Me by Elton John was a book I'm not sure I would have enjoyed so much had I not listened to Taron Egerton's fantastic narration. He brought Elton John's story to life and I was utterly immersed from start to finish. I actually quite like Elton John and have listened to a lot of his music in the forms of film soundtracks (Lion King), musicals (Lion King & Billy Elliot) and then many of his big singles. I've always thought of him as a very good guy, and I think this memoir was so interesting to see the side of Elton John as a drug/alcohol addict with an eating disorder.

The book covers all the big moments in Elton John's life. His childhood, his initial rise to fame, his coming-out, his stardom, his drug addiction and spiral downwards, rehab, civil partnership, children, near-death experience and final retirement. I felt like I got into the very heart of Elton John's life and all the core events in his life.

Elton didn't shy away from talking about himself at his worst moments; his temper tantrums, his drug addiction, his insane shopping habits (he bought a tram from Australia whilst he was high), his laziness (the fact he didn't get involved with his finances or didn't know how to use a washing machine at the age of 43). It was, as he said, important for him to talk about the sex and the drugs and not make the film or the book about his life PG as that was not a true reflection of his Rock & Roll lifestyle.

He also talked very touchingly about sad points in his life. The murder of John Lennon and the shock and sadness that came with this. The death of Freddie Mercury and the impacts that HIV/Aids had on his life. He spoke about being very lucky that he hadn't slept around more in the 70s or he would be dead. It was sad to think that the likes of Freddie Mercury died only a year before NRTIs came out. He talked about his friendship with Princess Diana and how they were very close, the impact her death had on him and his singing at her funeral. He spoke about how they had fallen out, and only made up shortly before her death with intentions to work more closely on AIDs projects, which never happened. It was clear that Elton John cared deeply about many people in his life, several of which died tragically. I thought this offered very poignant parts to the book that made it realistic and sad.

However, he was also shockingly funny as he spoke about his attempts to sabotage and joke with Rod Stewart at every opportunity. The imitations that Taron Egerton did of Freddie Mercury were incredibly funny, especially when he spoke about how Freddie used to imitate many other stars and was always gossiping. The extravagant stories he told about his time on drugs and the stories of Rock & Roll lifestyle all brought levity in the tone that Elton took, despite some of the context. It really weighted out the story well between the serious moments to have a more tongue-and-cheek, self-depreciating tone.

In terms of the audiobook version narrated by Taron Egerton I would 100% recommend. Taron Egerton brings a very easy tone that brings to life the funny moments, and is serious enough for the sad. I felt like he did a better job than Elton John's introduction and epilogue. Although I think it was really great to have the intro and epilogue narrated by Elton John himself. Taron Egerton was just so easy to listen to and this was probably one of the best audiobooks I've listened to.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would really recommend you pick up the audiobook if you choose to read it!