Listen to My Heart

June 5, 2023
Singer-songwriter Fredriksson (1958–2019) offers a heartbreakingly candid recollection of her early life, pop career, and struggle with illness in this posthumous memoir. Born the youngest of five in Ossjo, Sweden, in 1958, Marie and her siblings endured poverty, a sister’s death, and their father’s alcoholism, before Marie discovered in early adolescence that she “couldn’t live without singing.” Describing herself as “a whirlwind of emotions craving an outlet,” Fredriksson recalls moving to Stockholm and eventually forming Roxette with her friend Per Gessle in 1985; the duo went on to score four Billboard Hot 100 hits, including 1988’s “Listen to Your Heart.” After marrying musician Mikael Bolyos and starting a family, Fredriksson was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2002. She recounts undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatments and feeling immense pain while continuing to tour and record for the next 17 years. Fredriksson more than delivers on her stated mission to “share her moments of transcendence and offer consolation to those full of doubt” by cataloging her favorite performances and refusing to let her diagnosis overshadow her career. Dishy anecdotes about celebrities from Elton John to Frank Sinatra are just the cherry on top. Pop music fans will treasure this. Agent: Rita Karlsson, Kontext Agency.

June 1, 2023

Fredriksson's moving memoir is a successful collaboration with Helena von Zweigbergk (The Heart Beats On), whose admiration for Fredriksson shines through as she navigates the reflections and memories of the beloved lead singer of the pop-rock duo Roxette, the Swedish group second only to ABBA in fame. Readers will learn that Fredriksson's childhood was marred by the tragic death of her older sister and the subsequent struggles of her parents. Fredriksson found an escape in music, eventually joining Strul, a punk rock group, before releasing solo work. In 1986, she formed Roxette with Per Gessle. International success followed with their song "It Must Have Been Love," appearing prominently in the film Pretty Woman. In 2002, Fredriksson was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Despite being told she had only a few months to live, she continued making music, touring worldwide, raising her children, and successfully navigating treatments for another 17 years. VERDICT Fredriksson's honesty about her often abrasive past behavior, her frustration at being discounted in the men-dominated music industry, and her attempts to find alternative lifesaving treatments makes for an engaging read. Most poignant is her vulnerability as she opens her closets and photo albums that showcase a life well lived.--Lisa Henry

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