The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

THE HERALD Wednesday March 15 Page Biography of Dylan fails to deliver the goods By ALLAN GOULD When we think of the word phenomenon as it relates to the world of entertainment certain names come quickly to mind Elvis Presley Marilyn Monroe Bob Dylan possibly Meryl Streep You know what we are talking about the men and women who became seemingly overnight icons of an era superstars giants of the screen radio or TV whose facesbodiesvoices and occa sionally words became instantly recognizable to hundreds of millions around the world Which is why a thick and unauthorized biography of singersongwriter Bob Dylan should have come with great hopes attached Dylan by Bob Spitz McGrawHill 639 pages Would we finally get the truth behind one of the great myth- makers as well as folk rock and pop musical artist since the Se cond World War Would we discover what led to such awesome talent in a middleclass Jewish kid from a small town in Minnesota to the point where he and his songs became rallying cries to a genera tion Would we learn why he was attracted to Born Again Christiani ty to the point where it profoundly influenced his music for some time which is quite a bit deeper than certain nomographers and serial killers we have read about and later to return with great passion to the faith of his youth No alas this book fails mightly on all counts What author Spitz does manage to accomplish only recalls the prescient words of the American lover and genius who was a of the previous century Henry David who wrote wittily in that most seminal of works that We are in great haste to construct a magnetic telegraph from Maine to Texas but Maine and Texas it may be have nothing important to communicate We are eager to tunnel under the Atlantic and bring the old world some weeks nearer to the new but perchance the first news that will leak through into the broad flapp ing American ear will be that Princess Adelaide has the whoop ing cough In other words far too much of what passes for news or insight in todays world whether on TV in People Magazine or in Spitzs massive tome on Bob Dylan is little more The authors note at the opening of this book is promising The problem confronting any biographer of Bob Dylan is not merely one of reconstructing his life but also of it For in fact such a book is not about one man but many the Bob Dylan who wrote brilliant songs and revolutionized our culture by making it conform to his abstract imagination and the panoply of alter egos he created in order to become that pop phenomenon Fair enough But when we read just paragraphs later that no ef fort was made to speak with Bob Dylan himself as it was not my purpose to embroider become part of the legend the readers heart falls Surely the best biographies are created after an author at least attempts to inter view the subject made more dif ficult if the subject has long since met his or her Maker of course The result alas is more than 600 pages of mishmash endless inter views with nearly everyone on earth except Dylans pediatrician plus pages of footnotes on the 30 chapters as if to say Look this is pretty serious biography going on here Which is just not so There are hundreds of irritations in reading this book The authors tendency to switch back and forth between calling the singer Dylan and Bob or Bobby Frequently smartaleck writing A selfpromoter Bobby reputedly wheedled things out of friends and family more smoothly than an accomplished pickpocket Abe and Beatty his parents found it difficult to deny their son anything his little heart desired We read that Robert Zimmer man of Minn changed his last name to that of a great Welsh poet but are never told why We are told how the brilliant manager Albert Grossman latch ed unto the young lad and then read only in passing that Dylan had broken with him over finan cial matters and nothing more is made of it MADDENING This biography is really quite maddening to read And yet pleasures abound as well as one would hope in such a lengthy in- depth book A description of the evil of rock and roll as seen in Dylans home town The young singers visit to the dying Woody Guthrie The endless fabrications that Dylan would invent about his youth Some solid criticism of the early songs The time that the folksinger flew up to appear on Canadian TV and confused everyone Some superior rock history and the way Bob Dylan weaved his way through it both in fluencing it and being influenced by its many changes And the generous selection of photos is quite wonderful as well as in valuable Theres a lot of ugliness in this volume ranging from the way singer Joan was used like a doormat to the breakup of