Tag: Bios / Memoirs

by Barbara Stok

From the same graphic novel series as Gauguin, this one is of course about Vincent van Gogh. It centers around the time period he spent in southern France, when he lived in the little yellow house, leading up to and after the incident when he cut off his ear. A fact which used to horrify and shock me when I was younger, but now reading more about his probable mental illness, I just feel sad and dismayed at the enormous distress he must have been in. This book doesn’t speculate much on what his illness actually was though. It depicts his life and some conversations, interactions with his brother Theo (based on his many letters), with other artists and some of the general public. He was consumed with the desire to paint, to share his vision, to capture the beauty of the landscape he saw around him. Struggling to make ends meet, mostly supported by his brother, unable to keep himself or his rooms tidy, often driving people away with his ranting about ideals on art and his vision. At least, it seemed like that to me- the story shows Gauguin coming to stay with him in the little yellow house, where they worked side by side for a while, until Gauguin couldn’t take the intensity anymore and left. Vincent had episodes of depression and then frenetic energy, shown with the panels darkened by lots of black or grey dots diffusing everything, or his nonstop talking, and sometimes jagged lines surrounding him in a kind of aura. I interpreted that as showing his anxiety. It also depicts a period of time he spent in an asylum, though of course the treatment for his illness was probably rudimentary. This book doesn’t have a visual style mimicking that of the artist as closely as the Gauguin one did, but there were numerous scenes, sketches and paintings I recognized, and near the end quite a few shown with the many small energetic brushstrokes that look so familiar. I’m glad I read this one- it was quick and easy to get through, it felt expressive even though the drawings are simple in style, and I feel like I know quite a bit more about Van Gogh now.

Borrowed from the public library.

Rating: 3/5
144 pages, 2015

A Memoir About Living With Cancer

by Teva Harrison

It’s difficult to know what to say about this one. The author tells, very frankly and with plenty of humor at times, what is it like living day-to-day with a terminal cancer. The pain, suffering, odd hours visits to hospital, what the doctors do and don’t tell her, the awkward things people say to her, or how complete strangers comment on things unknowing. She had no outward signs of being ill- people on the bus or street wouldn’t guess she was living with cancer, often too exhausted to even get out of bed. It really made her think deeply about how many other people are walking around with problems or illness that are just invisible. How we ought to be so much kinder to each other. How unfair it all was. And she faced it so bravely. She was a gardener and an artist and loved cooking. There was a lot in here I simply didn’t know, about what it is like to go through cancer treatment- in her case mostly palliative measures- it was very eye-opening and solemn and much of it just made me feel sad. And yet she still had hope through most of it, and lived each day the best she could. Admirable.

Please read some of the other reviews, linked to below. Borrowed from the public library.

Rating: 4/5
163 pages, 2016

The Other World

by Fabrizio Dori

From a graphic novel series about famous artists. I might look for more of them. This was pretty interesting. It reminded me a lot of The Moon and Sixpence, being also about the life of Paul Gaugin. Though of course, the other was fictionalized. There was much familiar here- Guagin’s sudden passion for art which he began doing full-time later in life. His apparent disregard for other people’s feelings- particularly his wife and children. He was a stockbroker before suddenly turning to art. Moved to France and showed alongside the impressionists, and felt strongly rejected. Decided bitterly to ditch it all, leave the annoyances and strictures of “filthy lucre” and society behind, and go live somewhere simpler.

Tahiti. He stayed in a hut among the natives, struggling to live at first because he didn’t have the skills of fishing and hunting they subsisted on. He wandered the hillsides, places the locals shunned because they believed spirits and ghosts lived there. In this book he learns ancient myths and stories from his young native wife and then communes with a spirit who comes to his deathbed. In fact a lot of it is told from the viewpoint of the spirit, or is a narrative that Gaugin tells the spirit who leads him somewhere. It was a bit muddled (to me). I found most interesting the parts where he interacted with the natives, or with his wife- the contrast in their attitudes and cultures, and yet he apparently found some peace there. At least, he was able to indulge in his painting. Until he ran out of money and materials, sent all his paintings back to Europe hoping to make sales, and then abruptly left Tahiti. I felt so bad for the young “wife” he had there. One of my favorite scenes in the book is where she begs him to buy her a pair of earrings from a visiting foreigner, and he thinks they aren’t worth the asking price. He finally relents- and then she never wears them! It just had more expression for the faces than other pages- she was usually so placid and calm. In the end, he is destitute and suffering from disease, and dies alone back on Tahiti (never looked for or found his wife when he returned. Why? I’d sure like a story from her viewpoint).

