Music Memoirs

Looking for books that are both entertaining and straight forward? Music memoirs are a fun way to learn about the events behind your favorite performer's career. The story lines are often similar (though that's part of the fun) – a tale of a dreamer, who kept working at his/her craft, either with or against his/her parent’s wishes, proved everyone wrong, went through periods of darkness and doubt, often formed a substance abuse disorder, but rose above and conquered the world, then perhaps (depending on how career-expansive the memoir is) was humbled once again when the new band line-up proved less popular with fans, or they had a drug relapse, then they eventually found spirituality…or something like that. Here are a couple I’ve read recently that I have really enjoyed and below is a link to more of the library’s music memoirs in print and digital formats. Although the print formats may not currently be available while the library is closed, you can add them to your reading list!


Not Dead Yet by Phil Collins


The drummer and lead-singer of Genesis, and solo-artist, shares about his working class upbringing (in contrast to his British public school bandmates), how the drum set he received at the age of three formed who he would become, his early beginnings playing with bands in the swinging 60s clubs of London, and his struggles balancing work and fame with family life (admittedly, not well).  I listened to the audiobook version, narrated by Collins himself. Collins is a good storyteller and hearing him talk about his life is a treat. You can tell he’s a very reflective person and tries to be as honest and candid as possible. Although he does share some of the darker aspects of his life, specifically his affair that led to his third wife, and his period of heavy alcohol abuse in the early 2000s, I often had the feeling that he wasn't sharing everything, or that he was making sure not to hurt his "nice-guy" persona, but hey, you can only degrade yourself so much. Overall, Collins is very likable and tells his story with wit and grace. The only downside of the audiobook is you don’t get to see the photographs from Collins' life that are included in the print version.


Let’s Go (So We Can Get Back) by Jeff Tweedy

Chicago-based alt-country/rock musician and leader of the influential band, Wilco, Jeff Tweedy writes with his kids in mind. You can tell family means a lot to Tweedy (a similar theme that went through Collin’s book) as he reflects on his upbringing, his closeness to his mother and (to a lesser extent) his distant alcoholic father, and how his wife, Susie, helped him through many of the dark points in his life. In fact his love for his wife and kids are some of the most endearing parts of the book. It’s also hard not to get caught up in his excitement about some of his first gigs and meeting some of his idols in the early chapters. Tweedy's unique personality shines throughout. He's a humble, quiet guy, who can joke about his anxiety and neurotic quirks. Although, like the Collins book, it feels like sometimes Tweedy glosses over some of the darker sides of his life—the depths of his pain-killer addiction, feuds with former bandmate, etc. He does write about them often, but maybe it's that he doesn't feel proud of himself. I can't say that about the authors of the next book.


The Dirt by Vince Neil, Nikki Sixx, Mick Mars, Tommy Lee, and edited by Neil Strauss

This may be one of the sleaziest of memoirs (although I haven’t read Stephen Pearcy from Ratt's book, Sex, Drugs, Ratt Roll, which I heard may take the cake). Readers who shy away from reading about glorified tales of debauchery should avoid this one. This one is completely over-the-top. Any terrible thing you could think of somebody doing, probably happened in this book. Like me, you’ll likely find yourself disgusted and in awe, often simultaneously. This one is quite the opposite of the previous two memoirs. Instead of glossing over the darkness, the guys in Mötley Crüe revel in it; brag about it. Alternating between perspectives of each band member, it’s a behind the scenes glimpse of the excess of 80s rock star culture. It's often laugh out loud funny when one band members' story contradicts another, leaving one to wonder how things really played out. Through all the sleaze, there are tragedies in each band members life that force them to grow - for example; Nikki Sixx's several heroin overdoses, or the death of Vince Neil's 4-year old daughter Skylar to cancer. You don't have to find the band likable to find this sociologically fascinating! Note: The Netflix film of the same name does a pretty good job condensing and capturing the tone of the book.

What's Next?

One book I'm looking forward to read is Girl in a Band by Kim Gordon because I'm a big Sonic Youth fan and I'd like to read about her perspective on the grunge scene of the 90s (a genre their band is often thrown in with, but predated) and playing in a mostly male-dominated profession. I also have The Beautiful Ones by Prince in my to-be-read pile because the movie Purple Rain only gave me a small taste of what the performer's life, and the Minneapolis music scene of the 80s, was like.


Click here for music memoirs in print and CD audiobook


Click here for digital music memoirs


What music memoirs have you really enjoyed? Share in the comments.

June is Audiobook Month: Lived Experiences

June is Audiobook Month! To celebrate, borrow a Nonfiction audiobook from Carnegie-Stout Public Library's collection. Here are a few memoirs and biographies that you might enjoy:

All You Can Ever Know by Nicole Chung
Nicole Chung shares her story of growing up with her white adoptive family in Oregon and her journey to connect with her identity as a Korean American. This candid and moving memoir is narrated by Janet Song, an accomplished narrator and film actor.




The White Darkness by David Grann
David Grann is a journalist who has written several bestselling works of narrative nonfiction. The White Darkness tells the story of a 2015 solo-expedition retracing Shackleton’s Antarctic exploration by a descendant of the original expedition. The capable Will Patton narrates the audiobook in his recognizably gruff yet warm style.


American Like Me by America Ferrera
Actress America Ferrera is the editor of this candid and heartwarming collection of essays describing the immigrant experience from well-known individuals including Lin-Manuel Miranda, Issa Rae, Michelle Kwan, and Roxane Gay. The audiobook is narrated by America Ferrera, some of the essayists, and a few professional audiobook narrators.



