Boys in the Trees: A Memoir by Carly Simon

In 1980, I went to see a documentary-style concert film called “No Nukes.” I was 17 years old, and I remember the exact moment in the film when James Taylor summoned his wife Carly Simon from off stage to sing the duet “Mockingbird.” It remains hands-down one of the cutest and most romantic things I have ever seen. She was wearing a striped, purple-and-green plaid jump suit that screamed, “Step back people! I’m a rock star! And I’m married to one, too!” They are truly happy people in love, singing and dancing for all to see. Of course, Carly and James were divorced about 3 years later, but that doesn’t take away from that magical moment on screen. If that sounds cute to you too, then read this book. While billed as a memoir, the majority of the book is dedicated to Carly’s relationship with J.T. (They were married from 1972-83 and raised two children together.) If you like books about sex, drugs and rock and roll, this will not disappoint. If you like books about people with performance anxiety – even better. Carly is so talented and still so beautiful at the age of 70, but anxiety has plagued and overwhelmed her from childhood through adulthood. The fact that she had relationships with Mick Jagger and Warren Beatty (“So Vain!”) doesn’t make for bad reading either.  As the daughter of the eccentric founder of publishing house Simon and Schuster, Carly has great stories about her dysfunctional parents, too. The Boys in the Trees is a lovely book about not one but two of the brightest sounds of my generation. It is a pleasure to read, but even more fun to listen to Carly read it out loud on an audiobook.  For discussion, do you have a favorite Carly Simon or James Taylor song? To purchase this link on Amazon click here.