No. One Is Not Alone

I just finished Look, I Made A Hat, Stephen Sondheim's sequel to Finishing The Hat. I can't quite say I read it because it's a collection of his lyrics, along with his comments on them, his shows, and various other topics.

The first book took us up to 1981, this latest takes us up to the present, and also picks up miscellanea passed over the first time. As I predicted, the second book isn't quite as fascinating.  This is because, even though Sondheim continued to write decent shows with new collaborators (particularly James Lapine), they're just not as good as his earlier work. He may feel differently, of course, but I'm just not as interested in Sunday In The Park With George, Into The Woods or Passion as I am with Gypsy, Forum, Company and Sweeney Todd. Also--partly thanks to Lapine--his songs are often more fragmentary in later years, which may work within the shows, but are less interesting to read.

Also, in the first book, we get stories of his apprenticeship with other names as big or bigger than he.  By the 80s, he was the biggest name in the field, and being the top dog (no matter how he viewed himself) means others had to work to please him, which leads to less interesting anecdotes.  Furthermore, the first book featured--I'm tempted to say notoriously--short essays on how he viewed the top lyricists of Broadway past.  This time we get various pieces on the value of awards, critics and so on, which are fun, but can't quite compare.

I definitely recommend the book--it's still Sondheim, and if you've got the first volume, you might as well be a completist and spring for the second.  It's good to have all his lyrics in one place.