Great Balls of Fire: True Story of Jerry Lee Lewis

by Myra Lewis, Murray Silver

Biography of the rock & roll musician Jerry Lee Lewis written by his wife.

Genres: Biography, Music, Nonfiction, Media Tie In, History

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1982

Reviews

[Jasmine]

Woah. I don't even know what else to say. I read this after watching the movie to learn more about Jerry Lee Lewis and his child bride, and boy did I learn more. This is craziness! Myra is such a saint for surviving 13 years of abuse from her husband and her in-laws. If you're in the mood for drama, read this book! Just remember to pick your jaw up from off the floor when you're done.

[Thomas Schulte]

"a stick to fish the filemot frith for treasures" What the hell does that mean? Well, neither Myra nor co-author Murray M. Silver, Jr. is no Tosches Nick and should leave the language stunts alone, but this is all-in-all a good music biography about The Killer and the Golden Age of Rock for which he was "a dream ... that is coming to birth". Like Elvis and others, he was drawn from a largely impoverished and illiterate South not unlike we pick out military (Ambush at Fort Bragg).

This book is really built around Jerry's marriage to his first cousin once removed, Myra. There are three acts: life from obscurity to fame in the Golden Age of Rock 'n' Roll and marriage to Myra. Act II is the fall from grace and wilderness years after he exposure of his child bride in England with a soundtrack from the syrupy crooner era. The final act is reclaiming the throne in Elvis' twilight and the ascendancy of The Beatles and Rolling Stones while sparking the career of Tom Jones. The remaining decades covered are compressed into a breathless epilogue that touches on shooting his own bass player and other highlights of the couple's rebound years.

[Vicki]

Oh, my gosh, I didnt know much about Jerry Lee Lewis til I read this, but now I do and I really really dislike the guy and his life and his attitudes in almost everything. Lord have mercy.
Again, I am reading it at the same time I am reading the Ben Franklin autobiography, and believe me, these two men are not in the same universe.

[Jamie Schoffman]

Interesting subject matter but poor writing throughout.

[Damian Penny]

The 1989 movie barely scratches the surface of Jerry Lee’s wild life. Unfortunately, his God-given talent was accompanied by a temperament which could only have come from the devil himself.

[Amelia]

An interesting insight into a very troubled character.

[Melissa]

Want to read it