From Library Journal: "Forty years after the Beatles broke up and 30 years after John Lennon's death, interest in the band and their music remains undiminished. Author and journalist Riley presents an exhaustive and thorough look at Lennon's life, psyche, and music from his boyhood in Liverpool to his murder in 1980. Moving from dockside clubs in Hamburg, Germany, to increasingly intricate recording sessions, and, ultimately, to the rancor during the group's dissolution and Lennon's subsequent solo years, Riley profiles Lennon's musical growth, increased political activism, and complex relationships with Paul McCartney and Yoko Ono. Especially illuminating are sections on Lennon's pre-Beatle life and discussions of Lennon and Ono's place at the intersection of performance pop art and social engagement. Based on conversations with Lennon associates as well as published source material, memoirs, and interviews, Riley's book is a balanced biography as well as a fascinating critical assessment of Lennon's music and his place in the culture."