One thing I really admired about this book is that the artwork closely mirrored Gaugin’s style. Many pages depicted scenes and paintings that I recognized. I liked that.

Borrowed from the public library.

Rating: 3/5
144 pages, 2016

More opinions: Bookish Beck
anyone else?

by Jason Adam Katzenstein

This book is about the author’s experience living with OCD. How as a child he was overwhelmed by worries and fears, then later on became obsessed with tidiness (picking up every little bit of litter he saw), avoiding germs, fretting about relationships, and more. It seems the repetitive thoughts and worries would come in waves, shifting at different times in his life. He tried various means of finding control, resisted the idea of taking medication or going through exposure therapy for a long time. Friends and family tried to help, but only so much they could do. It reminded me a lot of The Man Who Couldn’t Stop– and the resolution in the end was the same- after hitting his lowest moments when he literally could not leave his room anymore. Then he sought professional help, facing his fears repeatedly in order to cause the thoughts to extinguish themselves and no longer have power over him. In combination with medications, too. It was good to see a positive ending. The illustrations are great. There were a few parts I just could not relate to (about the cat, including the one featured in a recurring nightmare. I just didn’t get it). But the rest felt familiar territory, according to what I know about this mental illness. Breezed through this one in a single sitting.

Borrowed from the public library.

Rating: 3/5                    
246 pages, 2020

Life and Legend

by Box Brown

Story of André the Giant. Who I really only knew about from The Princess Bride movie, I was never into watching pro wrestling. But that was his main occupation, so of course the book mostly followed that. It was interesting to learn so much- about his youth, his genetic condition, how his health suffered from gigantism. How he interacted with friends, fellow wrestlers and his managers. How he supported the sport of pro wrestling (yes, apparently much of it is staged and theatrical, but that doesn’t mean it’s “fake”- at least that’s what I came away with from this book). Myriad stories highlighting André’s strength, and showing his sense of humor. It kept professing how much the fans admired him for being “the gentle giant” but I didn’t really see much of that. His gentleness. Except his kindness to homeless people once in a while. Mostly I was struck by how when drunk (and he drank a lot), he would get belligerent and use bad language. I suppose that was the contrast- that aggressive side came out when he’d been drinking. And he liked to play cards. And he often had difficulties because of his size: couldn’t fit into spaces, beds, airplane seats, taxi cars, etc. I think the best part was near the end, where he deliberately let Hulk Hogan beat him in a wrestling match, taking the role of “villain” to catapult the Hulk into fame- because André was ready to be done. Constant back and knee pain, tired all the time (heart problems). I appreciate that the afterward pages list incidents and tell where the stories were verified or not- because otherwise I would have no idea.

That said, it was a bit hard to follow at times because it jumped around and had very little preamble to any of the events- choppy and short, except some of the wrestling scenes which went on for pages and pages. And that part wasn’t the most interesting to me, so a few times I thought I was put this aside unfinished. Thus the rating. It would probably be better appreciated by someone who already knows quite a bit about André or is a fan, this would round things out. For me, it wasn’t quite enough detail or continuity to “get” it all.

Borrowed from the public library. I found out there’s another graphic novel about his life: André the Giant: Closer to Heaven by Brandon Easton, which tells the same anecdotes and history, but in a different perspective. I’d sure be curious to read that and compare them, but the two public libraries I’m currently using, neither has a copy. (Maybe inter-library loan again).

Rating: 2/5
240 pages, 2014

by Torey Hayden

Sequel to One Child. Glad I finally read this, it’s been on my list for so many years. It was just as gripping as the first book, though a lot of parts are depressing. Years after the events in the previous book, the author decided to write the story and have it published. She wanted to find Sheila- now thirteen- and have her read the manuscript first. It took a lot of work tracking the girl down, as she’d moved with her father and Hayden hadn’t seen her in seven years. When they finally met again, it was very awkward at first, and Hayden was surprised at Sheila’s appearance. She had expected something different. She thought she’d made more of an impact on the girl, back when she was six. But it seems that not as much had changed as she’d hoped. When the teacher moved on to another job and location, Sheila continued to struggle, continued to live in poverty with her abusive father. The brilliance that Hayden saw hadn’t pulled her forward into better situations like she had expected. If anything, Sheila was angry and resentful- she felt that her teacher had exposed her to so much that she couldn’t maintain or achieve on her own- from cleanliness, affection and safety to the impetus of a quality education. On her side, Hayden was humbled by the realization she hadn’t really “saved” this child from her bad living situation at all, upset that nothing had worked out to give Sheila a good future, and frustrated with her in turn- as events unfold in the book, more bad stuff happens, more stress, more revelations about what those five months when Sheila was six had meant and done for her- and in the end, yes Sheila finally got herself a job and independence (now seventeen) but her years in “the system” of schools and foster care and group homes had left her so bitter about it all that her aspirations didn’t match what Hayden had imagined for her. The teacher felt like Sheila was falling short of her potential, but Sheila had to make of her life what she wanted, to be her own person.

