Never Broken

Songs Are Only Half the Story

De: Jewel

Narrado por: Jewel

New York Times best-selling poet and multiplatinum singer-songwriter Jewel explores her unconventional upbringing and extraordinary life in an inspirational memoir that covers her childhood, rise to fame, marriage, and motherhood.

When Jewel's first album, Pieces of You, topped the charts in 1995, her emotional voice and vulnerable performance were groundbreaking. In the tradition of Joan Baez and Joni Mitchell (she has been compared to both), a singer-songwriter of her kind had not emerged in decades. Now, with over 30 million albums sold worldwide, Jewel tells the story of her life and the lessons learned from her experience and her music.

Living on a homestead in Alaska, Jewel learned to yodel at age three and joined her parents' act, working in hotels, honky-tonks, and biker bars. Behind a strong-willed and independent family life, with an emphasis on music and artistic talent, was also instability, abuse, and trauma.

At age 15 Jewel was accepted into the prestigious Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, where she began writing her own songs as a means of expression. She was 18, homeless, and living out of her car in San Diego when a radio DJ aired a bootleg version of one of her songs. It was requested in the top-10 countdown, something unheard of for an unsigned artist. By age 21, her debut album went multiplatinum.

There is so much more to Jewel's story, one complicated by family and financial woes, by crippling fear and insecurity, by parents who forced a child to grow up far too quickly, and by the extraordinary circumstances in which she became a world-famous singer and songwriter. Here Jewel reflects on how she survived and how writing songs, poetry, and prose have saved her life many times over. She writes beautifully about the natural wonders of Alaska, about pain and childhood trauma, and about discovering her own identity years after the entire world had discovered the beauty of her songs.

©2015 Jewel (P)2015 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Behind the Songs

Jewel is a poet, a songwriter, but above all a storyteller. In her terrific autobiography, she describes her family's history, her growing up, her mistakes, successes, and lessons learned along the way.
I loved that this was about Jewel, the woman, and less about Jewel, the singer/songwriter. You can't have one without the other, but as the biography says, songs are only half the story.

Well-written, well-performed, raw and honest. Great work!

life changing story I have recommended it to every

life changing story! I have recommended it to many of my friends very grateful I had a chance to read this book

An honest view on her own life with no lewd text

Jewel Kilcher describes her life skipping the most personal episodes, but, nevertheless, coming out as an honest account of events and other people in her life. She describes her emotions attached with the events in her diary so that reader clearly sees the naive attempts to blame her shortcomings and poor decisions to "badness" of other people as what these attempts were: the attempts to justify and reinterpret. This is what makes the book so valuable: the reader feels like "s/he gets into her skin."

It is important to remember that this is a real life story. If that were a fiction, I would not have given this book more than 2 stars, as characters are not fully developed, decisions people make are not clear and in many times without explainable causes, etc. But this is what Jewel felt and observed and provided logic she thought of convincing, etc. Wonderful and refreshing stuff. [Just as illustration: Jewel fired and later obviously unfairly brought lawsuits against the person who brought her to fame from desperation and homelessness without any justifiable reason and blames this all on her love for her faulty mother and doing business... But she is brutally honest about her actions, her motivations, and her justifications...] The only reason I gave this book 4 stars instead of 5 is because in the end of the book the author spends way too much time moralizing the reader with her psychoanalytical babbling which reminded me the feeling I get when a seriously obese person tries to lecture you about "the right diet" but she rewards you with her beautiful lyrics, her voice, her honesty...

The presentation is amazing!! Jewel writes reads her own books and sings her own songs -- really magnificently. I really enjoyed and appreciated the work of this VERY hard-working woman!

Substance and Style

Very open and honest, full of life experiences and the lesions learned through success and failure. Entertaining also.

A beautiful Memoir and Inspirational

Would you consider the audio edition of Never Broken to be better than the print version?

I always find it nice when the author does the reading. Jewel also sang for us, I found that to be so intimate.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Never Broken?

Hearing about her relationship to her little boy. She is a great role model.

Which character – as performed by Jewel – was your favorite?

Jewel herself.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I had no idea about Jewel's past. Living in her car and having all those anxiety's. It is admirable how well she worked through her issues.

Any additional comments?

Such a well written memoir and part self help book. Jewel is very humble through it all.

So healing to listen to this book

This is quite a journey of self discovery and transmuting hardship into wisdom. I feel so much heavy shit has been released in my being just by listening to this and self reflecting on memories of my childhood. I can already think of at least 10 people to share this with, but I realize that this was meant for me in every way. I truly feel grateful for Jewel sharing her music and her life in this book. 💫🥲💛 Thank you.

Listen to this book

I was skeptical about this book as I’m not one to like listening to celebrities stories. This story was inspiring and amazing in every way. I’m a better person for listening to this!

Amazing story

Jewel is such a remarkable, resilient, incredibly gifted young woman. She is so unique- she has the ability to look at herself without self-pity. I loved hearing her story. I pray for God’s blessings in her life.

Very inspiring story. It hits home.

I remember when Jewel first came out. I met a friend from Kodiak who claimed to have met her in Alaska. I heard her play a Jewel song, and I saw this depth in music that I had never seen before. I knew that it came from a deep place. I knew then I had to go to Alaska. This story is the real grit and determination it takes to make it in this world. I am so glad to hear your story. I am living in Haines Alaska and believe in the Alaskan lifestyle!

Encouraging and Uplifting

Exquisitely written and beautifully narrated. Hooked from the first sentence. Absorbed until the last period.