*A SUNDAY TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR | A GUARDIAN MEMOIR OF THE YEAR | A TELEGRAPH BEST MUSIC BOOK OF THE YEAR *''Chronicles, in enthralling detail, Madonna Louise Ciccone''s path from terrifyingly ambitious trainee dancer to pop colossus, all the while placing her in a wider social and cultural context.'' GUARDIAN MAGAZINE''Gabriel charts her extraordinary life, right through to pop iconShe deserves a biographer as meticulous, intelligent and insightful as Gabriel.'' DAILY MAIL''Madonna built the house in which nearly all female artists now live . . . A Rebel Life brings home not just her obvious willpower and strength, but her fearlessness and sheer intelligence'' DAILY TELEGRAPH''A fascinating take on one of music''s greatest icons'' BELFAST TELEGRAPH''It''s a mark of Gabriel''s skill that she has managed to wrestle this complex, sprawling, eventful life into a book that rarely flags and conveys its subject''s wider significance without tipping into hagiographyWe come to understand Mado