Description
Book SynopsisFollow Sue William Silverman, a one-woman cultural mash-up, on her exploration of identity among the mishmash of American idols and ideals that confuse most of us - or should. This searching, bracing, hilarious and moving book tries to make sense of that most troubling American condition: belonging, but to what?
Trade Review"A masterly stylist continues her uncompromising examination of the inner life."—
Kirkus Reviews“Silverman’s language is, by turns, blunt, wrenching, sophisticated, lyrical, tender, hilarious. She writes with wicked dark humor, splendid intelligence, wry wit, and honest confrontation. There’s no other book quite like it.”—Lee Martin, author of
From Our House“Although many of the topics and themes in these essays are somber and sincere, Silverman’s ever-present humor sets a self-deprecating tone. . . . Readers will relate to these stories, for while they’re directly about this writer’s spiritual journey, they’re also about the universal feeling that one doesn’t quite belong, and the fact that Silverman has survived, recovered, and discovered her true self gives hope to the rest of us.” —newpages.com
“Silverman’s writing is very alive. As a reader you feel immersed in her world, not just seeing it but feeling, tasting and smelling it.”—
The New Book Review“Filled with warmhearted humor and profound compassion, this tour de force exploration of the search for identity is a joy to behold.”—Kaylie Jones, author of
Lies My Mother Never Told Me“Silverman is the Tennessee Williams of memoir.”—Robert Vivian, author of
The Least Cricket of EveningTable of ContentsAcknowledgments Dear Gent[i]le Reader The Pat Boone Fan Club The Wandering Jew The Mercurialist Gentle Reader The Endless Possibilities of Youth Swimming Like a Gefilte Fish For Jews Only That Summer of War and Apricots The Invisible Synagogue Concerning Cardboard Ghosts, Rosaries, and the Thingness of Things Prepositioning John Travolta Gentle Reader Galveston Island Breakdown: Some Directions Gentle Reader The Fireproof Librarian Fahrvergnügen: A Road Trip through a Marriage Almond Butter in the Ruints I Was a Prisoner on the Satellite of Love (Featuring Crow T. Robot, Star, Mystery Science Theater 3000) 000See the Difference The New Pat Boone Show My Sorted Past Gentle Reader An Argument for the Existence of Free Will and/or Pat Boone’s Induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Encore