I couldn’t help thinking while I read this, especially the parts where Sheila and Hayden discuss things from the classroom when she was six (she had forgotten most of it), how much it must have affected Sheila, to read a book written about her when she was a kid. Describing her actions and words in such detail. Not at all flattering, some of it. I think I’d be very uncomfortable to have things from my childhood preserved so clearly for the world to read. Like Christopher Milne. And it was troubling to see how some things that got confused in Sheila’s mind, equating the early abandonment from her mother with being left by her teacher when that school year ended, had hurt her so deeply and become something she always obsessed and fretted over. It was good to see them finally talking about the most difficult things and resolving issues together, but it was also sobering to see how strongly something could negatively affect a young person for years, when the other person involved didn’t realize it was so significant. A lot more in this book than I can write about here, it’s one I do want to read again someday.

This isn’t really a memoir, but it’s a true story so I categorized it with those.

Rating: 4/5
264 pages, 1995

by Torey Hayden

I decided to read this book again, because as I was starting its sequel, The Tiger’s Child, I really felt like the first three chapters were taken straight from the first book. So much was vividly familiar, I thought- when is it going to get to the new narrative? how much is she going to retell? So I went back to the first one to see how repetitive it was, and realized right away that she had just marvelously summarized the first book, but it was done so well, with all the most important bits related, that I had thought it was entire. Anyhow, I was gripped again by the story from when Shelia was six years old. A very intelligent but also emotionally disturbed little girl, she was put in the author’s special education class as a temporary measure- the courts decreed sending her to a mental institution after she was caught harming a younger child (she set a three-year-old on fire). At first she didn’t speak and acted wildly out of control, but soon the teacher realized she was quite smart, and her actions deliberate (she knew just how to get perfect revenge on anybody). With a lot of patience and work, she was able to get through Sheila’s barriers, gain the child’s trust, and start to teach her. Sheila could already read and do math problems on her own, but where she lacked was emotional control. She’d been neglected and abused, had never known kindness from adults. The author provided as much as she could, all the while knowing that maybe she should keep more distance- but feeling that she had to help as much as possible. She delighted in watching Sheila unfold, learning new things, having new experiences, and as the end of school year approached, fought with the courts to keep Sheila out of the institution. Felt that this child could have a much brighter future if just given the chance.

This book isn’t long, but it is full of details that bring the classroom alive, the interactions of Sheila with the other children (all with mental or emotional problems), and with her teacher and the aides. Their discussions on difficult topics. Their battles over paperwork (Sheila refused to do it- violently). The delicate matter of trying to give Sheila some much-needed items (like clothing) without offending her father. And a lot from the adult’s perspective, how she tried different teaching and discipline methods when something didn’t work, for example. How much effort she made on this child’s behalf, admiring her tenacity. The other children in the class (there were eight) are rather flat characters, only a few of them stood out to me as individuals, this story is so focused on Sheila. It does make me curious to read more of the author’s works though- they’re all about troubled children.

Rating: 4/5
222 pages, 1980

A Young Man's Voice from the Silence of Autism

by Naoki Higashida

I have this book on my e-reader, and started it during the winter vacation. That’s how long it’s taken me to read it. The chapters are very short, just a page or two each, but they are quite abstract, dealing with the author’s thoughts and thought process more than anything else. I don’t know why that made it hard to focus on. Perhaps because it’s not a story per se, no narrative arc to follow, but instead a description of what this young man’s life is like, how he perceives and thinks about things. A lot about what he wishes neurotypical people could understand about those living with autism. He explains as best he can the reasons behind his behavior, what causes meltdowns, why he gets stuck on certain phrases, has trouble connecting ideas, makes sounds he doesn’t want to, and so on. A lot of things it seems are involuntary or difficult for him to control, but he implores people to not give up on coaching autistic people in their lives to continue practicing skills and learning new things. For him it takes many many repetitions to get better at something. He expresses a lot of love for his family treats him, how normal they treat him and how much patience they have. He tells about how he feels frustrated with certain phrases and aphorisms that teachers and people in public use towards him. Most of all, the book is astonishing in how eloquent and expressive it is- nobody knew this kid could think so clearly until he learned to write with a device. I wish I could have processed this one better, but I think I will read it again in future.