A River in Darkness by Masaji Ishikawa
Ishikawa is the son of a Korean father and a Japanese mother, and in 1960, his family moved from Japan to a rural village in North Korea. After 36 years of hardship, he fled North Korea and faced the challenge of reintegrating in Japan. A candid, heartwrenching story, the audiobook is narrated by Brian Nishii with both clarity and passion.

A few books for National Astronaut Day

May 5th is National Astronaut Day, a celebration of the United States' achievements in space exploration. The date was selected in commemoration of Alan Shepard's successful spaceflight on Freedom 7 on May 7, 1961 which made him the first American in space.

As a librarian who loves reading about space explorations both real and imagined, I thought I'd share a few of my favorites here today. I hope you'll share some of your favorites in the comments as well!

Biography and Non-Fiction

Chasing Space: An Astronaut's Story of Grit, Grace, and Second Chances by Leland Melvin

A memoir by the former NASA astronaut and NFL wide receiver traces his personal journey from the gridiron to the stars, examining the intersecting roles of community, perseverance, and grace that create opportunities for success.

Endurance: A Year in Space, a Lifetime of Discovery by Scott Kelly with Margaret Lazarus Dean
The veteran of four space flights and the American record holder for consecutive days spent in space, Scott Kelly has experienced things very few have. He describes navigating the extreme challenge of long-term spaceflight, both existential and banal.

Packing for Mars: the Curious Science of Life in the Void by Mary Roach
Space is a world devoid of the things we need to live and thrive: air, gravity, hot showers, fresh produce, privacy, beer. Space exploration is in some ways an exploration of what it means to be human. From the space shuttle training toilet to a crash test of NASA's new space capsule (cadaver filling in for astronaut), Roach takes us on a surreally entertaining trip into the science of life in space and space on Earth.

Sally Ride: America's First Woman in Space by Lynn Sherr
This book is a biography of Sally Ride, America's first woman in space, with exclusive insights from her family and partner, and by the ABC reporter who covered NASA during its transformation from a test-pilot boys' club to a more inclusive elite. A member of the first astronaut class to include women, Ride broke through a quarter-century of white male fighter jocks when NASA chose her for the seventh shuttle mission, cracking the celestial ceiling and inspiring several generations of women.

Novels and Science Fiction

The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal

On a cold spring night in 1952, a huge meteorite fell to earth and obliterated much of the east coast of the United States, including Washington D.C. The ensuing climate cataclysm will soon render the earth inhospitable for humanity, as the last such meteorite did for the dinosaurs. This looming threat calls for a radically accelerated effort to colonize space, and requires a much larger share of humanity to take part in the process. Elma York's experience as a WASP pilot and mathematician earns her a place in the International Aerospace Coalition's attempts to put man on the moon, as a calculator. But with so many skilled and experienced women pilots and scientists involved with the program, it doesn't take long before Elma begins to wonder why they can't go into space, too. Elma's drive to become the first Lady Astronaut is so strong that even the most dearly held conventions of society may not stand a chance against her.

The Wanderers by Meg Howrey

In four years Prime Space will put the first humans on Mars. Helen Kane, Yoshi Tanaka, and Sergei Kuznetsov must prove they're the crew for the job by spending seventeen months in the most realistic simulation ever created. Retired from NASA, Helen had not trained for irrelevance. It is nobody's fault that the best of her exists in space, but her daughter can't help placing blame. The MarsNOW mission is Helen's last chance to return to the only place she's ever truly felt at home. For Yoshi, it's an opportunity to prove himself worthy of the wife he has loved absolutely, if not quite rightly. Sergei is willing to spend seventeen months in a tin can if it means travelling to Mars. He will at least be tested past the point of exhaustion, and this is the example he will set for his sons.

The Martian by Andy Weir

Mark Whitney was nearly killed by a dust storm on Mars and was abandoned by his crew who thought him dead. Now he's all alone with no way of letting Earth know he's alive, which doesn't matter because his supplies would run out before they'd get there. Either way, the environment or human error will likely kill him first. Not giving in, Mark works to survive, battling obstacle after obstacle, but will it be enough? 

Staff Review: RX: A Graphic Memoir by Rachel Lindsay

Ever feel like you’re stuck in a rat race? Yeah, me too. RX: a graphic memoir by Rachel Lindsay explores the rat race of corporate America from the viewpoint of a woman stuck in a vicious cycle. This quick read pairs Lindsay’s basic, yet poignant drawings with her no-nonsense, straight-forward, and humorous dialogue to suck the reader into her story.  She masterfully shows us what it means to be a ‘human among the wolves.’

Lindsay was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and works a full-time job for the health insurance to be able to pay for her treatment. Ironically, she ends up creating advertisements for antidepressant drugs. We are drawn along with the choices she makes that eventually leads her to be involuntarily committed. As she struggles to process her life while trying to earn her freedom, we join in her battle between sanity and happiness. You will run through a gamut of emotions in a short time when reading this graphic novel, which is something I really enjoyed because it was a short, yet powerful reminder of what it means to be human.

While you are exploring the world of graphic memoirs, try Marbles: mania, depression, Michelangelo, & me: a graphic memoir by Ellen Forney and Passing for human: a graphic memoir by Liana Finck.

