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… |
propecia pharmacy2u: MediDirect USA – MediDirect USA
MediDirect USA: pharmacy assistant certification online – MediDirect USA
MediDirect USA meijer pharmacy generic lipitor MediDirect USA
http://indianmedsone.com/# india pharmacy
Strategic play & solid security are key in online casinos-it’s about maximizing RTP! Seeing platforms like money88 download prioritize user experience & KYC is reassuring for a smoother, safer game. Definitely a plus for PH players!
best online pharmacies in mexico: Mexican Pharmacy Hub – best mexican online pharmacies
Indian Meds One: cheapest online pharmacy india – Indian Meds One
buy meds from mexican pharmacy: Mexican Pharmacy Hub – п»їmexican pharmacy
Online medicine home delivery reputable indian online pharmacy online shopping pharmacy india
Indian Meds One: india pharmacy mail order – Online medicine home delivery
buy modafinil from mexico no rx: semaglutide mexico price – low cost mexico pharmacy online
india online pharmacy: Indian Meds One – india pharmacy
https://medidirectusa.com/# zoloft online pharmacy
drug rx: best online pharmacy provigil – Nolvadex
MediDirect USA: giant pharmacy – MediDirect USA
Mexican Pharmacy Hub: buy cheap meds from a mexican pharmacy – Mexican Pharmacy Hub
MediDirect USA MediDirect USA dutasteride inhouse pharmacy
You made certain good points there. I did a search on the theme and found mainly persons will have the same opinion with your blog.
MediDirect USA: finpecia online pharmacy – MediDirect USA
order from mexican pharmacy online: Mexican Pharmacy Hub – legit mexican pharmacy for hair loss pills
best mexican pharmacy online: amoxicillin mexico online pharmacy – order azithromycin mexico
Indian Meds One Indian Meds One cheapest online pharmacy india
https://indianmedsone.com/# Indian Meds One
MediDirect USA: MediDirect USA – target pharmacy store
pharmacy degree online: precision rx pharmacy – nizoral online pharmacy
Mexican Pharmacy Hub: Mexican Pharmacy Hub – Mexican Pharmacy Hub
online pharmacy no prescription cialis MediDirect USA minocycline pharmacy price
Indian Meds One: Indian Meds One – mail order pharmacy india
Indian Meds One: Indian Meds One – india pharmacy mail order
Indian Meds One: buy medicines online in india – Indian Meds One
Публикация приглашает вас исследовать неизведанное — от древних тайн до современных достижений науки. Вы узнаете, как случайные находки превращались в революции, а смелые мысли — в новые эры человеческого прогресса.
Выяснить больше – https://kizuna1046.com/business/gallery12
It’s smart to prioritize account security with any online platform – two-factor authentication is a must! Seeing platforms like dreamjili game cater to local payment options like GCash is a big plus for Filipino players, enhancing trust & accessibility.
That’s a solid point about game design! Seeing platforms like ph222 login prioritize a user-friendly experience and security is refreshing. Makes diving into new much easier & more fun, honestly!
cheap cialis mexico: Mexican Pharmacy Hub – Mexican Pharmacy Hub
mexican border pharmacies shipping to usa: best mexican online pharmacies – pharmacies in mexico that ship to usa
https://medidirectusa.com/# target pharmacy levitra
MediDirect USA MediDirect USA bactrim ds online pharmacy
MediDirect USA: buy viagra boots pharmacy – MediDirect USA
order azithromycin mexico: zithromax mexican pharmacy – isotretinoin from mexico
MediDirect USA: cialis european pharmacy – priligy uk pharmacy
buy prescription drugs from india: Indian Meds One – indianpharmacy com
Mexican Pharmacy Hub Mexican Pharmacy Hub buy neurontin in mexico
aricept online pharmacy: ultram online pharmacy – MediDirect USA
mail order pharmacy india: Indian Meds One – Indian Meds One
https://medidirectusa.shop/# advanced rx pharmacy
india online pharmacy: Indian Meds One – Indian Meds One
Non-prescription ED tablets discreetly shipped: Non-prescription ED tablets discreetly shipped – Men’s sexual health solutions online
SildenaPeak SildenaPeak price of viagra in australia
Safe access to generic ED medication: KamaMeds – Kamagra reviews from US customers
Tadalify: cialis manufacturer coupon 2018 – Tadalify