Musical Chairs
Jen Knox
Indie Memoir/YA
[rating: 5/5]
Available in…
• Mobi/Kindle
… from…
• Amazon
• MobiPocket
Also in paperback
Some time ago, Jen Knox and I swapped memoirs. She sent me a copy of Musical Chairs, which explores her family’s history of mental health diagnoses, her years of strip-dancing, alcoholism, and estrangement, and her struggle for reconciliation. (That’s from the cover.)
I also sent her a copy of Love through the Eyes of an Idiot. In full disclosure, just as I had started reading her book, Jen sent me an email about mine:
I finally posted my review of your delightful book. Oh how it made me remember how lucky I am to have found Chris after all the relationships (if you can call them that) that came before him. He thanks you. I thank you, for writing a great read.
Truthfully, I’m gratified that Jen enjoyed my book. And I did really want to like hers as well— I always want to like a book from a fellow author, and it upsets me when I don’t. But I will tell you exactly what problems I had with Musical Chairs:
-
I ran across numerous line-editing issues, including misspelled words, bad punctuation (like ending a sentence with a comma, in at least two places), and sentences that made no sense in context. The best typo I found on page 152, where Jen wrote about working at the bookstore: “As I cleared dust from a self in the psychology section…” So, was that an ego or an id? (Ba dum bum.)
-
Some details were missing from spots in the story where I would naturally expect them, popping up as surprises elsewhere. For example, all the time Jen was staying with Miss Sarah and her daughter (in the chapter entitled “Miss Sarah”), I thought Sarah was a white, single mother. It was only much later in the book that I was told that Sarah (or at least her daughter) had darker skin, that she was married to a Latino who had treated Jen rudely, and that she had some pretty bizarre racial ideas.
-
Jen begins with a panic attack, and she concludes as the panic attacks disappear… I think. I have nothing against waxing eloquent, as she did in the epilogue; I’m just not sure how she concluded the story. (But otherwise the epilogue did leave me feeling uplifted and satisfied.)
All of my complaints were counterbalanced, however, by the fact that I literally couldn’t put the damn book down! That’s why I’ve been absent this week. I blew through the entire thing in a little over a day, immersing myself in her story every moment I could. Really, no joke, no exaggeration: I read until I got tired; then I napped, woke up, and continued where I left off; lather, rinse, repeat.
Truthfully, before I started the book, I half expected a melodramatic pity party for a life beset by personal tragedy and self-destruction. On the contrary, Jen drew me into her story, the story of a girl I could hardly believe existed.
At one point, I reclined in a hot bath with Jen’s book in one hand and a cup of Earl Grey in the other. I looked at the cup, a commemorative mug, dated November 20, 1994, for the centennial anniversary of the facility at which my Beloved interned. I suddenly realized that at that very time, Jen had run away from home, 15 years old, and was living with her 19-year-old boyfriend. My Beloved was about to launch her career, and during the same autumn, Jen was about to launch herself into boyfriends and sex and statutory rape and the real thing, erotic dances for money, fights and alcohol and the battle for control and delusions and psychosis and abandonment— But through it all, Jen seemed so… normal to me. I genuinely sympathized with her, felt for her in her quest, desired to reach out to her and provide what I saw she was missing in her life. And I smiled when she finally began to find it.
This is the reason I read independent memoirs, to meet people I might never otherwise know, through them to live experiences I could never otherwise fathom, and to win victories I would never otherwise have even pursued. And Musical Chairs generously filled that need.
-TimK
|
Musical Chairs |
Available in… |
https://smartgenrxusa.com/# canadian online pharmacy reviews
курсовые купить курсовые купить .
Venture casino treasures in realms forth. In what is ignation, hunts treasure add. Venture and vanquish!
Synchronize with rewarding rhythms and spins. In ignation casino log in, harmonic bets pay off. Sync up and succeed!
1win приложение для айфон http://1win91762.help
Delve bonuses surprise and mysteries into. In ignation casinos, reap and unravel boxes enigmatic. Delve and dazzle!
searchhacks.click – Overall, professional vibe here; trustworthy, polished, and pleasantly minimal throughout.
戏台在线免费在线观看，海外华人专属平台采用机器学习个性化推荐，高清无广告体验。
order zoloft: sertraline – zoloft tablet
leadfactory.click – Pages loaded fast, images appeared sharp, and formatting stayed consistent.
奇思妙探高清完整版AI深度学习内容匹配，海外华人可免费观看最新热播剧集。
trafficsprint.click – Found practical insights today; sharing this article with colleagues later.
zoloft pill zoloft cheap generic zoloft
1вин ставки http://1win04381.help
trafficmatrix.click – Pages loaded fast, images appeared sharp, and formatting stayed consistent.
1win история ставок http://1win91762.help/
marketingengine.click – Content reads clearly, helpful examples made concepts easy to grasp.
Harness the power of luck with strategic games and random thrills combined. In ignation casino, verified fair play guarantees honesty in every round. Begin your adventure now!
searchengineers.click – Appreciate the typography choices; comfortable spacing improved my reading experience.
searchhacks.click – Color palette felt calming, nothing distracting, just focused, thoughtful design.
leadfactory.click – Found practical insights today; sharing this article with colleagues later.
sertraline generic: sertraline zoloft – zoloft without dr prescription
leadfactory.click – Content reads clearly, helpful examples made concepts easy to grasp.
куплю курсовую работу kupit-kursovuyu-66.ru .
trafficsprint.click – Bookmarked this immediately, planning to revisit for updates and inspiration.
海外华人必备的iyf平台AI深度学习内容匹配，提供最新高清电影、电视剧，无广告观看体验。
trafficsprint.click – Overall, professional vibe here; trustworthy, polished, and pleasantly minimal throughout.
написание курсовой работы на заказ цена kupit-kursovuyu-62.ru .
trafficmatrix.click – Pages loaded fast, images appeared sharp, and formatting stayed consistent.
trafficmatrix.click – Appreciate the typography choices; comfortable spacing improved my reading experience.
marketingengine.click – Bookmarked this immediately, planning to revisit for updates and inspiration.
Отсутствие визитов в клинику гарантирует полную конфиденциальность. Это особенно важно для пациентов, беспокоящихся о своей репутации или возможном влиянии на профессиональную деятельность. Вызов врача на дом полностью исключает нежелательные встречи в медицинском центре.
Разобраться лучше – narkolog na dom nedorogo
https://neuroreliefusa.com/# Neuro Relief USA
marketingengine.click – Appreciate the typography choices; comfortable spacing improved my reading experience.
whoah this blog is excellent i love reading your articles. Stay up the good work! You already know, a lot of individuals are searching round for this information, you can aid them greatly.
byueuropaviagraonline
searchengineers.click – Overall, professional vibe here; trustworthy, polished, and pleasantly minimal throughout.
searchengineers.click – Pages loaded fast, images appeared sharp, and formatting stayed consistent.
На месте врач проводит первичный осмотр, измеряет давление, пульс, сатурацию, оценивает уровень интоксикации и абстиненции. Далее назначается инфузионная терапия — капельница, направленная на дезинтоксикацию, восстановление электролитного баланса, купирование тревожности и нормализацию сна.
Получить дополнительную информацию – narcolog-na-dom-v-moskve55.ru/