~Thea, Adult Services

Staff Review: Educated by Tara Westover

I cannot recommend the memoir Educated by Tara Westover highly enough. It is captivating -- practically un-put-downable -- and very well written. That said, it is not an easy book to read and if you're like me you'll run the gamut of emotions, including anger and frustration.

Westover tells the story of her Idaho youth as the seventh and youngest child of ultra-fundamentalist, survivalist Mormons, who do not send her to school nor do they home-school her. They also choose not to obtain such documents as a birth certificate or Social Security card for her or to seek medical help for illnesses and accidents. This is because her father views the outside world -- the government, educators, the medical establishment, and so on -- as of the devil and about the devil's business.

In graceful prose, Westover paints a vivid picture of day-to-day life at the foot of Buck Peak. Day-to-day life, however, is filled with horrific accidents, car accidents and industrial accidents mostly, and these events and their aftermaths can be wrenching to witness as are the volatile instability of her father, the submissive blindness of her mother, and the descent into sadistic violence of one of her brothers. At times, my credulity was stretched almost beyond its limit (thanks, James Frey and other memoir fibbers) but in the end I believe this author is telling the truth.

I generally avoid memoirs of dysfunction but Westover's is actually a story of redemption, for she eventually breaks free of her parents (though she suffers horrible guilt and inner conflict in doing so), studies on her own, gets herself into college, and completes her education by nailing a Ph.D. at Cambridge in England. The wonders of this book, besides the prose, which is often incandescent, are Westover's evident love for her family, even after the estrangement, and the deep thoughtfulness with which she tells her story. Equally wonderful is Westover's strength of character, the inner compass or guiding light she possesses, which allows her to escape what struck me as a living nightmare but to Westover was the only life she knew.

~Ann, Adult Services

Staff Review: "Duran Duran, Imelda Marcos, and Me" by Lorina Mapa

I recently lost several family members in a car accident so the first few pages of Lorina Mapa's graphic memoir were emotionally intense for me. Most of her memoir, Duran Duran, Imelda Marcos, and Me, is about her experience growing up in the Philippines, but she frames her story with the death and funeral of her father who also died in a car accident.

I didn't know very much about the Philippines before I checked this book out, and so I appreciated Mapa's exploration of culture, religion, food, and history. The section on the peaceful downfall of the Marcos regime was particularly interesting, especially if all that you can remember is that Imelda Marcos owned a very large collection of shoes.

Mapa came from a family of wealth and privilege, so it may not be surprising how many cultural touchstones she shares with Americans who were teens in the 1980s, from music to movies. I appreciated the way she incorporated one of her favorite structural elements from one of her favorite novels, and readers are likely to enjoy her discography at the end.

I enjoyed Mapa's art, which is minimal, often featuring simple backgrounds. She includes enough detail to give a sense of place and time, and her people are very distinctive and convey emotion well. The book does tend to be a little text heavy, but it makes sense for a nonfiction work. Overall this is a fascinating glimpse into another culture and time from a deeply personal perspective likely to appeal to readers who might not normally read comics.

~Sarah, Adult Services

Staff Review: "In the Country We Love" by Diane Guerrero

You might recognize Diane Guerrero from Jane the Virgin or Orange is the New Black, but this isn't your typical celebrity memoir. Guerrero's In the Country We Love: My Family Divided is the story of a young woman who overcame the challenges in her life, challenges that sometimes seemed insurmountable, to achieve her dreams. Even if you don't watch much TV, I highly recommend you check out this emotional and inspiring memoir.

With the assistance of co-author Michelle Burford, Diane Guerrero shares how both her worst nightmare and her most impossible dreams came true. From her earliest memories, Guerrero dreamed of being a performer. A dream that seemed impossible for her as the American-born daughter of undocumented Colombian parents.

Guerrero's parents, like so many others, had arrived in the United States with valid visas and then simply stayed past their expiration date, hoping to avoid the notice of government officials. Her family moved from neighborhood to neighborhood in Boston and lived in apartments where landlords would take cash without asking questions. They worked long hours for little pay for employers who exploited their lack of legal protection.

Over the years, her parents tried to gain legal status, but in navigating this complicated and changing system, they fell prey to unscrupulous scam artists. Which is how, one day at the age of 14, Guerrero arrived home from school to discover that her parents had been picked up by immigration to be deported. Guerrero, a native-born U.S. citizen was not a target for ICE, nor did she receive any support from any other agency. From the government's perspective, she fell through the cracks, and she spent her high school years living with family friends.

Diane Guerrero's story is powerful and timely and provides a different perspective on the topic of immigration. If you are a fan of her work as an actor, don't worry! Later chapters do provide a behind the scenes look at her experience working for Netflix and in Hollywood.

~Sarah, Adult Services

Staff Review: Born a Crime by Trevor Noah

When I choose a book for the library book discussion I try to find something outside of my comfort zone. More often than not, I enjoy the book and it makes me more willing to venture outside of my normal reading habits. Born a Crime by Trevor Noah, a biography, is one such example. Though I rarely read biographies, Born a Crime has become one my favorite books this year. 

Trevor Noah, the current host of The Daily Show on Comedy Central, was born at the tail end of apartheid in South Africa. His mother is black and his father is white. At the time of Trevor's birth, the relationship between his parents was illegal so his birth was actually a crime. 

The stories told by Noah range from incredibly sad to very funny. As a comedian, Noah is able to infuse the sad stories with humor without taking away from the narrative. It is difficult to imagine that as a mixed-race child, Noah's mother wasn't allowed to do something as simple as walk with him to the park. Noah's father was largely absent from his life, leaving him to be raised by his mother and grandmother. To his black Xhosa relatives, Noah was white and white people are treated differently. By his own admission, Noah was a handful, because only his mother would discipline him.  It is clear throughout the book that his mother is quite a force to be reckoned with and though their relationship is, at times, complicated, Noah loves and respects her.

