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kiribird's review against another edition
4.0
Johnson's delicate prose style holds up through a second read.
One line (inexplicably) still gets me -
"Either Lucien or Allen said, 'She has that quality of alert solitude.' I want to think it was Allen Ginsberg."
One line (inexplicably) still gets me -
"Either Lucien or Allen said, 'She has that quality of alert solitude.' I want to think it was Allen Ginsberg."
vetathebooksurfer's review against another edition
4.0
From a very young age I’ve been subconsciously taught that in order for a girl to live a life full of adventure and comprehend all walks of life you must fell in love with an extraordinary man (or boy, whatever is age appropriate) who is going to make your life so awesome, everyone would envy you. That life comes in return for your services, which are never domestic: you get a steady income, you support the family, you pursue a carrier path. But first comes the great love for the man who inspires you. That’s the only ‘natural’ way to get into a grown-up life.
Sounds appealing in theory, but how on earth this is ‘natural’? In that ultimate real life people are people, regardless of age, race, gender, sexuality, looks; they make mistakes and aren’t some kind of superheroes who rescue you at first notice. But also they do something, you don’t even notice right away: people inspire you to become the better version of yourself, for your own good only, not for someone else’s benefit. Everyone is an inspiration in their own way, and regarding mutual love as the ultimate outcome of being inspired is very wrong. Maturing together from a very young age is a miracle that should be celebrated as such and never pursued deliberately. I did, and i am very glad to understand I was wrong.
I recognised myself in Joyce Johnson’s ‘Minor Characters’, me and my teenage aquanauts, who thought about making music themselves. We, the fangirls, were inspired and at same time listened to ‘Female vocal doesn’t belong in rock-music, it’s not the same’, ‘I dislike the female lead’ and such. Despite the most popular band being 1) very nice people, 2) active feminists, 3) LGBTQ+ supporters, 4) celebrated wlw love, the other folk wasn’t very open-minded and having a musician love-interest felt like a ticket to the unknown world of ‘real life’. Wish anybody would tell us that we already have everything at our disposal and a love-interest wouldn’t make it easier (unless they have money to give away, which they never had). I’m so glad memoires like Minor Characters were written, so people would understand their own worth and won’t feel obliged to tie themselves to anybody despite their differences. It’s great to stay in someone else’s shadow until you mature though. But never at the expanse for your own identity.
Sounds appealing in theory, but how on earth this is ‘natural’? In that ultimate real life people are people, regardless of age, race, gender, sexuality, looks; they make mistakes and aren’t some kind of superheroes who rescue you at first notice. But also they do something, you don’t even notice right away: people inspire you to become the better version of yourself, for your own good only, not for someone else’s benefit. Everyone is an inspiration in their own way, and regarding mutual love as the ultimate outcome of being inspired is very wrong. Maturing together from a very young age is a miracle that should be celebrated as such and never pursued deliberately. I did, and i am very glad to understand I was wrong.
I recognised myself in Joyce Johnson’s ‘Minor Characters’, me and my teenage aquanauts, who thought about making music themselves. We, the fangirls, were inspired and at same time listened to ‘Female vocal doesn’t belong in rock-music, it’s not the same’, ‘I dislike the female lead’ and such. Despite the most popular band being 1) very nice people, 2) active feminists, 3) LGBTQ+ supporters, 4) celebrated wlw love, the other folk wasn’t very open-minded and having a musician love-interest felt like a ticket to the unknown world of ‘real life’. Wish anybody would tell us that we already have everything at our disposal and a love-interest wouldn’t make it easier (unless they have money to give away, which they never had). I’m so glad memoires like Minor Characters were written, so people would understand their own worth and won’t feel obliged to tie themselves to anybody despite their differences. It’s great to stay in someone else’s shadow until you mature though. But never at the expanse for your own identity.
rachaelgoesreading's review
4.0
So interesting to see this side of the story that is rarely told. Johnson has a unique perspective (which, in reality, was really not that unique, but often silenced) on life near the Beats and also life as a woman. Elise Cowen gets nods from people deeply invested in the Beats, but she’s about it, and rarely. Where were the women? For this reason — and for Johnson’s clear, captivating prose — I am happy to have read this book.
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