[I’d like to thank yeah right for starting the book articles going, and apologies for changing up the article naming convention, but I couldn’t resist]
Have you ever been to some sort of festival or concert filled with hippies and their kids (*coughcoughCUNTLERcoughcough*), or seen some picture of people with kids at Burning Man, and wondered what it would be like to be that kid? What would it be like to grow up with such free spirits taking care of you, especially if you fall in the lowest economic class? How would you handle sudden disasters that take everything away if you can’t rely on your parents to take the lead? How would it affect your life as you grew into adolescence and adulthood? And what if your sole parent was slowly dying?
Jason Schmidt’s excellent autobiographical book A List Of Things That Didn’t Kill Me may help provide some illumination on those questions. He was born to parents living on the fringe of hippie society in 70s–his mom soon left the family due to mental illness, and one of his earliest memories involved his dad being arrested for dealing drugs. The author makes an interesting distinction of the free-love middle class hippies that were around them–but not quite their people–and the poor, “white trash” hippie culture they belonged to. They weren’t part of the “straights” and weren’t part of the popular counterculture, either–no matter what, he was going to grow up different.
He also grows up at a very interesting time in our recent history, as hater, his dad–his sole caretaker–contracts HIV/AIDS at a time when there was barely a name for it. He crossed from childhood to adolescence in late 70s/early 80s Capitol Hill in Seattle, watching his dad’s friends waste away from a misunderstood and frightening disease that is being ignored by the establishment. It’s a striking look, even if it’s only part of the periphery, of a place and time sometimes forgotten today after years of amazing progress.
While this is classified as a “young adult” book, it has an incredible amount of layers. Jason’s father is not simply neglectful, but abusive as well. This abuse is not always brought to the forefront as much as the effects of it are on a developing psyche. The most chilling parts, to me, was how his father could instill doubt in him that the abuse was even happening–after all, when you are solely dependent on this person for practically everything in your life, you tend to base your sense of ‘normal’ off of whatever they may say and do. It’s insidious, but also illuminating.
Jason writes it very well, and if I had to give it any criticism, is that it ends too soon and too abruptly. It’s still an effective ending, and made me want to learn more about who he is today. It’s a complex story, but entirely believable thanks to his lack of embellishment and brutal honesty–reading about him self-destructing socially are some of the most cringe-inducing passages in the book, which is saying quite a bit.
On a readability scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, I give this an 9.
It’s a challenging read not because of the words, but because of the important and heartbreaking issues it tackles and the straightforward manner in which it presents them. It reads fast and you won’t want to put it down, especially if you ever grew up different in any way.
So, by “young adult”, does that mean that this book is recommended for high school kids to read? There are probably some good lessons in there, but if I was a kid I would NOT want to read something so heavy.
I hear that, although I think that age is sometimes the best one to give them some really frank looks at life–one of the reasons I think Sherman Alexie’s Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is so popular. Plus, kids and young adults at risk are probably least likely to connect with things that are too mainstream or comfortable or fictional–they have some really direct needs and tales of surviving situations like theirs may provide more value than literary works. There was one YA autobiography book I read a while ago about a guy who lit himself on fire (sort of a suicide attempt, sort of not) and survived, and it detailed his recovery. Another heavy one, but another one that could reach a lot of teens in that mixed up place so many can end up in. I’m much more in favor of giving teens the tough truths in literary form than I am comfortable dreams.
oh, kids absolutely more than a little cold dose of reality. It’s good for them to have perspective. As long as they have a foundation of love, they will be fine having their boats rocked a bit.
A little sense of entitlement can mushroom into a very dangerous (or at the very least, douchey) thing.
I don’t take my kids to the concert. I leave them in the hot car with the window cracked, like any responsible parent. Also, who else is supposed to drive me home?
I’m also curious to see how many of us prefer fiction or nonfiction. I’ve seen komments both here and on the mother blog from some who prefer nonfiction.
I’m a fiction guy myself although I’ve read and enjoyed many nonfiction books.
To me it’s the escapism and I’ve always been amazed by imagination. When an author can come up with a truly original idea, which is indeed rare, it’s like discovering a new food or a new song that you never knew existed.
When I have the time (which is rare recently), I prefer fiction. I’d rather lose myself in something I know isn’t real and allow my imagination to take over.
I lean towards nonfiction, particularly historical events. I prefer to read about a past event with some historical perspective, and how those events impact what’s going on today.
I tend to do more fiction than non-fiction, but it can depend on the writer and my mood at the time. I find both to be really important.
I like both. It really depends more on the subject matter. If I’m interested in it, it doesn’t matter if it is made up or not. One could argue that all history is made up anyway.
I alternate fiction with the non. For fiction I tend to grab hold of a writer and read all his (not her-this is a problem) stuff. For non I read in clusters (The Ottoman Empire or the “formation” of the Middle East or post World War conferences) so that I can be not a moron if the topic ever comes up. (it never does)
The Battle of Bretton Woods is an interesting chronicle of the conferences that took place to rebuild Europe’s economy after WWII.
Good stuff OSZ. I’ve found that there are quite a few books labeled as “young adult” that are exceptional. Have you read “The Book Thief”? It was fucking incredible. It was also labeled as “young adult”.
I love the change to the naming convention. I give it a “Harrummphh”.