Taylor Swift The Brightest Star: The Life, Loves and Music of a Global Sensation

by Michael Francis Taylor

Encyclopaedic in its scope, this is the ultimate tribute to the life and music of Taylor Swift. No need for glossy images here, the narrative says it all - a chronological account of her mercurial rise to fame; the stories that inspire the songs; an in-depth look at those much-publicised battles with the media, music industry and fellow artists, and all recounted with well-chosen words from the artist herself and dozens of others who have played a part in her incredible story. Put together, we have the definitive record. If not already a fan, reading this may very well change your opinion. "I really do try to be a nice person...but if you break my heart, hurt my feelings, or are really mean to me, I'm going to write a song about you" This is how Taylor Swift once explained the meaning behind one of her earliest songs. Never one to mince her words when it comes to sharing her thoughts, she has achieved legendary status in the music world with a career built largely on her personal feelings, ever since the day one particular teenage boy made her cry. Now barely into her third decade, her songs have taken her fans on an emotional journey that encompasses both the elation of young love and the heartbreak of fallen relationships. As always, fame courts controversy, and Taylor has had her fair share - long-standing feuds with fellow artists; harrowing claims of sexual harassment; deeply personal accusations over her own authenticity, and those headline-making, all-too public breakups with a catalog of celebrity lovers - all subjects covered in detail within these pages. This book strips away the sometimes-mythical veneer of superstardom and lays bare the real Taylor as the songwriting genius she was born to be; a young woman who, after all, is as human as the rest of us, doing amazing things as well as making incredible gaffes. But with dogged determination and staying true to herself, she has been able to drive her own destiny. Love her or hate her (maybe, better to love her), she has inspired a generation of young fans across the globe, not only with her music, but with heartfelt words of wisdom. Taylor's girl-next-door public image remains intact, at least for now, and she stands firm by one of her own "No matter what happens in life, be good to people. Being good to people is a wonderful legacy to leave behind". For a simple good lesson in life, that ain't bad.

352 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 26, 2021

Reviews

[Bjørn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is as close to perfection as a biography can get. I can't imagine how much time Taylor (ha) spent researching, compiling, and editing this comprehensive and fascinating account of Swift's life and art. An absolute must-read for a cowboy Swiftie like me, spanning TS's entire life and career up to and including evermore. The author glosses over the tabloid stories (which everyone already knows anyway), highlighting information that somehow never made it to the surface.

I only had one very odd problem with the book: misspellings of names. Many misspellings of many names. Lana Del Ray? Rita Orr? Reba McIntire? This happened so often I began to wonder whether it's done on purpose. Also, Taylor-the-author has taken the liberty of scoring each song, and got it SO WRONG. I have MANY OPINIONS about that. ;) Come on, reputation is a stellar album! And there is an essay in my own future about the greatness of 'Look What You Made Me Do'. Oh. Wait. I was writing a review.

I am baffled to see this book isn't a bestseller it should be. I wish Swift's team would 1) find out about it, 2) not sue the author for some random reason because lawyers gonna lawyer, 3) allow the author to plunder Swift's photo archive – photos are the only thing missing, and 4) give it a big push. I might have just finished it a few days ago, but once Midnights is out, I might celebrate by re-reading The Brightest Star.

(9.5/10)

[Kelsie Christensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was super intriguing. It was like reading a textbook about Taylor, but I really enjoyed it. It loses a star because it had a LOT of spelling and grammar errors which was annoying. I don’t really like all the reviews from different people it had, but I did enjoy the author’s own reviews and star ratings. Overall I really liked this book, even though it was dense. I could tell it was well researched and learned a lot about my idol.

[Nancy Bruen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was obviously well researched, and if you are looking for straight facts about Taylor Swift, it is a great reference. But it absolutely reads more like a textbook rather than an enjoyable novel. It is missing a conversational tone which is really needed to capture the attention of most readers. Without the sparkle, it just comes across as dry and uninteresting despite the subject matter.

[EvaLovesYA · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you're swiftie, you need to read this!
Can't wait for more books about Taylor.

[Hayley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who would have thought at my age I would become a Swiftie. I have always known who she was but not really paid too much attention. Her last few albums have really caught my eye and ear and I wanted to know more about her. Taylor is a talented songwriter and very smart at controlling her success and her image. This book was more of how she started out and then a catalogue of her music and what (to the best of our knowledge) the songs are about. It was surface level stuff and didn’t really give too much insight as to who Taylor is as a person.

[Alese · Rating 5 out of 5]

More TS PLZ

I loved it!!!! Really good book! 👍 it was incredible!!!. Loved Learning more about TS ❤️❤️❤️❤️ love anything about Ts. Incredible artist.

[Elizabeth Farley · Rating 1 out of 5]

It physically pained me to read this book and I like Taylor Swift

[luఌ︎ · Rating 5 out of 5]

MADRE.MÍA! Este libro es perfecto para todxs lxs swifties que existen. Explica con detalles la historia y música de Taylor, desde que es pequeña hasta Folklore. Lo he amado muchísimo🫶🏻