I didn't listen to the audio, but a co-worker told me it is wonderful. Noah is the narrator and I imagine hearing him tell the story of his upbringing, in his own voice, is quite powerful. If you are a fan of The Daily Show, you should read this book. If you've never watched The Daily Show (ahem...like me...ahem), this is still a powerful story of someone who never quite fit in, but didn't let that stop him from achieving his dreams. 

~Amy, Adult Services

Staff Review: The Art of Memoir by Mary Karr

I know, I know, you've been wondering when a book about writing was finally going to be featured. Well, your long wait is over! The Art of Memoir, by poet and memoirist Mary Karr, is so engaging, it deserves a little time in the spotlight.

Who better to write a book about the memoir genre than the author of The Liar's Club, Cherry, and Lit, a trio of memoirs published between 1995 and 2009 that are said to have re-ignited the genre's popularity, though I imagine The Glass Castle had a little something to do with that as well.

Born into a dysfunctional circus of a family in what she calls the ringworm belt of Texas, Mary Karr's gritty, funny, lively, and irreverent. She's been teaching memoir-writing in Syracuse's MFA program for years. Her book on the craft, The Art of Memoir, will appeal not only to those who want to write a memoir but to those who enjoy reading them as well.

Karr begins each chapter with an intriguing quote and then tackles some aspect of crafting a memoir, from how to approach writing about loved ones to the importance of enlivening your story with lots of sensory detail. I particularly enjoyed her frequent -- and vehement -- insistence that memoirists tell the truth, even if that truth is, by necessity, somewhat subjective.

Karr provides concrete examples of effective technique from a wide variety of fine memoirs, all of which sound so good you'll intend to read every one just as soon as you finish reading her book. Karr kindly includes a handy, six-page Required Reading list of these titles and many more at the end of the book.

If you're in the mood to read even more about the crafts of writing and editing, check out our November display of writing guides, set up by the first-floor Recommendations Desk. The display features dozens of titles, including some of the classics: Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott, Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg, If You Want to Write by Brenda Ueland, and On Writing Well by William Zinsser. 'Cause the next best thing to writing is reading about it, right?

~Ann, Adult Services

Staff Review: Smoke Gets in Your Eyes & Other Lessons from the Crematory by Caitlin Doughty

I was browsing YouTube a few weeks ago, as one does, and I stumbled upon a channel called Ask a Mortician. There were video titles like "American Mummies" and "ICONIC CORPSE: The Preservation of Eva Peron." I fell down the rabbit hole of videos, hosted by a woman who looks like someone I would be friends with. Caitlin Doughty, with her Bettie Page bangs and bold lipstick, doesn't look like the stereotypical mortician. However, she is the face of the alternative death industry. Her memoir, Smoke Gets in Your Eyes & Other Lessons from the Crematory, reveals how she got started in the industry and what she learned along the way.

This was a fascinating read. I definitely learned a lot about the death industry, and it made me confront my own mortality in a good way. This book and Caitlin's YouTube channel challenge you to think about your own after-death wishes and tell you about more than the American standard of embalming and being buried in a box. I recommend this to anyone who is interested in death or the death industry, anyone who watched Six Feet Under, and anyone who likes witty creative non-fiction essays. Fans of Mary Roach will particularly enjoy this.

Be sure to check out Ask a Mortician and Caitlin's website. Her new book, From Here to Eternity, was just released and I can't wait to read more.

-Libby, Youth Services

Staff Review: Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen's not a rocker, he's a religion -- to my mind. I worship the guy and his music, having been baptized in the church of Bruce one night in Madison years ago at a concert on his Darkness tour. The evening was life-changing; I went home a believer.

That said, let me now proceed to an honest and objective review of Springsteen's 2016 memoir, Born to Run, named after his greatest album. Well, I have to say, Born to Run is a mighty fine book, which is hardly surprising because Springsteen is, above all, a storyteller and his life makes for quite a story. He's also a lyrical poet, so his words rest polished and powerful on the page.

His memoir traces the entire course of his life, focusing in particular on his troubled relationship with his father, an unhappy, hard-drinking, verbally-brutal factory worker and the model for many of the hopeless characters in Bruce's songs. Sorting this relationship has been an abiding struggle for Springsteen, especially given that he himself has been tormented by the black melancholy that so often consumed his pop. Bruce's battles with depression are probably the revelation of the book.

Front and center, however, is the music. Springsteen's life has been spent in active, if not obsessive, service to his music: his songwriting, his performing, and his fans. He's famously hardworking and exacting of his bands; no one would argue with the contention that he may be the hardest working performer ever to grace a turntable or stage. Now 68, Bruce is still putting on high-energy, high-intensity, no-breaks, nearly-four-hour shows -- and lots of them. For many readers, the memoir pages dedicated to his musical inspirations, his creative habits, and the arduous practice schedules to which he and his band adhere will be ample reward for reading the 500-page book.

But there's plenty of personal detail too. Who else but Bruce can provide the honest-to-God truth about the failure of his ill-advised and brief first marriage, his dovetail-joint of a bond with second wife Patti Scialfa, and his love for his three kids. Even when recounting the history his hardcore fans already know, Springsteen does so in such a heartfelt, humble, and often humorous way that we're happy to hear it all over again. An added bonus in these troubled times is that unlike with so many rocker bios, we're left not with an overwhelming sense of the guy's decadence and debauchery but rather his profound decency. The man's a testament to integrity.

