Ho-Hum Biography

It is quite clear that screenwriter/Hollywood Biographer Gavin Lambert was a friend of Natalie Wood. He shies away from most controversies with this book (particularly in dismissing anything contentious regarding her death).. instead focussing on her evolution from a child star to an adolescent role model to a legitimately accomplished actress. Lambert touches on strained relationships with her ambitious stage-mother (Maria Zudilova) & absent father (Nicholas Zacharenko); close relationships with gay/lesbian industry figures; and troubled interactions with various husband/lovers - but spends the majority of his effort discussing her professional career (film by film).
The result is generally pretty milquetoast.

Unspectacular narration from Robert Blumenfeld contributes to the "passable" impression that I got from the retrospective, too. His crisp diction is paired with variably effective interpretations of interviewees (great Russian accents - weak British ones, for example).. and his timbre and cadence are similarly "Comme-ci, Comme-ça". The reading isn't bad, but it's not great, either.

In toto, this audiobook was a reasonable download as a 'Plus' selection - information-packed and edifying - but paying a Credit for the 6/10-star effort would be hard to defend.

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