Traveling: On the Path of Joni Mitchell

"NPR music critic Ann Powers turns her gimlet eye to one of America’s most legendary musicians in her latest book, which is part biography and part reflection on the career of the ever-enigmatic Joni Mitchell. Powers does an excellent job putting Mitchell’s music in context and doesn’t shy away from discussing some of the singer-songwriter’s inexplicably offensive stunts, including her character Art Nouveau, whom she portrayed in blackface. This is a careful portrait of a complicated artist, and it will fascinate not just Mitchell’s listeners but anyone who cares about modern American music."