"Most of us aren't really interested in the real McQueen, we just want the tough guy from Bullitt. Fortunately, author Marc Eliot isn't in that group. In Steve McQueen: A Biography, readers meet a complex, haunted man who might not make many most-admired lists....Eliot doesn't pass judgment on McQueen. Instead, he essentially retells the classic American drama: a man coming up from nothing and but for a quirk of fate -- in McQueen's case, possession of a steely gaze that would do nothing on a stage but rivet a camera."--USAToday.com, 3 out of 4 stars

"As Marc Eliot reminds us, Steve McQueen was just eight weeks older than Clint Eastwood. He might be alive still, as prominent, laconic, and anti-heroic a screen figure as Clint, and maybe even a notable producer and director. Eastwood has won just about every prize there is, and he has made the journey that probably appealed to him the most--from a working-class kid to a movie cowboy to one of the most esteemed figures and authentic stars remaining in American show business. Eastwood is an auteur and a respectable American. McQueen was none of those things.... [Yet] you can't take your eyes off him. As an actor, he is more compelling and mysterious than Eastwood. "--David Thomson, The New Republic

"A fine biography that makes us feel like we know and understand its subject." --Booklist

"McQueen's life and the cultural context Eliot explores make for a good read." --Library Journal