Leon Bing

Do or Die is the first insider account of teenage gangs--the lives, loves, and battles of children who kill--from the only journalist ever allowed inside this closed and dangerous world. This is no West Side Story. Welcome to a world where teenagers wear colostomy bags and have scrapbooks filled with funeral invitations; where a young man, after being shot in the chest, drives himself to the hospital; where another youngster, caught in crossfire, uses his girlfriend as a human shield; where show more teenage gangsters are kidnapped, tortured, and held for six-figure ransoms; where kids hum the latest movie's theme music while killing people. It's a world of clickheads, sherms, bangers, ballers, and mummyheads; a world where the strongest feelings of family come from other gang members; a world where the most potent feelings of self-worth come from murder. show less

I found Leon Bing's memoir to be a quick, entertaining read. I had never heard of Bing, but I now want to read her other books. Her writing style is fluid, and she transitions from one memory to the next without leaving the reader asking "What the heck just happened?" One of the better memoirs I have read in several years.

I was hooked immediately when I started reading "Swans and Pistols". The writing style is very fluid and engaging. I read each chapter in anticipation of the next.

Then something started to change towards the end of the book. Somehow the charm had lessened. After starting with such a great energy, it slowed and left me unfulfilled at the end.

I enjoyed the stories involving Bing's mother, but I always felt like there was something that was always intentionally left unsaid. That "something" show more could have delivered more depth and insight. I was waiting to discover it, but it never materialized.

I felt that Bing stuck to a limited scope and outline of what she wanted to write. As a reader I would have liked more detail and expansion.

Bing is a very interesting woman with an interesting life. If she wasn't I wouldn't care about reading more about her. So I feel that it is a compliment to her and her writing style when I say that I wish there had been more to read. show less

Swans and Pistols: Modeling, Motherhood, and making it in the Me Generation………

this was NOT my kind of book. i have read a number of Autobiographies and i can typically find something enjoyable in each of them. Bing’s book was difficult at best, like slogging through a swimming pool of oatmeal at worst.

she led an interesting life for sure. the book takes you through key moments in her life from being a kid to having a kid, doing drugs to dating a coke dealer, modeling to show more writing.

ultimately, i dont want to disrespect someones life story, so i will minimize the nitpicking.

instead, i will state that i do not feel she is a good story teller. she approached her life story with a lack of zeal. her stories seemed cold. i didnt feel like i was reading a book about her as much as a textbook that tried to tell jokes.

the sections that were interesting, such as her acquaintance with gangster Mickey Cohen. sadly, these interesting sections were kept short shallow. Bing spends more time writing about catwalk moves and the designs of various clothing patterns she modeled for Rudy Gernreich.

The book comes with a center section of photos, half of which were taken by Dennis Hopper. Where was Hopper in the book? he was mentioned 3 times at most as part of an outer perimeter of people she knew.

I would enjoy reading about Leon’s life, but i think that she needs to learn when to write clinically (as with her interview and research pieces) and when to let some emotion out. show less