I wish I could catch Bruce on Broadway, where he's currently doing a series of one-man shows, which include acoustic songs and readings from this book. Springsteen recently extended his Broadway run by another ten weeks after the initial run sold out in a day. Hail the Boss! May he live forever! Read this book and then catch one of his shows.

~Ann, Adult Services

Staff Review: The Hour of Land by Terry Tempest Williams

The Hour of Land: A Personal Topography of America's National Parks by Terry Tempest Williams stands a very good chance of being my 2017 best book of the year. I loved it so much I'm about to read it all over again. The book combines all my favorite genres: history, nature writing, memoir, travel. Published in 2016 to coincide with the National Park Service's centennial celebrations, The Hour of Land is a very personal tour, conducted by Williams herself, through a dozen of the nation's 58 national parks.

And what a tour guide she is. A naturalist, writer, and native of Utah, Williams is probably best known for her 1992 memoir Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place about losing her mother to cancer just as the Great Salt Lake floods, threatening the migratory birds Williams treasures. She's extremely knowledgeable, she loves wild places with a passion, and she possesses what I can only call a beautiful spirit: generous, gentle, peace-loving, compassionate. Plus, she's a terrific and highly poetic writer.

It's a pleasure to tour the country in her company, even when she's surveying wrenching scenes like the damage inflicted on Gulf Islands National Seashore by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010 or the encroachments of the Bakken oil fields on Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota. More often what she surveys is sublime, from Alaska's Gates of the Arctic and Wyoming's Grand Teton to Acadia National Park in Maine. She even makes a stop at Effigy Mounds National Monument here in Iowa.

Particularly pleasurable is the variety of approaches Williams takes to her park descriptions, focusing closely at times on ecology or American history, then shifting her lens to her own life and family. She includes letters, emails, and journal entries to fine effect and provides a wonderful personal anecdote about Lady Bird Johnson. Modern readers, who may be unaware of how our great park system got started, learn about the unflagging philanthropic and environmental efforts of such National Park greats as Laurence Rockefeller, Theodore Roosevelt, Stewart Udall, and many others. This book's a lavish banquet of luscious park detail and I, for one, could not get enough of it. How I wish Williams had visited all 58.

~Ann, Adult Services

#ComicsWednesday: Pyongyang by Guy Delisle

Guy Delisle is a French-Canadian cartoonist who has made a career creating biographical comics, building on the strong foundation of his first book, Pyongyang. First published more than 10 years ago, Pyongyang gives readers an interesting glimpse into the secretive and highly controlled world of North Korea. Many things have changed in the past decade, but Delisle's often funny observations of life as a western outsider in North Korea are still fascinating today.

Delisle first came to Pyongyang, the country's capital, to supervise the production of an animated film that had been outsourced to a North Korean company. His job lasted for two months and when he was not working he socialized with other foreigners and went on highly supervised visits to local tourist attractions.

Delisle's black and white drawings are minimalist and cartoony, which suits the immediacy of a travel guide created by an animator. This isn't a sketchbook, though, and you can see the thought he puts into his panels. The people are distinct and expressive, and the often empty backgrounds draw your focus to his characters' humanity and the intense pressure of life under a totalitarian regime.

~Sarah, Adult Services

Staff Review: Hillbilly Elegy by J. D. Vance

Hillbilly Elegy by J. D. Vance, now in its 28th week on the New York Times bestseller list, is a memoir written and published at just the right time, as Americans coast to coast struggle to figure out how we got ourselves into the violently polarized political mess we're in.

Vance, a self-described hillbilly who is now a Silicon Valley investment-firm lawyer, offers his take on the subject with this story of his upbringing. Originally from Kentucky, his family hit the Hillbilly Highway as part of the early-to-mid 20th century migration of Appalachians to northern Rust Belt cities. At the time those cities were thriving; now many are as hopeless as the hollers from which the migrants fled.

Vance's early life makes for fascinating, if heartbreaking, reading. There's lots of bad judgment on the part of his elders. Plenty of poor life decisions. Much substance abuse, violence, and bad grammar. But despite the dysfunction of his mother and most of her men, Vance grew to appreciate the value of effort and education. This was largely due to his grandmother, Mamaw, a firebrand who once doused her drunken husband with gasoline and dropped a lit match on his chest. (In her defense, she had warned him that she'd do it, he survived largely intact, and he was less inclined to get hammered ever after.) Mamaw also saw to it that Vance did his homework. Her house became his real home.

His academic diligence, followed by a stint in the Marines, paid off handsomely, winning him entry to Ohio State and Yale Law School. Depending upon your point of view, the pages that narrate the courting of Yale law-school students by the most powerful of the big corporate law firms may strike you as almost as nauseating as the hillbilly dysfunction. Vance himself seems OK with it, although he has a lot of proper-fork-for-the-course learning to do.

And that's my main problem with this book. While plenty of critical (and admittedly compelling) attention is paid to the degraded state of the shiftless "have-nots," not much is said about the culpability of the "haves," those on the privileged side of our Grand-Canyon-sized income gap, the side Vance fled to with the speed of a famished cheetah. But not everyone can become a Silicon Valley millionaire or a corporate CEO. I wish Vance had given more thought to what his influential new crowd might do to improve the lives of all those hillbillies back home.

