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Despite finding great success at such a young age, twenty-four-year-old Shakira remains remarkably balanced, confounding the usual stereotypes associated with rock stars. She is a devout Catholic, lives with her parents, and travels everywhere with them. She is one of those rare stars who combine talent, charisma, and boldness, and at the same time keep their feet firmly planted on the ground.

For the most exciting singer-songwriter to come out of Latin America since Ricky Martin, the possibilities are endless. For the millions who already buy her albums, Shakira represents the voice of a new generation.

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Shakira's crossover success has been predicted for years by those in the know. She landed her first record deal when she was a mere thirteen years old, recorded her second album at fifteen, and starred in a popular soap opera in her native Colombia. She was only nineteen when her third album, Pies descalzos (Barefoot), made her the bestselling female rock star in Latin America. Though her fourth album, Donde estan los ladrones? (Where Are the Thieves?), went platinum eight times in the U.S., it was her electrifying performance at the first annual Latin Grammys that captured the attention of the nation. Despite finding great success at such a young age, twenty-four-year-old Shakira remains remarkably balanced, confounding the usual stereotypes associated with rock stars. She is a devout Catholic, lives with her parents, and travels everywhere with them. She is one of those rare stars who combine talent, charisma, and boldness, and at the same time keep their feet firmly planted on the ground. For the most exciting singer-songwriter to come out of Latin America since Ricky Martin, the possibilities are endless. For the millions who already buy her albums, Shakira represents the voice of a new generation.

"Woman" follows Shakira from her childhood as a bright, talented child to a burgeoning singing sensation in her native Columbia, then finding instant stardom in the US. Her religion, her family, her boyfriends, and her insights into life (such as when a bag of her songs was stolen) are gone into, but not in-depth.

Few biographies of actors or singers who are still alive are any good. However, "Woman" is lacking even among the quickie celebrity biographies. Ximena Diego, a Spanish-language entertainment editor, shoots for a professional look at Shakira, and succeeds in outlining her career, her CDs, her career ups-and-downs, and the festivals and concerts she played at. Unfortunately, there isn't much more to the biography than that.

Ximena Diego is a fan of Shakira's, and it shows. We're told frequently how talented, how sweet, how wonderful Shakira is. Why do we need to be told at all? The most frustrating thing is that while Diego has clearly done her research, she fails to balance out Shakira's personal interactions with her professional life. There's hardly anything about her friends or non-music accomplishments.

Die-hard Shakira completists may want this, or people who are just finding out about her. But for those who want something of substance about the "woman full of grace," wait for the next book.


A school report about Columbia by a Shakira fan   February 18, 2003
 1 out of 4 found this review helpful

This book reads like a report on Columbia. I don't care about the number one exports, all I care about is Shakira. A little bit of info is dispersed among lots of factoids about her homeland.