The Time of My Life: Dirty Dancing by Andrea Warner (Review)

Title: The Time of My Life: Dirty Dancing
Author: Andrea Warner
Type: Nonfiction
Genre: Essays, Pop Culture, Feminism
Publisher: ECW Press
Date published: April 9, 2024

A complimentary physical copy of this book was kindly provided by ECW Press in exchange for an honest review.

An engaging exploration into the enduring popularity of Dirty Dancing and its lasting themes of feminism, activism, and reproductive rights

When Dirty Dancing was released in 1987, it had already been rejected by producers and distributors several times over, and expectations for the summer romance were low. But then the film, written by former dancer Eleanor Bergstein and starring Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze as a couple from two different worlds, exploded. Since then, Dirty Dancing’s popularity has never waned. The truth has always been that Dirty Dancing was never just a teen romance or a dance movie ― it also explored abortion rights, class, and political activism, with a smattering of light crime-solving.

In The Time of My Life, celebrated music journalist Andrea Warner excavates the layers of Dirty Dancing, from its anachronistic, chart-topping soundtrack, to Baby and Johnny’s chemistry, to Bergstein’s political intentions, to the abortion subplot that is more relevant today than ever. The film’s remarkable longevity would never have been possible if it was just a throwaway summer fling story. It is precisely because of its themes ― deeply feminist, sensitively written ― that we, over 30 years later, are still holding our breath during that last, exhilarating lift.

⤖ My Review ⬻

I can’t remember the first time I watched Dirty Dancing, but I do remember absolutely loving it from that very first viewing. I might have been in my late teens? It might have gone over my head if I’d been younger than that, but who knows? I’ve watched the movie uncountable times since then and I will always be a big fan. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that I jumped on the opportunity to read and review ECW Press’s most recent Pop Classics release—The Time of My Life: Dirty Dancing by Andrea Warner!

I gobbled most of the book up, soaking things up like a sponge—especially the parts that explored themes of feminism and reproductive rights and some of the behind-the-scenes work that went into creating the movie. I find I definitely appreciate Dirty Dancing more now that I know about some of the hurdles the creators had to jump over to bring the movie to the big screen the way that they originally imagined it—especially the writer, Eleanor Bergstein!

I know, of course, that all of the information was presented from the perspective of the author and therefore might be biased in one way or another, but I tried to absorb things from a “wanting to be informed” perspective. Speaking of the author, some parts of The Time of My Life: Dirty Dancing I struggled with had to do with said author’s more personal sections. Not that I didn’t care to learn more about the person who researched and put together the information in the form of this book, but rather I found it to be a little repetitive.

Overall, I enjoyed my experience reading The Time of My Life: Dirty Dancing and hope to pick up more of ECW’s Press’s Pop Classics (especially their Jurassic Park-focused one coming out this October, Clever Girl: Jurassic Park)!