World Famous Comics: Being Martha: The Inside Story of Martha Stewart and Her Amazing Life
Being Martha: The Inside Story of Martha Stewart and Her Amazing Life
By: Lloyd Allen Publisher: Wiley Average Rating: Binding: Hardcover Label: Wiley Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 240 Publication Date: January 23, 2006
Product Description: "Being Martha is a personal-at times a searingly personal-account of Martha's life from the inside, by a friend. It's fascinating-very anecdotal and very emotional. It won't be like anything else you've ever read about her." -John Small, editor of SaveMartha.com
From Being Martha
"Martha has taught people to do many things and not in the way an ordinary teacher would, but in her own particular way. She taught people about the good things in life-the simple things." -Martha Kostyra, Martha's mother
"My mother and I have always been close. We are not closer since the trial and prison-we've always been close. . . . Don't we all want a better life? No matter what they say about my mom, all she ever does is teach the world good things that will help them in life. So what if she shows you the perfect way to do it? Would you want your professor at school to do anything less in any other subject? Her fans know what she's all about." -Alexis Stewart, Martha's daughter
"It was all about going and finding a piece of land and living off of it, learning how to get back to nature. Listening to banjos, listening to folk music, discovering Leadbelly and the Mamas and the Papas. We used to have the greatest evenings with a bunch of hospitable people. Martha would make pies and other things for the occasions." -George Christiansen, Martha's brother, about the early years
"Martha raised the bar for me and made me think big. . . . We have an alley cat, Ricky, that lives next door at the deli, and he roams in and out of the neighborhood. Ricky has no tail, he's dirty, and he acts like a dog. One morning during the trial, Martha was in the salon wearing a three-thousand-dollar Jil Sander suit. She was sitting on one of the chairs in the back. Ricky came in and jumped on top of her and was all over her, licking her neck and putting paw marks all over her. Martha said, 'Oh my God, this cat is so dirty, this is such a dirty little cat!' But she let him crawl all over her. She just dusted the hair and dirt off. She really has a lot of kindness in her." -Eva Scrivo, Martha's friend and hairdresser
Humanizes Martha I could not put this book down as the story-telling style is engaging and it introduces me to a woman who is so amazingly strong minded and driven. This book humanizes Martha Stewart as a person who has gone through heartbreaks, disappointments, letdowns and lots more just like the rest of us, yet her positive attitude and loyalty towards her beliefs remain unwavering. I enjoy this book tremendously as I can get to read a lot of "behind the scenes" stories.
PLEASING OBSERVATIONS WRITTEN BY A FRIEND First I must state I am not particularly a fan of Ms. Stewart. On the other hand, I really have absolutely nothing against her. I don't know her, and in all likelihood never will. I do know that she has received some pretty bad press and a lot of hack writers have made a bit of money taking cheap shots at her. That being said, I rather enjoyed this work. I see absolutely nothing wrong in a friend writing about a friend and saying nice things about the friend they are writing about. The author's style is a little too gushy for my taste i.e. "to die for" is not the way people I know describe cookies. On the other hand, the author's world is different than mine, and that is okay. I dare say the author never uses phrases such as "damn, this is good stuff" when describing cookies. I do admit to finding Ms. Stewart a fascinating individual, and while, as I said, I am not a particular fan, I do admire what she has accomplished. The author gives us yet another view of this woman's life, and that is always refreshing. Like her or not, she certainly has made an impact on our society. It is people such as her we should all know about. This is a fast read and you certainly will not be the worse for wear by reading it and might even enjoy it. Overall, recommend.
Written by a friend... As some other reviewers have previously stated, this book was written by an old friend of Martha Stewart's which may be cause for wondering if things are not a bit tweaked. The author has this "goody two shoes" style of writing that can be annoying at times.
However, the book reads very fast and is entertaining, though it may be a bit biased.
The story of Martha's life makes for interesting reading any way you slice it (no pun intended!!). She has worked hard, so hard in fact that it is almost impossible to believe that any one individual could possess such stamina, energy and focus. I am always inspired by people who start with modest beginnings and build an empire.
I also read the book Just Desserts by Jerry Openheimer, which is an unauthorized biography and paints an entirely different picture of Martha.
Read this one with a grain of salt! (again, no pun intended!!)
Surprisingly Real I was so impressed to finally read writings about Martha that were neither sappy and artificial nor spiteful and mean spirited. Allen is a true friend to Martha the kind that sees her how she really is faults and all and obviously still respects her. I love that he doesn't immortalize her as some sort of goddess but yet you can sense that he has a great deal of respect and admiration for her. I have always been a huge fan of Martha especially after she was, in my opinion, held up a bit unfairly as an example of how the government was cracking down on big business. This book takes a true and accurate look at the women, wife, mother, friend and incredible business women that Martha is. She has a temper like most of us, she is moody just like most of us, she likes nice things just like most of us. The difference is that her every move is scrutinized in most cases negatively and out of context. Yet she handles it all with grace and dignity as best she can and strives more recently to open herself up and let us her fans in. I highly recommend this book to her fans as well as those who through negative press have decided they do not like her. Give it a chance it might change your mind. Thank you Allen for an excellent view into the true Martha. Thank you Martha for Being Martha.
Deserving Respect I really enjoyed the book. It certainly gave me a new perspective on Martha. I mean I never paid much attention to Martha and her story. I just heard what other people had to say about her occasionally. It is unfortunate that people tend to be swayed by what they here on the gossip mill. What a great thing Mr. Allen did for Martha! I am really glad he wrote the book and I am really glad I read it. Martha certainly deserves respect and admiration.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Tailipoe
Trevor
