Nobody Ever Asked Me about the Girls: Women, Music, and Fame

 Nobody Ever Asked Me about the Girls: Women, Music, and Fame  by Lisa Robinson  242 pages

Description from Goodreads: "From the effects of fame on family and vice versa to motherhood and drugs, sex, and romance, Lisa Robinson has discussed every taboo topic with nearly every significant living female artist to pass through the pages of Rolling Stone and Vanity Fair.

Here, in Nobody Ever Asked Me About the Girls, her interviews with and observations of fabulous female pop and rock stars, from Tina Turner and Alanis Morrissette to Rihanna, show how these powerhouse women, all with vastly different life experiences, fell in love with music, seized their ambitions, and changed pop culture."

The chapters in this book are divided into topics, which makes it interesting but also means that the author jumps around a lot and it doesn't usually feel like there is a good thread going. I found some of the book interesting but I also found it overall to be a frustrating read. It's clear that the author has clear admiration for Joni Mitchell, Patti Smith, Linda Ronstadt and Beyonce. She has clear disdain for Taylor Swift. And that's fine - that's her opinion. But, her focus on certain women leaves out so many others --- there's token mention of some women, but I really wish she had been a little more inclusive. Beyonce is great but what about Salt-n-Pepa, and Queen Latifah? What about Tori Amos? Thinking back to artists of the 1970s, what about Debbie Harry? Carly Simon? Diana Ross?  I felt like she was exclusive to women she felt a connection to, but it felt like I was reading about the same handful of women in each chapter.