Sonny Boy

A Memoir

By: Al Pacino

Narrated by: Al Pacino

The Instant New York Times Bestseller • One of People Magazine's Top 10 Books of the Year

"The rare celebrity memoir that's also a literary read. As funny as it is reflective, it shares stories behind Pacino's hardscrabble upbringing, classic films and journey to icon status." —People Magazine

From one of the most iconic actors in the history of film, an astonishingly revelatory account of a creative life in full

To the wider world, Al Pacino exploded onto the scene like a supernova. He landed his first leading role, in The Panic in Needle Park, in 1971, and by 1975, he had starred in four movies—The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, Serpico, and Dog Day Afternoon—that were not just successes but landmarks in the history of film. Those performances became legendary and changed his life forever. Not since Marlon Brando and James Dean in the late 1950s had an actor landed in the culture with such force.

But Pacino was in his midthirties by then, and had already lived several lives. A fixture of avant-garde theater in New York, he had led a bohemian existence, working odd jobs to support his craft. He was raised by a fiercely loving but mentally unwell mother and her parents after his father left them when he was young, but in a real sense he was raised by the streets of the South Bronx, and by the troop of buccaneering young friends he ran with, whose spirits never left him. After a teacher recognized his acting promise and pushed him toward New York’s fabled High School of Performing Arts, the die was cast. In good times and bad, in poverty and in wealth and in poverty again, through pain and joy, acting was his lifeline, its community his tribe.

Sonny Boy is the memoir of a man who has nothing left to fear and nothing left to hide. All the great roles, the essential collaborations, and the important relationships are given their full due, as is the vexed marriage between creativity and commerce at the highest levels. The book’s golden thread, however, is the spirit of love and purpose. Love can fail you, and you can be defeated in your ambitions—the same lights that shine bright can also dim. But Al Pacino was lucky enough to fall deeply in love with a craft before he had the foggiest idea of any of its earthly rewards, and he never fell out of love. That has made all the difference.

I loved this so much!!! But….

I only have one complaint about this engaging, fascinating, tender and funny memoir. Al reminisces about several high profile love affairs- is kind and generous about each one. But never mentions the mothers of his children, the sweet memories of their birth and young lives as it pertained to what was happening in his at the time. It didn’t make any sense! Maybe he was being respectful of them? Or maybe he doesn’t speak to Any of them? I don’t know, but I thought it was a glaring hole in the retelling of his life. That frustrated me!

The Best Performance of Them All

I loved it every minute, it’s a must listen. I’m better informed about life now. Start at the beginning and don’t skip a word. I feel I have had Al Pacino over for dinner with my family and we sit around the kitchen table and we listen to him tell his story. Oh what a night!

truly had no idea who he was

such a revelation of an actor I've loved forever and a day. he is truly an original and an inspiration. he is so generous in this book in revealing so many moments of real vulnerability. I missed him the moment he was over and felt like I was missing a friend who always had the best stories to tell. what a balm in this broken world. thank you Al

powerful and authentic. loved that the author read the book.

I liked the honesty. The stories were very real and I found myself thinking about my own immortality.

Honest, Unvarnished Memoir

Sometimes after reading a memoir I feel a sense of regret, usually because the truth of the author's life doesn't match the exalted status I had given them in my imagination. On the other hand, it reflects that our heroes are just human beings who had a particular talent or extreme good fortune. This is the case with Sonny Boy. Al portrays himself honestly and doesn't spare the details of his difficult early life. He had an undeniable gift at a young age for acting and thank goodness he pursued that dream. He was immensely blessed by the early opportunity to portray Michael Corleone in the Godfather. He is one of my favorite actors of all time. He is more of a Bohemian Artist than I ever would have guessed. He was terrible with money. He reads the book himself, and is often (likely) paraphrasing/improvising rather than reading. His performance adds to the experience and was what made me decide to listen.