Janis Joplin by Ann Angel

Angel, A. (2010). Janis Joplin Rise Up Singing. New York, NY: Amulet Books.

Janis Joplin Rise Up Singing written by Ann Angel is a biographical book of the life and singing career of Janis Joplin. According to my readings, I learned that even after forty years after her death, Janis Joplin still remains among the most compelling and influential figures in rock-and-roll history. Her story is revealed in this magnificent book with depth, sensitivity, and most sincere admiration. Janis struggled against rules and limitations, yet worked diligently to improve as a singer.

This is the story of an outrageous woman who wanted to be loved. I learned that she wrote long, loving letters to her mom. This book portrays her as one of the most iconic female musicians in American history, who died at the young age of twenty-seven from a drug-overdose. This contemplating biographical book includes more than sixty photographs, and an assortment of anecdotes from Janis's friends and band mates.

This biographical book is beautifully put together and it exemplifies the characteristics of a good biography book. It definitely draws the reader into the life story of Janis. Its information is accurate as it provides primary sources in the bibliography page found at the end of the book. In this book, of course the primary source is the life of Janis and the verbal recounts and interviews from Joplin’s friends and colleagues. This is also an example of a well done biography book, as Janis’s downsides are also recounted. The author explains that she died of a drug overdose and that she lived a ruthless life without rules and boundaries. A good biography should do that, it should express all the details, including the not so positive ones. The photographs used in the book helped me infer and hypothesize how life must have been during her time. This is another element of a good biography book.

The book uses colorful and shiny pages. The photographs really take me to her time and I was able to connect to the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s as many of the photographs seemed from that era. The clothes and artistic wardrobe as well as the black and white photographs helped me infer how they looked and dressed at that time. The table of contents guided me to particular pages as the titles are clear, easy to read, and follow. My favorite photograph is on page 101 as it portrays a happy and silly Mrs. Joplin. The book also provides a timeline, which is also another characteristic of a true biography.

I believe that this thoroughly researched and well-illustrated biography is a must-have for all young artists, music lovers, and aspiring pop-culture students ages 14 through 18. This book could be used by a music or band teacher to expose students to the life of this excellent singer, Janis Joplin. This biographical book consists of 120 beautiful vivid pages. If you enjoyed reading Janis Joplin Rise Up Singing, perhaps you may also enjoy reading about the life of Robert Cormier in the book, Robert Cormier written by Ann Angel. Robert Cormier is the author of the novel, The Chocolate War.