Unplugged: Adventures from MTV to Timbuktu

This freewheeling debut memoir from Freston, former CEO of MTV Networks, is equal parts industry tell-all, escapist travelogue, and glittering glimpse into the golden age of music videos. Freston focuses on his professional accomplishments, from attending business school to avoid the draft during the Vietnam War to developing the clothing company Hindu Kush while living in India and Afghanistan in the 1970s. After taking a marketing job with a budding cable startup in 1980, Freston helped build MTV from the ground up before expanding its footprint to include Nickelodeon and Comedy Central. Freston brings readers into the boardroom to witness the development of MTV’s brand, behind the scenes of early VMAs, and into a five-hour lunch with Fidel Castro in an attempt to “start some relationships in the [Cuban] creative community,” during which Castro revealed that The Sopranos was his favorite show. While the business-heavy sections border on information overload, this is certain to teach anyone curious about or nostalgic for the music video revolution something they didn’t know. It’s a memorable ride. Agent: Amanda Urban, CAA. (Nov.)