Book Review

Harry Belafonte’s “My Song: A Memoir,” written with Michael Shnayerson, is a riveting account of one of the most incredible people of recent times. Belafonte is honest, forthright and thinking ahead in giving us perspective on so much meaningful history. Add to that, Mr.Belafonte’s incredible entertainment career and personal life and you gain access to someone so extraordinary. His activism came first and this memoir adds so much to our knowledge of historic figures like Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy. The events were seminal and this man was a big part of it. Now to be able to read his accounts, in a truly revealing manner, moved me beyond words. Eleanor Roosevelt dinner parties, Frank Sinatra shooting dice and the ways of Las Vegas hotels, are addressed. Belafonte is honest about his therapy, issues regarding his upbringing, race in America, and that American “essential:” money.

More than anything, he talks of his involvement in the civil rights movement. He is far too modest as to how much he contributed in time, money, and bringing the stars to some of the great demonstrations and events in our history. He talks of the Kennedys and how he talked with them in many a private setting. Talk about access, this extraordinary man had it with some of the greatest people of recent history. In this memoir he brings us to the incredible talks and events. Few have done so much and to read about it is not nearly doing the same, but still truly inspirational.

Harry Belafonte