Cher: The Memoir, Part One

The glitzy and forthright first installment of Cher’s two-part autobiography finds the Grammy- and Oscar-winning performer pulling out more than a few secrets from her Bob Mackie–designed sleeves. The narrative begins with a detailed account of Cher’s rocky 1950s Southern California childhood before covering her struggles with dyslexia, the early radio hits she cut in Los Angeles, her marriages to Sonny Bono and Greg Allman, and the many famous faces she mingled with in the 1960s and ’70s. It ends with Francis Ford Coppola asking Cher why she isn’t acting, setting the stage for a part two that includes peeks at her film work in Moonstruck and Mermaids. Throughout, Cher is a recognizably frank, occasionally profane narrator (the text contains 42 f-bombs), but it’s her tenderness that shines brightest—especially moving is her determination to remain friends with Allman even after the end of their tumultuous, addiction-blighted marriage. She’s also a gleeful dispenser of top-shelf gossip, with juicy nuggets on everyone from Mick Jagger to Carol Burnett to Salvador Dalí (Cher attended a memorable dinner at the surrealist’s house, alongside a “bra-less chick” who “came out wearing a see-through blouse that might as well have been Saran Wrap”). Even casual Cher fans will be entertained. (Nov.)