Three People/Three Books

"George Harrison, Living in the Material World" by Olivia Harrison Abrams Publishing 398 pages $40





This is basically a scrapbook of old photos, a paragraph or two of lauditory memories of Harrison by family, friends and bandmates and photos of his handwritten lyrics; guitar chords on scraps of paper. If you're a Beatle fan, you'll probably enjoy it. I'm still puzzling over this: "Each person has to find for himself a way for inner realization. I still believe that's the only reason we're on this planet. It's like going to school again: each soul is potentially divine and the goal is to manifest that divinity. Everything else is secondary." George Harrison





"Real Girl Next Door" by Denise Richards Gallery Books 277 pages $26





Richards presents herself as a well-raised, independent girly girl. Interestingly she never said a word about ex-husband Charlie Sheen's alleged drug problems. Must have been a pretty strong injunction, lol.





Almost all of the acknowledgements contain the phrase "you were always there for me." Well, we know what that means - she's a taker. Run!





"Transition, The Story of How I Became a Man" by Chaz Bono with Billie Fitzpatrick Dutton 245 pages $25.95





Chastity Bono (until he legally changed it) was born female, in every aspect including plumbing. He writes that he remembers being at an all lesbian barbecue and felt two steps removed from the group. He wrote that he is not a femme lesbian, not a jock lesbian, not even a stone butch "despite my mannish shoes and clothing." It turns out that, in his mind if nowhere else, he is a man trapped in a woman's body.





While rare, this is common enough to have a DSM IV label of "gender identity disorder." In theory, I can understand this disorder, but in reality, I really don't understand it. To be programmed as one sex from birth and treated accordingly only to discover you are the opposite sex? Frankly, it seems unlikely to me. But what do I know? The world is full of unlikely things!