HEARTBREAK IS THE NATIONAL ANTHEM How Taylor Swift Reinvented Pop Music

Rob Sheffield, a rock journalist for ROLLING STONE, is a huge fan of Taylor Swift and doesn't mind who knows it. Sheffield is middle-aged and so tall that he has to scrunch down at Swift's concerts so as not to block the view of the girls behind him. As author and narrator, Sheffield comes off as both nerdy and cool, which is a charming and infectious combination. He sounds like he's riffing his wry and perceptive observations, perfect for an audiobook about music. He's not gossipy--even as he parses the lyrics, he's not all that interested in Swift's personal life. Swift wrote all her own songs, even as a young teenager, and while those songs seemed to be about boys, they were really about the development of the girl in the story. A.B. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine [Published: NOVEMBER 2024]