Real Love: The Drawings for Sean

by John Lennon

John Lennon was many things to many singer, songwriter, poet, political activist, and, not the least, the most outspoken member of what is, inarguably, the greatest rock-and-roll band of all time. But to Sean Lennon, he was Daddy, a role he took on with as much humor, intensity, and enthusiasm as any he had tackled.

John made the drawings in this book with and for Sean. Drawing pictures and making up funny captions was one of the ways they played together. It was how John taught Sean about the simple joys of creativity. It was one of the many ways John was able to express his real love for -- and great joy in -- his son.

Genres: Art, Music, Picture Books, Childrens, Nonfiction

48 pages, Hardcover

First published May 18, 1999

About the author

John Winston Ono Lennon, MBE, was an English singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, and together with Paul McCartney formed one of the most successful songwriting partnerships of the 20th century.

Born and raised in Liverpool, Lennon became involved in the skiffle craze as a teenager, his first band, The Quarrymen, evolving into The Beatles in 1960. As the group began to undergo the disintegration that led to their break-up towards the end of that decade, Lennon launched a solo career that would span the next decade, punctuated by critically acclaimed albums, including John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band and Imagine, and iconic songs such as "Give Peace a Chance" and "Imagine".

Lennon revealed a rebellious nature and acerbic wit in his music, his writing, on film, and in interviews, and became controversial through his work as a peace activist. He moved to New York City in 1971, where his criticism of the Vietnam War resulted in a lengthy attempt by Richard Nixon's administration to deport him, while his songs were adapted as anthems by the anti-war movement. Disengaging himself from the music business in 1975 to devote time to his family, Lennon reemerged in October 1980 with a new single and a comeback album, Double Fantasy, but was murdered weeks after their release on the sidewalk outside his home in the Dakota. Ironically, "Imagine" (imagine all the people, living life in peace) was a featured cut from this album.

Lennon's album sales in the United States alone stand at 14 million units, and as performer, writer, or co-writer he is responsible for 27 number one singles on the US Hot 100 chart. In 2002, a BBC poll on the 100 Greatest Britons voted him eighth, and in 2008 Rolling Stone ranked him the fifth greatest singer of all time. He was posthumously inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1987 and into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.

--Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia --

Reviews

[Cali Santos · Rating 3 out of 5]

got the book because of the drawing and the colors.. once upon an elephant is cute... also laughed at an elephant forgetting, a bird bath and a horse laughing! how i'd love to draw like that and teach my kids :)

[Caitlin]

Real Love: The Drawings for Sean by John Lennon (1999)

[Kris · Rating 3 out of 5]

For Beatles or Lennon fans. The art is easily identifiable as John's, and the sense of humor in some of the drawings offer a window into him as a father.

[Shelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beatles fans will enjoy sharing this little picture book filled with John Lennon's simplistic and quirky illustrations with their children. My favorite portion was the forward, written by Yoko Ono, describing the origin of the drawings and what a playful attentive father he was to their son Sean.

[Marisol · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's so sweet and the love for his son is felt through the pages.

[Mike Booth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not particularly interesting unless you're a really big fan, I'd guess. It seems a bit of a strange thing to publish as its pretty personal and not particularly good without any context of what they were talking about at the time - it might be fun for Sean to remember the times but for everyone else it seems almost voyeuristic. I'm not surprised people bought it, given his fans, but I am surprised all the reviews are so high as it's a pretty odd book, and there's no substance to it really.

[Gerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot be impartial enough to review this

[Enid · Rating 4 out of 5]

A witty and joyous love letter to John Lennon's beloved son Sean.

[Everett · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such an unexpected find, but I'm so glad I came across this and got the chance to read this. It's such a sweet, cute read and I absolutely loved it. John is such a funny person and the love he had for Sean is simply seeping from the pages, and I was oddly moved when I read this. It really hurts that he was taken from the world so early, and especially from his children when they were so young. Obviously Sean was only 5 years old, so I'm sure he doesn't have that many memories with John, but it's nice to see his love for him immortalized through artwork like this. The art was so cute, and the little hippotato was my favorite. That's the kind of thing that I would have found hilarious when I was a small child.

While I was reading I couldn't help but think about Julian, and about how much of a strained relationship he had with John. He was only 17 when John died, which is incredibly young to lose your father, and it was during a time when John was really trying to step up being a father, including to Julian. I love Sean to pieces, but sometimes I feel like Julian gets shoved aside and ignored. Yoko's introduction made my heart ache, knowing that both boys didn't really get to know their father and he never got to see them grow up. His death is just extremely sad, and this book felt like it opened a healed wound. All in all, it was just such a bittersweet book to read, but I loved it so much. Super cute, super sweet, and filled with love.

[Naomi]

Brown bag 1

[Merja Pohjola · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just leafed through it once again ;)

[Angelina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adorable, and so funny. Collie Flower and Pecking Order were two of my favorites. <3

[Alyson (Kid Lit Frenzy) · Rating 4 out of 5]

collections of drawings done by John Lennon for his son Sean - believe this might be a re-release?

[Robin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I expected more. More humor, more creativity, more.

[Robbie S.]

Oh would I ever like a chance to tear the pictures out of this book!

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute book of drawings by John Lennon and his son, Sean. It's just a nice book to flip through and be entertained by.