Edie: An American Story of a Girl, Jean Stein, and George Plimpton

Bob: Very, very good, well researched book on Edie's life and the milieu in which she grew up. Her speed addiction is very well detailed with a few unforgettable, very descriptive telling moments told by her brother who was interviewed at length. There is a lot of detail of her family, the book paints a picture of just how dysfunctional the family was and the probability of that dysfunction molding her later life but it just tells the story letting the reader decide. I have read several books on her life and this was by far the most detailed and the best, for me this is the definitive Edie Sedgwick book.

United States on Oct 12, 2021

Cameron BrownCameron Brown:

Canada on Sep 07, 2021

TanLab: If you too have watched Factory Girl or knew of Edie from a different source and wanted more information on her story then this is the book for you in my opinion. There are interviews from family, friends and others who knew her.

They are put into a relatively good chronological order so that you can follow her from childhood up until her passing. For me it was an insightful read not only about Edie herself but also about the decades that she lived in.

Canada on Mar 20, 2020

Monica: Product is in great condition. The book itself? It's not about Edie at all. It's about her family and friends opionins on the Sedgwick family and Lord is that family full of themselves and the lies they live by. Jean Stein is no writer. Only good thing is the photos. Fuzzy was an abusive nut job and all those kids would have faired better in the foster care system. Kids don't go running through plate glass and bleed without saying a word (twice!!) unless they have been horrifficly abused.

United States on Jan 09, 2020

J Huddart: A classic book that brings the genius, wit and originality of Edie alive, with well researched interviews and wide range of photos. Sadly, as with many great women in history, Edie is often only depicted as Warhol's "muse" rather than the brains (and voice) behind his early empire, paving the way for the new wave that was Pop Art. This book has more depth and insight than others, but of course no account of Edie's life will ever be complete or true. The book celebrates Edie's unique, creative pure essence, but doesn't shy away from the dark shadow self, the hollow myth, the self-destructing mystery, which is why we'll always be fascinated by Edie, and why this book will always be a best seller. Essential Edie reading for fans old and new.

United Kingdom on Jan 08, 2018

carrie w.: The book definitely gave you a true feel of the sixties and Edie’s era. Edie comes across at first as a mover and someone who was capable of overcoming her mental instability and building herself a career. She appears likable and impressionable. As you get farther into the book, you see that she was not only faced with personal challenges but the whole group that she associated with hindered any chance that she might have had to get on track. It quickly moves toward the unfortunate climax and keeps your interest despite the fact that one knows how it will end. That always a good quality in a book. it would have been a bonus if there had been more photos of Edie and friends but that’s a minor point. This is was written years ago but it still is worth reading today. I have seen parts of Ciao! Manhattan, which was made shortly before her death and is mentioned in the book, and it shows the strain and desperation she suffered through in her New York years.

United States on Jan 24, 2016

Jade Sperry: "Edie" is written well by someone who knew her.

She was obviously traumatized as a child by her father and there may have been incest issues with her childhood. Getting involved with the whole Warhol entourage was something that she really wanted. She really did put herself out there for Warhol and his crazy bunch. It's too bad she got hooked on drugs from "pokes" of speed and then hooked on heroin to bring it down. You knew that eventually that this would be her death, over dosing on heroin. It's just sad that she took it to the extreme. But knowing that she would die young is what drove her to NYC and do what she did. Burned bright light and then crashed and died.

Canada on Sep 09, 2015

Alondra Pineda: Oh I loved this book! I loved Edie the second after I saw that everyone's hype over how special she was was indeed true. I wasn't alive for her era-not by a long shot-but she's fascinating and that's really enough to keep anyone's interest. If just viewed as the superstar she was, you could say she was just a beauty and a trendsetter with a hell of a smile but no, she was also very troubled, very abused and taken advantage of. I really loved how this book told her life from every angle. It covers the few generations of Sedgewick's before her own, giving you a picture of how privileged and proper a family she came from. Her life and the lives of her siblings are all very tragic and I feel that's part of the draw, though her life shouldn't be treated like some joke it sure is a pleasure to marvel at it. For someone who's life was so brief, Edie sure made some mark.

United States on Oct 02, 2014

Book and music lover "Jane": I enjoyed the style in which this book was written, with excerpts of conversations of siblings and friends, people who knew Edie personally and the Sedgwick family history and revelation of mental illness that ran through generations. This book is excellent in getting to know the truth and is well written by Jean Stein and George Plimpton and is articulate in exposing the dynamics of this complex family and dysfunctional problems that existed within the family long before Edie entered Radcliffe and moved to New York City. The authors did an excellent job of chronicling every aspect of this generation of the Sedgwick family and introduced the reader to the famous "Sedgwick Pie" and is a personal perspective of this family's lineage. Even though it was written in 1982, this book does not read dated at all. In recent years it has been suggested that Edie may have suffered from a type of personality disorder, but there is no denying the mental illness that affected her father and two brothers. Interesting pictures of family, Edie, and friends are included as well. This is probably the best book ever written about this troubled girl.

United States on Sep 17, 2009

Aaron Hepburn: I have just finished reading "Edie: American Girl" and I loved it. I must admit, that the first couple of chapters I found very hard going as they were mostly(if not entirely) about Edie's ancestors such as her Great great great grand uncle, as if we are interested? I bought this book as I wanted to read about Edie Sedgwick, not her geneology in its entirity. But once the book gets to the birth of Edie and her siblings, the book takes off. Family problems galore, glamourous college days, underground art fame and tragedy, all are present in the life of Edie and the book has wonderfully indepth accounts of various aspects of Edie and her life from friends and family which really do help you grasp a little of what Edie was like.
Worth the read (once you skip the first chapter or so, unless you particularly like American aristocratic family histories from the 18th-20th century).

United Kingdom on Nov 25, 2005