There Was Nothing You Could Do

This is a complicated review for me. Steven Hyden has been my favorite music writer for the last decade plus and it was his writings about Springsteen (specifically his agreement that Tunnel of Love is underrated in the Bruce pantheon) on Grantland that first made me a fan. 
That said, this book has me conflicted and I don't know whether it's on him, his editors, his publisher or all of the above. It's marketed as being centered around “Born In The USA” but it's much more than that. It's much more of a study of the man himself, a shifting political landscape and his role before, during and after it. I understand using BITUSA as a hook to draw people in but it does a disservice to the book's contents. 
As for editing, it bounces all over the place, thematically and anecdotally. To market it around a single album calls for a more linear format and this doesn't have that. 
And as for Hyden himself, it lacks objectivity. Again, I don't know the motivations for the book and whether he wanted his personal feelings and opinions to come through so much. The worst example of that is the long section comparing Springsteen to Hyden's greatest musical love, Bob Dylan. It goes into far more Dylan minutiae than most people are seeking when picking up this book. 
It reads like a book by a Springsteen fanatic for other Springsteen fanatics, which it is and I am. As I mentioned, I love Hyden's work and his work on Springsteen and enjoyed this book immensely from that standpoint. 
My criticism stems from whether any of the aforementioned parties wanted this to appeal beyond hardcore Springsteen fans. At the end of the day, as the book is written, I can't say that it would.  
If you love Bruce though, by all means, dive into this, pull up some favorite bootlegs, dream about “Electric Nebraska” and enjoy. 
Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette for the opportunity to read and review.