My Love Story

by Tina Turner

Overview

In this New York Times bestseller, Tina Turner—the long-reigning queen of rock & roll—reveals personal stories she’s never told before in print or film, about her complicated relationship with her mother, the tragic death of her son, and finally finding true love with Erwin, setting the record straight about her illustrious career in this eye-opening and compelling memoir.

From her early years in Nutbush, Tennessee to her rise to fame alongside Ike Turner to her phenomenal success in the 1980s and beyond, Tina candidly examines her personal history, from her darkest hours to her happiest moments and everything in between.

My Love Story is an explosive and inspiring story of a woman who dared to break any barriers put in her way. Emphatically showcasing Tina’s signature blend of strength, energy, heart, and soul, this is a gorgeously wrought memoir as enthralling and moving as any of her greatest hits.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781501198250
Publisher:	Atria Books
Publication date:	09/03/2019
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	720
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.30(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Tina Turner, born Anna Mae Bullock, was a singer and actress whose career spanned more than sixty years. She won numerous awards, including eight Grammys. Tina began her music career with her husband Ike Turner as a member of the Ike & Tina Turner Revue. Success followed with a string of hits including “River Deep, Mountain High” and “Proud Mary.” She divorced Ike in 1978 and, after virtually disappearing from the music scene for several years, rebuilt her career, launching a string of hits including her 1984 solo album Private Dancer. In 1986, she published a bestselling memoir I Tina which was turned into the Academy Award-nominated film What’s Love Got to Do with It in 1993. One of the world’s most popular entertainers, Tina sold more concert tickets than any other solo music performer in history. She lived with her husband in Zurich, Switzerland until her death in 2023 at the age of eighty-three.

Read an Excerpt

My Love Story

PROLOGUE

BETWEEN YOU AND ME

When I was a little girl, I loved taking chances. I’d swing over a creek in the backwoods of Nutbush, Tennessee, the place where I grew up, never thinking for a second what might happen if I fell into that swampy water. I tussled with animals—horses, mules, even snakes. I’m afraid of them now, but I wasn’t when I was a child. I wasn’t afraid of anything. One day, when I was playing in the woods, I found a little green snake and I thought, Where did that one come from? I was sure the baby had gotten separated from its mother. So I picked it up with a stick and went looking for the nest. Sure enough, when I found it, there was a big, ugly snake, ready to strike to protect its young. Immediately, instinct took over, not fear but self-preservation. I jumped up and ran as fast as I could, my braids coming undone and the sash of my dress falling off, until I was somewhere safe. The point is, I knew when to run away from snakes.

Throughout my life, there have been lots of times you might have asked me, “How did you get out of that one?” I did dangerous things, and dangerous things were done to me, but in the eleventh hour, something always told me when to run, how to survive. No matter what happened to me, I came through it every time. I decided, well, maybe I’m supposed to live. Maybe I’m here for a reason. And maybe the reason is to share my story with you.

You might be thinking, “Tina, we know your story. We know all about you and Ike, and the hell you lived through with him. We know you escaped from that terrible relationship, and that you endured.” But, here’s something that might surprise you. At this point in my life, I’ve spent far more time without Ike than with him. Forty-two years, to be exact. That’s a whole second life, one with adventures, accomplishments, and love beyond my wildest dreams. But there’s also been a dark side. During the past few years, I’ve faced life-and-death challenges I never, ever, expected. Let me tell you my story.

Editorial Reviews

"Full of revelations that illustrate Turner's iron will and perseverance over seemingly impossible obstacles."

USA Today

Harrowing . . . Fascinating . . . Neither sensationalistic nor self-serving . . . For a famous sex symbol who has turned a tragedy into a fairy tale, Turner is charmingly down to earth.

The New York TImes

"Brave and wry."

Vulture

"Astonishing, soul-baring - the must-read memoir by rock's greatest survivor."

Daily Mail (UK)

"A rollicking, dishy, emotional memoir from the 78-year-old icon."

People

[Tina Turner] shares openly and in riveting detail in her new memoir, My Love Story...If you want to get closer to a living legend, this engrossing work is decidedly the way to do it.

Parade.com

"Full of revelations that illustrate Turner's iron will and perseverance over seemingly impossible obstacles."

USA Today

Turner, who has been a committed Buddhist for decades, comes off as neither sensationalistic nor self-serving…For a famous sex symbol who has turned a tragedy into a fairy tale, Turner is charmingly down to earth.

The New York Times Book Review - Evelyn McDonnell

05/15/2018
Bedridden after experiencing chest pains at her 2013 wedding, Turner had time to reflect on her roller-coaster personal and professional lives. Here are her thoughts and sense of contentment today.

Library Journal