It’s a kind of magic

The amusing and touching memoir Freddie & Me will surely strike a (power) chord with anyone who believes that life has a vivid soundtrack. "When I think of Queen, I can remember my whole life..." recalls artist/writer Mike Dawson. Told alternately from his Midlands youth and his adolescence and adulthood in America, Dawson's obsession with Freddie Mercury and co. anchors a fascinating exploration of how memory can both accentuate and undermine our perspective on life. Dawson's art - an engaging, thick-line style in which the figures border on caricature - works best in the moments when his ardour for the band hits exuberant levels, wonderfully expressing the wannabe star in all of us.

Danny Graydon