Book Review Spotlight: JamesGavin Stormy Weather: The Life of Lena Horne.
-- Library Journal, 05/21/2009
Gavin, James. Stormy Weather: The Life of Lena Horne. Atria: S. & S. Jun. 2009. c.608p. photogs. 
bibliog. index. ISBN 978-0-7432-7143-1. $27. MUSIC
Gavin (Deep in a Dream: The Long Night of Chet Baker) now turns his incisive gaze toward legendary singer Lena Horne. Gavin captures a lifetime filled with conflict—a woman brought up to be wary of Caucasians who married a Jew; incredibly beautiful but not in the "right" way; outwardly serene and poised with a raging internal anger toward herself and others; a groundbreaking entertainer who never lost her sense of isolation. This biography is at once mesmerizing and tragic, a masterful exploration of an international cultural icon. Moving from a peripatetic childhood to Harlem and the Cotton Club, from the golden age of MGM to early Las Vegas to present-day Manhattan, Horne's journey is brought to vivid life. Recommended reading for not only those who like nonfiction but anyone interested in the Harlem Renaissance, early jazz, MGM musicals, and the burgeoning Civil Rights Movement.—Teri Shiel, Westfield State Coll. Lib., MA
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