blazed through North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia, leaving throngs of screaming teen and tween girls in their wake. Today, fans both old and new celebrate the band's triumphant comeback. Nikki Van Noy talks directly to those loyal fans, as well as the band members, weaving their stories together in this no-holds-barred chronicle.
With frankness and honesty, each New Kid recalls nearly thirty years of experience with the group, both on and off the stage, from their first auditions in a run-down brownstone in Boston to the lackluster sales of their first album, and finally to their current status as a household name. Like a time machine, this book will take you right back--giving you a behind-the-scenes look at the New Kids like you've never seen them before.
My thoughts:
The biography starts, well at the beginning, when they were just a bunch of boys in their neighborhood. It was interesting to read how most of their lives overlapped and how they came together. I think for me the first part of the book was the most interesting. They discussed some of the issues/rumors that surrounded the band being manufactured and the Milli Vanilli scandal. I mean as a teen girl I loved them, but reading this took me back and walked me through where they came from, who they were before the hype and during the hype. Honestly, made me like the band a whole lot more.
It was also a cool biography because it gave the fans a chance to speak out about their part of the NKOTB movement. I had to laugh because I remember being like so many of the girls (well I guess now they are women too!). It was fun to go back. As I read, I'd sit there looking up videos of them on you-tube and watch them.
They talk about the bands break-up and getting the band back together. I remember watching
Dancing with the Stars when
Joey Intyre was on, thinking man I'd love it if the New Kids got back together! I would have liked to have read a little more about their time not being in the band and would have enjoyed seeing more photos over the last thirty years included in the book. I'm not one who normally reads biographies or memoirs, but honestly this was a treat. Took me back to my youth and allowed me access to the boys that once adorned my bedroom walls.
I felt this would be an enjoyable read for NKOTB fans, even if you just enjoyed the music and weren't all 'into' the band.
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