Cyndi Lauper

Starred review from September 10, 2012
Here, the legendary singer and style icon guides readers through her life journey, beginning in Ozone Park, Queens, where she grew up and from whence she fled a lecherous stepfather at age 17. Lauper honed her musical craft over years of playing clubs while working a bizarre assortment of odd jobsâfrom receptionist at the Simon & Schuster publishing house, to cleaning a Hare Krishna temple in exchange for food, and entertaining businessmen at a Japanese piano bar in midtown Manhattanâbefore finally breaking out with 1983's She's So Unusual. She discusses at length the composition process, as well as the constant struggle to maintain creative control in the midst of pushy producers and record execs. In addition to the nitty-gritty of the music business, Lauper holds forth on feminism, fame, and the bizarre feeling of being "totally sucked up and taken" into the loving arms of pop culture. She writes powerfully of losing her close friend Gregory to AIDS in the late '80s, an experience that inspired songs like "Boy Blue" and prompted Lauper to found the True Colors Fund, a gay rights advocacy group. Lauper is fearless in describing some of her most painful momentsâ including a sexual assault by a band mate, an abortion, and crippling depressionâbut her story is also loaded with lighter anecdotes and behind-the-scenes dirt. This is a terrific look inside the mind of an incredibly gifted, delightfully eccentric musician.