Dylans marriage that makes for uncomfortable reading What I would think everyone really wants to know is How did this small town kid with the scratchy voice become such a damned good poet and songwriter What is he really like Why such a passion toward religiosity With the last few chapters rushing through Bob Dylans most recent decade as if Spitzs tape recorder was on fire we are denied answers to those questions and countless others And if we are ex pected to shell out thirty bucks for a hardcover book we can certainly ask no less But Dylan remains an enigma 639 pages after we began Allan Gould is a Torontobased journalist and author whose latest book Is one of Canadian political satire The Great Wiped Out North or When Sacred Cows Come Home to Roost Gentler mace tastes like nutmeg DEAR POLLY What is the dif ference between nutmeg and mace DEAR Nutmeg and mace come from the same tree Mace is a lacy red membrane that covers the nutmeg itself The two have simi lar flavors but nutmegs is fuller and more assertive white mace Is gentler and more subtle In a pinch they can be substituted for each other howev er when substituting mace for nut meg you may want to increase the quantity slightly to your taste Mace is often used in baked goods when a softer gentler hint of flavor Is desired By the way if you can find it try grating whole nutmeg sometime in stead of buying it already ground The flavor is much nicer fresher and less sharp POLLY RECIPE OF THE WEEK This light dessert sauce can lop fresh fruit pudding sponge cake or any dessert that you would use whipped cream sour cream or cus tard sauce over Its made with yogurt cheese yogurt that is drained in a POLLYS POINTERS colander for two to hours until it reaches the desired consistency Stir tablespoons powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla into cup yo gurt cheese Cover and refrigerate for an hour before serving to allow the flavors to blend My newsletter Cooking with Yo gurt offers detailed instructions on making your own yogurt and yogurt cbeese as well more delicious recipes using these healthful and flavorful products Send for each copy to POLLYS POINTERS In care of this newspaper PO Box 93863 Cleve land OH Be sure to in clude the title POLLY DEAR POLLY Years ago when my children were little we put bunk beds their room Somehow the bot tom of the top bunk was always a tar get for little fingers to poke holes in and even to write on To stop this I put a length of drapery fabric over the ugly brown material that was there The smiling animals printed on the drapery fabric did the trick there was no more prodding or writing When we sold the bunks recently the animals were still bright and smiling and ready for the next child to look up at from bed JAN Polly will send you a Polly Dollar 1 if she uses your favorite Pointer Peeve or Problem in her column Write POLLYS POINTERS in care of ROYAL CITY REALTY HALTON LIMITED Tut 8532074 MORGAN Res LOCAL NEWS IN THE 1860s Acton received newspapers from places like Guelph and Toronto via the new railroad There were daily Globe papers circulated in the village 1869 However the only local newspaper was the Canadian Champion of Milton which replaced the earlier Halton Jour nal in 1861 Many thanks to Mark Rowe President of Esquesmg Historical Society who wrote this article BRAMPTON VENDOR ANXIOUS Bring an offer an this one acre country home Call now Marvyn Morgan YEARS OLD IMMEDIATE POSSESSION Family room with fireplace highlights his Landrex home Call Marvyn Morgan lor your appointment to view financing available on this cute name on lot backing onto green belt Dont wall Call Marvyn Morgan 9344 or 2074 R0CKW00D Sidebyside living with your Inlaws on a x lot with barn Suit artist or Call Morgan at MARKET EVALUATIONS GIVEN WITHOUT COST OR OBLIGATION MEMBER OF BOTH BRAMPTON AND OAKVILLE BOARDS In In ad To Solid I Property Now Lifted For CALL MARVYN MORGAN FOR YOUR MOVE THIS YEAR AND COMPREHENSIVE MARKET PLAN 8532074 ROM CITY I IIMIHO We work together for you Halton Hills Milton Areas BARBARA GLENN Milton 8781156 Res 1519853 For appointments call Alex Glenn or Barbara Glenn Royal Clly ALEX GLENN Georgetown 8775296 Res 15198530923 MILTON Woodward Wilson 149900 Spacious end unit convenient to schools and shopping 3 bedrooms plus 4th in basement level Available immediately Check this one out today tomorrow may be too late Call Alex or Barb INCOME PROPERTY 189900 Located in a town that Is really growing Property Is units and purchaser can have vacant possession Call Alex Glenn for details 8775296 or Village of Kilbride GORGEOUS LOT South of on Vi acre Nice aluminum bungalow with detached garage Near estate developments Please call Alex or Barb Glenn