Whatever the truth about Paul, it cannot be denied that John tried everything and it is highly likely that he tried homosexual sex at some stage - that there could be such a blurring of the sexual boundries does not cross Cynthia's naive mind. There are those who believe that his feelings for Paul also strayed into gay territory. John himself admitted to a number of friends (Shotton, Davies) that he'd had a dalliance with Epstein in Spain and his relationship with Sutcliff had homoerotic undertones. John, the great experimenter, could not have had gay tendencies, she muses, as he had regular sex with her, his wife, a woman - case closed. Cynthia's world view appears equally naive. However, Cynthia Lennon comes across as something of a deluded and unreliable narrator who unwittingly communicates to the reader that she does not have the facility to understand the complex man John was, or have any idea what he was really up to.Ĭynthia paints a picture of a dim young lass sat at home with the baby, naively thinking her touring husband was being faithful and was as obsessed with her as she was with him. This proves an interesting read for John Lennon-ophiles. Any time a new Beatles book can actually give me something new besides a couple one-liners, that's a treat. That being said, I did learn things from this book, and it also solved some long unanswered questions I've had regarding acquaintances like Magic Alex, Fred Seaman, and May Pang. I'd have enjoyed it much better if it was only Cynthia's first hand recollections - though of course she needed the exposition to make the book accessible to more than just people who are obsessive about the Beatles. My only knock is that I found the retelling of the historical events in John's life and in Beatles history a bit redundant. I'm glad she is finally able to stick up for herself - she's given her story before, and written a book before, but things that were only hinted at earlier (John's outbursts, Yoko's dismissiveness, the way John's Aunt Mimi raised him and how that affected his personality) she has finally felt free to tell. When she talks about being overcome with jealous nausea watching her friend stroke John's hair in their high school class (this being the first time she realizes she's developing a crush on him) - you know exactly where she's coming from. Her story is classic good girl meets bad boy, only the bad boy grows up to be John Lennon. It is open and honest, a story of the way things were. She doesn't shy away from presenting John at his worst, but her story is neither mean-spirited nor vindicative. In that case, you're going to be disappointed.

If you come across this book without knowing her, you might expect this to be a trashy exploitative novel on what it's like to be John Lennon's ex-wife. It's no secret I adore Cynthia Powell Lennon, and I have for years.

John by cynthia lennon