''Boys in the Trees'' is a memoir by American singer-songwriter Carly Simon.

Publication

''Boys in the Trees'' was published on November 24, 2015 by

Flatiron Books Macmillan Publishers (occasionally known as the Macmillan Group; formally Macmillan Publishers Ltd and Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC) is a British publishing company traditionally considered to be one of the 'Big Five' English language publi ...

. The book is titled after Simon's 1978 album, ''

Boys in the Trees ''Boys in the Trees'' is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Carly Simon, released by Elektra Records, in April 1978. The lead single, " You Belong to Me", reached No. 6 on the ''Billboard'' Pop Singles chart, becoming Simon ...

''. A two-disc compilation album, '' Songs From The Trees (A Musical Memoir Collection)'', was released on November 20, 2015 to accompany the memoir, and includes a previously unreleased track entitled "Showdown", which was originally recorded during the ''Boys in the Trees'' sessions.

Content

Reviewing ''Boys in the Trees'', Fiona Sturges describes the book as "primarily about imon'sfamily, her interior life and her stormy relationships with men, and her candour is frequently startling." Simon describes her early life as the child of privileged parents (her father

Richard L. Simon Richard Leo Simon (March 6, 1899 – July 29, 1960) was an American book publisher. He was a Columbia University graduate, co-founder of the publishing house Simon & Schuster, and father of singer-songwriter Carly Simon. Early life Richard Leo ...

founded the publishing company

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest pu ...

). She documents a line of failed boyfriends and an eventual marriage to musician

James Taylor James Vernon Taylor (born March 12, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A six-time Grammy Award winner, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. He is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, havi ...

. Although she was happy to be "Mrs. James Taylor" and they had two children together, the marriage ultimately dissolved. The book concludes in the mid-1980s.

Reception

The book received predominantly favorable reviews, with some exceptions. In ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', Jude Rogers wrote "Complex, quick-witted and stack-full of raw talent: this isn't how people like to see Carly Simon. After all, imonwas also the long-legged, hyena-mouthed lover of many famous men (

William Donaldson Charles William Donaldson (4 January 1935 – 22 June 2005) was a British satirist, writer, playboy and, under the pseudonym of Henry Root, author of '' The Henry Root Letters''. Life and career Son of Charles Glen Donaldson (1904–1956) an ...

, writer of the Henry Root letters,

Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (born June 22, 1936) is a retired American singer, songwriter and actor. Among his songwriting credits are " Me and Bobby McGee", " For the Good Times", " Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and " Help Me Make It Through the ...

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...

and

Jack Nicholson John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is an American retired actor and filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. In many of his films, he played rebels against the social structure. He received numerous ...

, for starters), and the wayward daughter of a publishing icon

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'stro ...

, the Simon of

. These boys in the trees, and many more, follow her, dog her and haunt her. Her process of shaking them free forms the foundations of this brilliant memoir." Similarly, in ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'', Fiona Sturges found ''Boys in the Trees'' a "hugely affecting memoir", describing Simon's recounting "as, for the most part, heartfelt and remarkable in tsdetail...Similarly impressive is the fearlessness, frankness and wisdom with which she chronicles half a lifetime of pain." However, in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'',

Janet Maslin Janet R. Maslin (born August 12, 1949) is an American journalist, best known as a film and literary critic for ''The New York Times''. She served as a ''Times'' film critic from 1977 to 1999 and as a book critic from 2000 to 2015. In 2000 Maslin ...

found the "book’s style recalls that of imon'ssongs: a little precious, a little redundant, a little too much."

References

External links

Carly Simon's official website
{{Carly Simon 2015 non-fiction books American memoirs Music autobiographies Books about women Books about pop music Books about writers Flatiron Books books