Marie Fredriksson’s autobiography, Kärleken till livet was first published in Swedish in 2015. It was then translated into several languages and published in German in 2016 (Listen to My Heart: Meine Liebe zum Leben), in Czech in 2017 (Listen to My Heart: Moje láska k životu), in Spanish in 2019 (Listen to My Heart), in Hungarian in 2020 (Listen to My Heart – Hallgass a szívemre), in Portuguese in 2021 (Listen to My Heart) and in Russian in 2022 (Love for Life). Finally, an English edition is in the making under the title Listen to My Heart: Life, Love & Roxette. It’s planned to be published by 1984 Publishing (USA) on 25th April, 2023 and it’s already available for pre-order e.g. on Amazon (look for other countries’ Amazon sites too, to get the best price regarding postage), at Barnes & Noble and on Book Depository, but probably more online book stores will pop up later.
The English version of the biography you can buy as an e-book or a hardcover, which is a limited edition – as stated on Barnes & Noble’s website. The limited collector’s edition includes Marie’s 2004 English-language solo album The Change on CD – previously unreleased in any physical format in North America – as well as bonus track Sea of Love (2017), the last song that Marie recorded. This edition also contains foil gilded page edges and a satin ribbon marker.
Listen to My Heart is a completely candid and passionate, heartbreaking yet often witty life story of one of rock music’s most resilient lead singers, Marie Fredriksson from Roxette (“It Must Have Been Love”, “Listen to Your Heart”, “The Look”, “Joyride”).
Given only a few months to live following a harrowing diagnosis in 2002 – yet surviving for 17 more years, until 2019 – Marie boldly forged ahead into a life with newfound courage and inspiration. She continued as both a solo singer and with Roxette, where she performed over 550 concerts to millions of fans, sold 75 million records, and released over 50 singles including several global hits. In all, Roxette is Sweden’s biggest music group – second only to ABBA.
Filled with behind-the-scenes stories involving everyone from Tina Turner and Elton John to The Rolling Stones and Frank Sinatra, Listen to My Heart also explores her humble family beginnings, an early tragedy in the sudden loss of Marie’s sister, her transition into the music industry as a solo artist, and the formation and challenges of being in one of the world’s most successful pop groups. All while trying to maintain a stable marriage and being a mother to two young children in the face of a life-altering illness.
Heart-wrenching yet winning, and told with exceptional energy and sincerity, Listen to My Heart sheds new and revelatory light on the life and work of one of our generation’s most talented and courageous artists.
The book contains a foreword by Marie’s longtime friend, director Jonas Åkerlund (Madonna, Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Paul McCartney, U2) and personal photographs from her family’s collection.
The picture is here for illustration. The final English cover has not yet been revealed.
Update on 17th September 2022: Amazon has just shared the cover:
