Shania Twain: From This Moment On - A Book Review

After three weeks and many train rides, I've finally finished reading the grand literary opus, From This Moment On, by one of the highest selling female artists of all time - Shania Twain. It's been a pleasure to read this during my commute and while it's probably not my favourite memoir ever (my favourite being, Michael Caine's The Elephant to Hollywood), From This Moment On vividly captures the tumultuous and undoubtedly unique life of this superstar performer.

Being only a casual listener and in some ways an ironic fan of Shania's music, I was not privy to the finer details of her personal life and history. Before reading the book, I only knew that Shania grew up poor in Northern Canada as Eileen Twain and that she was a child performer, singing in bars and clubs. So it was interesting reading all about her extreme upbringing as a child of a violence, poverty and racial tension.

Shania dedicates a large portion of the book to her childhood which for me, on reflection, was a good call. I enjoyed reading about this time of her life more than any of the other parts in the book. In fact, I think that's probably my key issue of From This Moment On. The first half of the book is all about her life in Canada and then afterwards, it's like she skims through the next few decades chronicling her rise in the industry, her success and her recent history.

It's almost like the book is written in three acts. The first act plays like a melodramatic telemovie script detailing her struggles in Northern Ontario, the second act is all about her music career which is written with as much detail as a Wikipedia entry. Lastly, the final act - on her recent divorce, remarriage and personal beliefs - comes across as a kind of personal self-help journal. It's a real eclectic mix and there are times in the book when it does feel like Shania jumps to completely different things too fast. Plus, there were many times in the book where she seems to make excuses for the fallacies of the men in her life and yet wildly criticises the women (particularly her husband's mistress, Marie-Anne). She barely pointed the finger at her ex-husband, Mutt. Likewise with her father. Shania always stressed the money woes that affected them as a key source of family disputes and she even said that her mother provoked him. It just felt a little off, but then again I'm not Shania and I don't know the full story even after reading her book.

I'm not going to criticise this book any further. As an autobiography, I think on the whole From This Moment On succeeds. It succeeds primarily because you get a real sense of who Shania is. Her dry Canadian humour, for instance, really shines through. There were many laugh out loud moments provided by Shania in the book which is a relief since there are so many heartbreaking moments of anguish.

Moreover, you get a real sense of her deep spirituality and personal belief in positive thinking. Her book isn't a series of boastful, smug chapters saying "I've done all of this in my life and hence, I'm better than you" nor is it a tawdry tell-all of her life. It's a real, raw reflective piece - Shania puts it best when she uses the metaphor of storytelling at a campfire. In all, the book seems to be true to her character.

Thanks to Shania's writing, you also get a real appreciation for her artistry, her talent and her music. I wouldn't go out of my way recommending From This Moment On to someone who has zero interest in Shania, but I would gently nod "yes, it's a good read" to that person. To a Shania Twain fan, I would however undoubtedly agree that this book is a must-read and works as a great companion piece to her reality show, Why Not? with Shania Twain. I also think that with its blend of pathos, musicality and a sassy bold singer behind the story, From This Moment On would also make a great movie one day...