A unique, moving and dazzlingly researched exploration of the places, people, musicians, writers and filmmakers that inspired David Jones to become David Bowie, what we can learn from his life's work and journey, and why he will always matter. When David Bowie died on 10th January 2016, it seemed the whole world was united in mourning. His greatest hits were sung tearfully in pubs up and down Britain, garlands of flowers were left at the Aladdin Sane mural in his old stomping ground of Brixton and tributes poured in from a galaxy of stars. To many of us, Bowie was so much more than a pop idol. But why? In Why Bowie Matters, Professor Will Brooker answers that question persuasively, as both a fan and an academic. A Bowie obsessive since childhood, he hit the headlines over the course of a year-long immersive research project that took him from London to Berlin and New York, following in Bowie's footsteps, only listening to music and reading books he loved, and even at times adopting his fashion. In this original and illuminating book, Professor Brooker approaches Bowie from various angles, re-tracing his childhood on the streets of Bromley, taking us through his record collection and bookshelves, and deciphering the symbols and codes of his final work, Blackstar to piece together how an ordinary suburban teenager turned himself into a legend, and how perhaps we too could be a little more Bowie. He shows us that while David Robert Jones died on that terrible day in January, David Bowie will live on forever.

Gold title * AUTHOR IS A WELL-KNOWN BOWIE AMBASSADOR: Between May 2015 and 2016 Will undertook a research experiment to live like David Bowie, which attracted international attention. He was interviewed by international media, and in the UK, he appeared on ITV's This Morning and Sky news. After Bowie's death, he was commissioned to write articles on my experience for the BBC and The Atlantic. * AN ACADEMIC'S TAKE ON BOWIE: Will is Professor in Film and Cultural Studies at Kingston University, and author of a range of academic books on popular culture and cultural icons. While there are plenty of journalistic books on Bowie, serious criticism is rare, and will be a key selling point. This is Will's first book for the general reader. * FOLLOWS ON FROM THE SUCCESS OF WHY DYLAN MATTERS: The package and interior of the book is designed to follow on from the success of Why Dylan Matters in 2017 (6k HB TCM, 2.5k PB TCM).

We are hoping to slowly build these Why Music Matters books into a series. * BOWIE BOOKS SELL: From David Buckley's Strange Fascination (35k TCM) to Dylan Jones's David Bowie: A Life (20k TCM), from Paul Trynka's Starman (25k) to Denis O'Regan's illustrated Ricochet (10k TCM), Bowie books sell. With a unique pitch and a beautiful package, we hope this will be the music gift book for Christmas 2019.