MARK WILKERSON -- AMAZING JOURNEY: THE LIFE OF PETE TOWNSHEND

If, in 100 years, high schools start teaching courses in 20th-century Rock & Roll, then the textbook for the "Genius and Destruction: The Who 101" course is ready and waiting in the form of Kentuckian Mark Wilkerson's fascinating and exhaustively detailed Pete Townshend biography. Wilkerson began his own amazing journey in '97, writing about and meticulously researching the Who mastermind's life as a hobby; early last year he posted his work online and the feedback he received led him to publish this over-600-page hard copy. Wilkerson is a die-hard fan and the material in the book is culled from other sources, with no exclusive interviews (it is "unauthorized," but Townshend is said to be pleased with it), but this is so much more than a simple exercise in obsessive fandom. Wilkerson creates a fluid narrative loaded with the most minuscule details, deftly connecting the dots between Townshend's art and personal life. From Townshend's earliest days, playing banjo with school chums, through the Who's innumerable rises and falls, right up through the prospect of an all-new Who album in the near future, Wilkerson offers insightful and candid behind-the-scenes details, using the words of Townshend as well as quotes from critics, bandmates and many others. Wilkerson doesn't interject his own opinions or personality into the bio, but this isn't a passionless reference book, and he doesn't tiptoe around the more scandalous aspects of Townshend's life (longtime substance abuse problems and more recent child porn allegations are thoroughly covered and explained). It is an engrossing read that might not be everything there is to know about Pete, but it is everything you need to know. And more. (Mike Breen) Grade: A