Eddie Van Halen’s ex-wife Valerie Bertinelli shared on The Drew Barrymore Show that she hasn’t yet read Alex Van Halen’s book, ‘Brothers.’
“It’s going to be emotional,” Bertinelli revealed the reason. “It’s going to be very emotional because I love these two men. They are good men and they are very complicated men. Congratulations, Al, going to be a bestseller.”
Although she hasn’t read it yet, Bertinelli said that Alex did an ‘amazing job’ of telling their story and paying tribute to his younger brother.
“When I talked to Al last year — when he told me he was writing the book — I was super excited for him, and we had a long conversation about grief and what you go through,” she continued. “I know that Al, he has gone through… he’s a very private man, and for him to do this is extraordinary. And to do it so beautifully — I’m so proud of you, Al. I’m so happy that you wrote your story.”
Bertinelli previously shared that it’s hard for her to reflect on her relationship with the guitarist after seeing her son Wolfgang talk about his and his father’s legacy.
Released on October 22, ‘Brothers’ tells the story of Alex and Eddie’s relationship, from their childhood to performing together as members of Van Halen.
Alex shared a four-and-a-half-minute audio clip from the book, read by himself. The clip is called ‘Overture’ and is a tribute to his brother. “Since you’ve been gone, I catch myself talking to you, yelling at you, in my head or sometimes out loud,” the drummer says in the clip. “I still have trouble believing you’re gone, and probably for me, you never will be. Outliving my little brother, this just wasn’t the plan. As the older brother, I was supposed to die first. Same as always, Ed, butting in line.”
In the clip, Alex also praises his brother’s musical talent and mentions Eddie’s sensitivity to criticism. He adds that he’s watched with ‘anger, grief, and pride’ as the world mourned Eddie and others tried to tell his story.
In the same week ‘Brothers’ was released, Alex hosted two book signings and a live conversation event.