Book Review: Carole King: She Made the Earth Move

Carole King is a towering figure in popular music. Even had she never embarked on a solo recording career, her work as a songwriter in the early 1960s would have firmly established her important place in the arts and culture. The enduring songs she co-wrote are some of the finest examples of pop – often more sophisticated than they might at first seem – and that music lives on. But of course Carole King would go on to a celebrated career in the (more or less) spotlight, beginning with her breakout album Tapestry and continuing onward. So it would make sense that a biography of her life and career would find an audience.

Oddly – but not so much once one considers King’s fiercely guarded privacy – until recently, there hasn’t been a proper biography. And as Jane Eisner makes plain in the opening pages of Carole King: She Made the Earth Move, King didn’t cooperate in the slightest in the creation of this book.

Yet Eisner pieces together a compelling narrative, one that ultimately feels almost as if the songwriter did cooperate on some level. Other writers have cobbled together bios using only secondary sources, and the seams are all too visible: their writing often comes off as a stitched-together tapestry (sorry!) of information from other journalists’ interviews, reviews, new stories and whatnot.

Eisner, on the other hand, has taken a deep dive, one initiated from the perspective of a writer who both understands King’s music, her background as a woman of a certain generation, her New York City roots, and – this seems critical – her cultural Jewishness.

In fact, Carole King: She Made the Earth Move is published by an imprint called Jewish Lives, so telling the story through that lens – and with that emphasis – makes sense. To non-Jews, the very idea may raise an eyebrow: Will this book be so focused upon her ethnicity as to make is less accessible, less rewarding for the (I think we’re called) goyim?

There’s no need to worry. On the contrary, Eisner’s perspective and focus in fact enhance her ability to tell a story that’s well-rounded, compelling and eminently readable. King’s story is in of itself quite remarkable, and Eisner’s clear-eyed, non-fangirl approach makes the book even more rewarding. The author proves herself unafraid to tackle the more controversial dimensions of King’s persona, personality and career. She neither shies away from the difficult-to-understand decisions that King has made in her life and music, nor glosses over the occasionally (but only occasionally) uninspired and pedestrian musical efforts that inevitably crop up in a career that spans decades.

Ultimately, Carole King: She Made the Earth Move is an essential companion to King’s body of work, an important piece of the puzzle that will enlighten those who appreciate her artistry. One might say that the book is the best we’re likely to get until King decides to write her own version. But anyone who reads She Made the Earth Move will know that such a thing is unlikely to occur. And Jane Eisner’s book is comprehensive enough – digging in to the important parts of the story, moving quickly through (but not ignoring) the less-essential bit of the narrative – to serve as a definitive biography of this landmark artist.