~Ann, Adult Services

Staff Review: My Life in Middlemarch by Rebecca Mead

My Life in Middlemarch by Rebecca Mead may be the best book I read in 2016. I read it (twice!), just after the unsavory election season ended, deciding I'd forego the news for a while and lose myself in a really good book. The result was amazing. Not only did I love the book, but I found myself going about my business in a much better mood.

My Life in Middlemarch is an English major's dream, a hybrid work of nonfiction: one part memoir and four parts literary biography. Mead's subjects are the great Victorian writer George Eliot (born Mary Anne Evans) and her masterpiece, Middlemarch, which multiple critics have suggested may be "the greatest novel in the English language." 

Middlemarch is Mead's favorite book for sure, one she re-reads every few years. She finds that the novel speaks to her in new and compelling ways every time, as she navigates her way through life's milestones: moving away from home for the first time, finding a life's work, beginning and ending relationships, acquiring a family.

I've been in love with Middlemarch myself for a long time, so it's hard for me to judge how Mead's book will strike someone who hasn't read it. Eliot's highly unconventional life is certainly fascinating in its own right. As a young woman in the 1840s, Eliot rejected the conservative church-faith of her beloved father and established herself as an independent, free-thinking writer (and to say this was scandalous is an understatement). She next fell in love with a married man who was unable to divorce his estranged wife and she lived with him openly for 24 years. A highly disapproving London society eventually softened its censure somewhat as Eliot became one of the most beloved novelists of her time, right up there with Dickens.

So, if you love English authors, especially the Victorian kind, and you enjoy literary biographies, My Life in Middlemarch may well appeal to you. For maximum enjoyment though, read Middlemarch first. Yes, it's a doorstop, but you'll be glad you picked it up -- and we have it in audio too!

 ~Ann, Adult Services

Staff Audiobook Review: The Boys of My Youth by Jo Ann Beard

I don't know why it has taken me almost twenty years to notice the essay collection The Boys of My Youth by Jo Ann Beard and read (or, rather, listen to) it. First published in 1998 to a loud chorus of high praise, the book led to Beard's being awarded both a Guggenheim Fellowship and a Whiting Award.

The collection constitutes a patchwork memoir. At the time of its publication, it drew most attention for one piece, previously published in the The New Yorker. That essay, "The Fourth State of Matter," is a meticulous and heartbreaking narrative of the 1991 mass shooting at the University of Iowa by a disturbed physics graduate student, which claimed six lives, including the shooter's, and left another victim paralyzed from the neck down. The narrative of that horrific event is woven into finely-grained depictions of the author's own domestic woes: a dying dog and dissolving marriage. It makes for a poignant weave that in no way diminishes the relative magnitude of the shooting.

Jo Ann Beard, a graduate of the University of Iowa and of Iowa's MFA writing program, was an editor of the physics department's academic journal at the time of the shootings and very close to several of the victims. She had left the office early that day to tend to her old, ailing pet. At home, her phone soon began ringing off the hook. In her essay, which, like all the essays in the book, is precisely detailed, wryly but not inappropriately funny, and strikingly well-written, Beard conjures the tragedy in such a vividly authentic way that I listened, heart in throat, grieved for the victims, and glimpsed the scale of the incident's extensive collateral damage.

Other essays breathe life into Beard's early childhood, adolescence, high school and college beaus, and her ultimately failed marriage. She presents her life in a non-linear way, each essay forming its own discrete story. Beard is a master of the exquisite detail and one has to wonder at her powers of recollection and suspect some poetic license in the telling. Usually I'm pretty particular about strict truth in the memoirs I read, but this book is so artfully written and profoundly affecting that I was willing to park my skepticism at the door.

Her masterful handling of a seemingly infinite number of precise details results in one stunning piece after another. Her mother, especially, is finely-wrought and we see exactly where Beard gets her cleverness and wry humor, which are powerful mechanisms in a book that depicts so much dysfunction, disorder, death, and divorce. As I listened, my heart's pangs were frequently accompanied by my laughter. I've rarely experienced such a seamless blend of humor and sorrow.

The author reads this audiobook and does a serviceable job. She sounds a little hypnotized, but she has written a hypnotic book so maybe it's fitting. And her deadpan delivery of very funny material only accentuates the humor. Jo Ann Beard is one sharp woman and I highly recommend this audiobook.

~Ann, Adult Services 

Nine Cat Books for Cat Lovers

It's a bit of a cliche that librarians are cat people, but it's definitely true that cats and libraries are a great combination. So whether you're a cat fanatic or just someone who thinks they're cute, we've put together a list of nine books that we think are purrfect!

You Need More Sleep: Advice from Cats by Francesco Marciuliano

(818.602 MAR) Our feline friends have spent eons observing, napping, pondering, napping, and taking notes about the human condition. In between naps, they've realized that we humans could use some catlike guidance when it comes to handling the ups and downs of life. In this book they've condescended to share their invaluable wisdom in short advice columns.

Cat is Art Spelled Wrong

(818.602 CAT) Fifteen writers, all addressing not just our fascination with cat videos, but also how we decide what is good or bad art, or art at all; how taste develops, how it can change, and why we love or hate something. It's about people and technology and just what it is about cats that makes them the internet's cutest despots.

Cat Zodiac: An Astrological Guide to the Feline Mystique by Maeva Considine

(133.5 CON) Brand-new cat owners, or those who have lived with a feline companion or two for years, need only look to the stars to demystify cat behaviors. This zodiac collection delves into the inner lives of cats, exploring each sun sign and offering character traits, lifestyle insights, and relationship inclinations to help cat owners learn to live in harmony with their unique pets.