Same author as The Reason I Jump. This book is not just his musings and explanations of things, but also includes some of his poetry and one short story.

Rating: 3/5
240 pages, 2017

by Ruth Horowitz

I finished this book several days ago but have been mulling over what to say about it. Difficult to write about a book that strikes such a somber note. To my surprise, it was easy to comprehend- probably because of the very straightforward, matter-of-fact writing style. I found myself reading several chapters in a row and not wanting to stop, an experience I’d been missing lately. It’s written by a woman on the autism spectrum, who received a diagnosis later in life and suddenly had a new understanding of all her experiences. She looks back on her life introspective, examines everything with this new paradigm. I found it hard to put down.

From the beginning, when she felt different from other kids, struggled to understand social norms, and how growing up in an abusive and neglectful household affected her. Through her years in university, studying environmental sciences, and her many different occupations- the actual work was never a challenge for her, but getting along with co-workers and being micromanaged by superiors was, so she frequently lost jobs and had to look again. Over and over again though, she points out her strengths, attributes and skills she excelled in. And how they were sometimes overlooked by others for petty reasons. Half her life was spent living in Israel, so for a long time she assumed that her social difficulties in the US were due to growing up in a different culture. She loved cats and other animals, said she could write a whole book about her cats, but nobody would read it. That’s wrong! I would read that book. I’d read one about her work with horses, too- she owned several at one point, did training, and was a judge for jumping competitions. All this plus other varied occupations including harvesting prickly pears, doing lawn treatments for a landscaping company, research assistant in universities, safety inspections for the county, and even military service (when she lived in Israel).

It was all intriguing to read about, such an interesting life, but such heartbreak too. Abusive relationships, many which she said little about- there are holes here and there in the narrative but I understand some things are just too painful to write about- feeling betrayed by employers, ignored or gaslighted by doctors when she was sick or in pain, the list goes on. And it’s dismaying that the book doesn’t end on a hopeful note- when she finished writing it she had given up attempting to find work again (in spite of having earned her degree and proven she could do some of the best work in her field) and gone on disability. But the author notes that she wrote her memoir to help make others aware what it is like to live neurodivergent in a society that expects everyone to follow the same norms, not even being able to communicate effectively a lot of the time. And to help others see it in themselves, if they might be autistic. Adults and especially women, often fail to get diagnosed because it is not recognized, or there are no services available, or it is too expensive. The final pages of her book summarize current needs of autistic adults, accommodations and supports that currently are not provided (or not adequately enough) and advocating for help- to allow them to be themselves and recognize their contributions. Not forcing everyone into the same mold.

I appreciated reading this book and it’s one I will probably go through again. I apologize if my thoughts here are disjointed- while I found it an easier read, it was harder to put my thoughts down on the page about it. A valuable, eye-opening and sobering book.

I received a copy of this book from a publicist who worked with the author, in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 4/5
198 pages, 2024

adapted by Don Brown

by Beryl Markham

This is adapted from an account that Beryl Markham wrote in her memoir, West with the Night. Which I have read, but I only vaguely remember this incident now. When she was a child, she visited a neighboring farm with her father. Walked off into the bush to look for something- just exploring as a kid. Nobody thought much of it. But the neighbor had a tame lion that roamed at will, and it stalked her. One of the neighbor’s workers saw it following her and rushed up with some other hands, just in time to startle the lion off- it had pounced, pinned her down and bitten her leg. Nobody did anything to the lion in the moment (they would have beaten it but it fled), but when later it started killing livestock, it was shut up in a cage. And stayed there until it died, many years later. The author though, harbored no ill feeling towards the lion, she said it was only doing what instinct drove it to. I really don’t understand the title of this book, though- and it’s shelved among juvenile non-fiction! I think a lot of kids would find this story disturbing or downright frightening. And personally, I didn’t care for the illustrations at all. Not recommended, sorry.

Borrowed from the public library.

Rating: 2/5
32 pages, 2005

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All books reviewed on this site are owned by me, or borrowed from the public library. Exceptions are a very occasional review copy sent to me by a publisher or author, as noted. Receiving a book does not influence my opinion or evaluation of it

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