Another reason why Madonna and her brother aren't close

What happened

Christopher Ciccone, the brother of pop queen Madonna, is writing a memoir titled Life with My Sister Madonna, to be released by Simon & Schuster in mid-July. Ciccone, 47, has worked in the past with his older sister, but they are no longer close, according to Madonna's spokeswoman. Madonna, 49, "has not cooperated with any biography about herself," the spokeswoman said.

What the commentators said

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"What is he thinking?" said the gossip blog Trashy Celebs. "Wouldn’t it be easier to just ask her for some money?" Yes, it's clear that Chris and Madonna aren't close anymore, but they once were, back in the Truth or Dare days. Chris clearly doesn't want to salvage their relationship, however, since he's publishing this book—which we will, of course, guiltily read.

"It's unfortunate that he's about to tell the world what she's really like," said the publishing blog I Wanna Publish. "It would have been nice" to keep an untainted image of Madonna, especially at this late stage in her career. Nevertheless, "I think Madonna will weather a character attack, should that be present in Christopher Ciccone's book."

Madonna's representatives have said that Madonna made no attempt to block the book, said celebrity blog Absolutely Fabulous, but some reports say that "Mad Madge is livid that her bro penned Life with My Sister." The book's first run will print 350,000 copies, so whatever Ciccone's motivation is, he's certainly "cashing in" on his sister's fame.