Do you have a preference?

Do you have favorites from each category?

Until recently, I've never given it much of a thought, and usually get a book because its newly released, or someone recommended it. Unauthorized might be full of faulty sources, but authorized might be too tame. I haven't had the chance to do this properly, but I'd like to compare (a rock star I know well) an authorized book alongside an unauthorized - just to see what the differences are; what is prioritized, omitted, etc.

And then you have some autobiographies (some released posthumously) to compare. I find this the most interesting because the author chooses what to put in, what to leave out. I have a ton of books on directors, but I'm not sure which books might have been authorized, or at least done with cooperation. Given a chance, I would probably start with the autobiography, and then the ones with good sources/interviews (usually reading all the reviews online) so when I go into the more "tell-all" stuff, I'll have a good blueprint, since those first impressions can leave an imprint that is hard to break despite future readings and/or contradictions. Speaking of, I have read a handful of books about Marlon Brando, and later read his autobiography, and I never saw conflicting information. Brando seemed very candid in "Songs My Mother Taught Me", but I believe that was released in the 70s.

I also wonder if there's a big difference between sales. I'm sure some won't even touch an unauthorized biography, but I'm not sure, which is why I ask all of you great music fans.

If you have a minute and can include not only examples, but stories behind, since some of us might appreciate the artist, but not know much about their personal lives, but might want to learn after reading your story.