Junji Ito's Cat Diary: Yon & Mu by Junji Ito
(MANGA Ito) Master of Japanese horror manga Junji Ito presents a series of hissterical tales chronicling his own real-life trials and tribulations in becoming a cat owner. Junji Ito has recently built a new house and has invited his fiancée, A-ko, to live with him. Little did he know ... his blushing bride-to-be has some unexpected company in tow: Yon, a ghastly-looking family cat, and Mu, an adorable Norwegian forest cat.

Cats Galore: A Compendium of Cultured Cats by Susan Herbert
(759.2 HER) Susan Herbert's delightful feline reimaginings of famous scenes from art, theater, opera and film have won her a devoted following. This unprecedented new compilation of her paintings provides an irresistible introduction to her world of cats, featuring previously unpublished images as well as a wide selection of her best-loved pieces.

Tiny Hats on Cats: Because Every Cat Deserves to Feel Fancy by Adam Ellis
(745.54 ELL) A fun and creative book for cat lovers, crafters, and pop-culture devotees alike. Readers will learn how to craft colorful and creative feline headgear from the book's step-by-step instructions. And in case you can't get enough feline haberdashery, you should also check out Cats in Hats: 30 Knit and Crochet Patterns for Your Kitty by Sara Thomas.

Shake Cats by Carli Davidson
(636.8 DAV) The fur flies in this irresistible third installment in the bestselling Shake series by popular pet photographer Carli Davidson, featuring adorable and hysterical color photographs of more than sixty cats caught mid-shake.

Catify to Satisfy: Simple Design Solutions for Creating a Feline-Friendly Home by Jackson Galaxy & Kate Benjamin
(636.8 GAL) In this book, Jackson Galaxy and Kate Benjamin show cat guardians everywhere how to use home design tricks to address everyday cat care issues. Featuring the amazing projects cat guardians from around the world have shared with Jackson and Kate -- design strategies for solving even the most daunting kitty challenges -- this book is the ultimate guide to creating a happy home for cat guardian and cat alike.

Simon's Cat: Off to the Vet by Simon Tofield
(741.5 TOF) In this brand new book we see Simon’s Cat face any feline’s most dreaded scenario – he’s off to the vet. And he’s not at all happy about it.

Nine Books that will Inspire You to Explore Nature

Did you know that June is Great Outdoors Month? It's hard to resist the call of the outdoors in the early days of summer, whether you're strolling the River Walk, hiking through the Mines of Spain, or just relaxing in your own backyard.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service, though our first National Park (Yellowstone) is even older. Whether you're planning a visit to a National Park this summer, or just interested in reading up on their history, we've put together a list of helpful books to get you started.

If you're looking for some inspiration for outdoor fun (or if the weather's just too muggy for your taste), we've gathered together a list of Nine Books that Will Inspire You to Explore Nature!

Following the Wild Bees: the craft and science of bee hunting by Thomas D. Seeley
(595.799 SEE) Following the Wild Bees is a delightful foray into the pastime of bee hunting, an exhilarating outdoor activity that used to be practiced widely but which few people know about today. Thomas Seeley, a world authority on honey bees, vividly describes the history and science behind this lost pastime and how anyone can do it.

Happy Home Outside: everyday magic for outdoor life by Charlotte Hedeman Guéniau
(747.49 HED) Taking in garden rooms, outdoor spaces such as cabins, canopies, and dining areas as well as moveable spaces such as vintage vans and tents, Charlotte brings her everyday magic and glorious sense of relaxed living with bright color to every corner of the garden.

Vitamin N: The Essential Guide to a Nature-Rich Life by Richard Louv
(155.91 LOU) Vitamin N is a one-of-a-kind, comprehensive, and practical guidebook for the whole family and the wider community, including tips not only for parents eager to share nature with their kids but also for those seeking nature-smart schools, medical professionals, and even careers. It is a dose of pure inspiration, reminding us that looking up at the stars or taking a walk in the woods is as exhilarating as it is essential, at any age.

The Rarest Bird in the World: the search for the Nechisar nightjar by Vernon R.L. Head
(598.99 HEA) In 1990, a group of research scientists performed a survey of birds in the Plains of Nechisar in Ethiopia, returning with hundreds of specimens, including a single wing from a bird unlike any ever seen before. Vernon Head joins an expedition two decades later that will attempt to locate the rarest bird in the world.

The Wander Society by Keri Smith
(153.35 SMI)  Several years ago when Keri Smith discovered cryptic handwritten notations in a worn copy of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass, her interest was piqued. Little did she know at the time that those simple markings would become the basis of a years-long, life-changing exploration into a mysterious group known only as The Wander Society.

Patterns in Nature: why the natural world looks the way it does by Philip Ball
(500.2 BAL) Though at first glance the natural world may appear overwhelming in its diversity and complexity, there are regularities running through it, from the hexagons of a honeycomb to the spirals of a seashell and the branching veins of a leaf. Revealing the order at the foundation of the seemingly chaotic natural world, Patterns in Nature explores not only the math and science but also the beauty and artistry behind nature’s awe-inspiring designs.

