moe

This is one of the most engaging nonfiction books I've read. Janis tells the story of her life, her music and the music industry. Nicely written, beautifully read. One aspect that really set this one apart for me was the natural way that Janis sings and plays the guitar at the beginning of every chapter and throughout the book. It has the feel of sitting in your living room and having Janis tell you her life story. Amazing!

I've been a fan of Janis Ian's music since 1967. However, I knew precious little about her personal life. Janis lays out key events in her life, good and bad, without whining about the bad or over indulging in her success. Hers is a life lived out loud without regrets. In the end, it is a story about her music (which clearly is in her DNA) the power of the human spirit and the power of music.

Book opens with Janis telling the story of performing Society's Child in front of an audience with the small number of racial bigots heckling the 15-year-old star.

I had a very difficult time getting into this book. About the first third of the book seems to be painfully slow and rambling. It definitely picks up after that and the story is pretty good. I couldn't seem to get into the writing style, which seemed rather weighty and self-indulgent to me. I love good descriptive writing but the overuse of adjectives and analogies made me feel frustrated. I really don't need to hear at least a half a dozen times about how Karla has green eyes that resemble??? an ocean, a lagoon or whatever else you could possibly think of.