According to some recent “reports,” Amy Winehouse flew into a rage over the book after seeing it for sale at a garage in London. She demanded that staff remove it from the shelves. It should be noted that Winehouse had been on a “marathon booze bender” before the incident. Nevertheless, the feeling generally is that this unauthorized biography did not please the troubled singer.

Amy, Amy, Amy is about as unauthorized as you can get. The “author’s note” details the fact that Winehouse was asked to participate in the book but did not return any calls (shocker!). Interviews were also asked of various other major players in Winehouse’s life, but to no avail. This led to the cobbled approach of the book, which seems comprised of nothing more than an elongated Wikipedia entry and a few other meandering details.

Overall, the book is quite poorly done. There are smatterings of spelling errors and plenty of punctuation issues throughout, which add to the unprofessional feel of the book. The editors certainly should have taken a closer look at this narrative. Sources are given with obscurity and some statements aren’t sourced at all. The tone of the book is rather moderate and Johnstone seems to legitimately care about his subject. It’s just too bad the finished product doesn’t reflect that all too well.

Amy, Amy, Amy is the first biography on the singer, so it is bound to get some attention. A perusal of various Winehouse message boards shows that her fans seem to be very interested in a book about her, but others are apprehensive about the need for a biography at this point in her career. At age 24, there is (we hope) a lot more in the life story of this talented but troubled performer. One expects that a more comprehensive biography, complete with Winehouse’s input, will arrive in time. Sadly for now, this one will have to suffice for her hardcore fans.