The Book of Camping and Woodcraft: A Guidebook for Those Who Travel, in the Wilderness by Horace Kephart
(796.54 KEP) In the early 20th century, travel writer Horace Kephart published a series of articles in Field and Stream, which served as the foundation for this classic book on wilderness camping. His work as an outdoorsman led to the establishment of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The Parkour & Freerunning Handbook by Dan Edwardes

(796.046 EDW) An illustrated introduction to parkour--freerunning--that provides step-by-step instructions on basic moves, which include landing, rolling, jumping, mounting, balance, and more, along with tips to avoid injuries. The book also discusses clothing, culture, and other related topics.

GoatMan: how I took a holiday from being human by Thomas Thwaites
(BIOG Thwaites) A research grant offers Thomas Thwaites the chance to take a holiday from the complications of being human--by transforming himself into a goat. What ensues is a hilarious and surreal journey through engineering, design, and psychology, as Thwaites interviews neuroscientists, animal behaviorists, prosthetists, goat sanctuary workers, and goatherds.

Staff Review: Displacement: A Travelogue by Lucy Knisley

Displacement: A Travelogue is the fourth* book from the autobiographical cartoonist Lucy Knisley, and it is my hands-down favorite.** I've been reading her comics since 2009***, and I've admired the way she's grown and expanded in her skills as an illustrator and as a storyteller. That she focuses her pen on her own life only adds to that sense of growth; inevitably, both she as author and I as reader have gained perspective and maturity over the years.

I've encountered readers who found it difficult to relate to her earlier works because of  her youth. That generational differences are part of the focus for Displacement might add appeal to readers outside of the "Millennial" label, especially those readers who might be hearing of her work for the first time after her recent Eisner nomination.

Click to enlarge

Displacement focuses on Lucy's experience accompanying her 90-something grandparents on a Caribbean cruise. Lucy is adrift in her mid-twenties, facing all the uncertainty of career and personal life, while her grandparents are experiencing the decline and loss of their twilight years. The change in roles and responsibilities in their relationship is an aspect that I found particularly meaningful in my own reading. There's a billboard I pass every time I drive to visit my parents showing a young girl with her parents, and then the same family thirty-forty years in the future with the phrase "Roles Change" and I have to grip the steering wheel a little harder for a mile or two.

My favorite element of the book were the passages Lucy illustrated from the diary her grandfather kept during World War II. This added a depth to the narrative, which, by the nature of a memoir, has the danger of falling too deeply into the author's own experience. These passages created a fuller image of her grandparents by giving us a glimpse into their lives when they were 20-somethings themselves. It certainly contributed to the fact that I was tearing up by the end of the book.

~Sarah, Adult Services


*not counting her self-published titles or anthologies she's contributed to

**to be fair, I'm only halfway through reading her most recent book, Something New

***Full disclosure, Lucy Knisley is part of my sister's extended social circle, to the extent that my sister appeared in a few of Lucy's online comics. We've met once or twice, but this was many years ago.

Nine Books for Bike to Work Week

The annual celebration of the average bicyclist is coming! Are you ready for Bike to Work Week (May 16-20)? The Dubuque Bike Coop is coming to Carnegie-Stout Public Library to answer your questions about biking and give you the basics on bike care. We hope to see you there on Monday, May 9 at 6 p.m.

In the meantime, we've put together a short reading list for cycling enthusiasts:

Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen
(YA Fiction Dessen) When Auden impulsively goes to stay with her father, stepmother, and new baby sister the summer before she starts college, all the trauma of her parents' divorce is revived, even as she is making new friends and having new experiences such as learning to ride a bike and dating.

Around the World on Two Wheels by Peter Zheutlin
(Biog Londonderry) For more than a century, the story of the audacious and charismatic Annie Kopchovsky and her attempt to circle the world by wheel has been lost to history. Who was this mysterious young woman on a bike? How did she manage, in the 1890s, to make a trip around the world by bicycle?

Bicycle Diaries by David Byrne

(796.64 BYR) Since the early 1980s, renowned musician and visual artist David Byrne has been riding a bike as his principal means of transportation in New York City. Byrne's choice was initially made out of convenience rather than political motivation, but the more cities he saw from his bicycle, the more he became hooked on this mode of transport and the sense of liberation, exhilaration, and connection it provided.

Gold by Chris Cleave

(Fiction Cleave) Cyclists Zoe and Kate are friends and athletic rivals for Olympic gold, while Kate and her husband Jack, also a world-class cyclist, must contend with the recurrence of their young daughter's leukemia.

A Lady Cyclist's Guide to Kashgar by Suzanne Joinson
(Fiction Joinson) In 1923, devout Eva English and her not-so-religious sister Lizzie embark on a journey to be missionaries in the ancient Silk Road city of Kashgar.

Lanterne Rouge by Max Leonard
(796.62 LEO) Shares the lesser-known stories of last-place finishers in the Tour de France, recounting the inspirational and occasionally absurd events that shaped their efforts.

Life is a Wheel by Bruce Weber
(917.3 WEB) Riding a bicycle across the United States is one of those bucket-list goals that many dream about but few fulfill. In 2011 at the age of fifty-seven, New York Times obituary writer Bruce Weber made the trip alone and wrote about it as it unfolded mile by mile.

The Lost Cyclist by David Herlihy
(Biog Lenz) Herlihy's gripping narrative captures the soaring joys and constant dangers accompanying renowned high-wheel racer and long-distance tourist Frank Lenz in the days before paved roads and automobiles.

Shift by Jennifer Bradbury
(YA Fiction Bradbury) When best friends Chris and Win go on a cross country bicycle trek the summer after graduating and only one returns, the FBI wants to know what happened.