Scan barcode
iancarpenter's review
4.0
3.5 love her writing, the time, the way she sees the world. Looking forward to something longer from her.
sydsnot71's review
5.0
This book is sort of autobiography but it reads like a combination of Bridget Jones Diary, something by Hunter S. Thompson and Dashiell Hammett. It's about growing up in L.A. in the 50s/60s.
It's one of the best books I've ever read.
There I said it.
It drifts along nicely and then smacks you around the head with something so brilliant, beautiful or funny that you want to underline it or save it so you can pretend you said it.
Babitz is, to quote the blurb on the back of the book, 'Journalist, party girl, bookworm, artist, muse...' There's a picture out there of her, naked, playing Duchamp at chess. It's a woman with a hinterland.
I'll finish with some quotes: [Contains swear word]
"With me, she came dramatically into focus on the third day because I saw her smile and her smile from that Garbo sadness broke the heavens open in choral arpeggios & the guy sitting next to me just sat there after she'd gone past. Just sat there."
"But my education has been through reading, which has been my salvation and backbone throughout life. The time I wanted to kill myself in New York, Domby and Son saved me. Charles Dickens is perfect for accidental hit-bottom. Anthony Trollope is too, but he's so divine it's a shame to waste him just because you're in trouble."
"John Wilcock (one of the founders of EVO) talked about me so much that some girl who got around started calling me "Wondercunt" before I'd even shown up..."
Read it. It's fucking marvellous.
It's one of the best books I've ever read.
There I said it.
It drifts along nicely and then smacks you around the head with something so brilliant, beautiful or funny that you want to underline it or save it so you can pretend you said it.
Babitz is, to quote the blurb on the back of the book, 'Journalist, party girl, bookworm, artist, muse...' There's a picture out there of her, naked, playing Duchamp at chess. It's a woman with a hinterland.
I'll finish with some quotes: [Contains swear word]
"With me, she came dramatically into focus on the third day because I saw her smile and her smile from that Garbo sadness broke the heavens open in choral arpeggios & the guy sitting next to me just sat there after she'd gone past. Just sat there."
"But my education has been through reading, which has been my salvation and backbone throughout life. The time I wanted to kill myself in New York, Domby and Son saved me. Charles Dickens is perfect for accidental hit-bottom. Anthony Trollope is too, but he's so divine it's a shame to waste him just because you're in trouble."
"John Wilcock (one of the founders of EVO) talked about me so much that some girl who got around started calling me "Wondercunt" before I'd even shown up..."
Read it. It's fucking marvellous.
lwb's review
4.0
A different time, place, universe than I grew up in, but sentences like this one won me over:
"My grandmother is brilliantly charming and a complete manipulator and a whiner and has a laugh that makes the birds shut up so they can learn something."
"My grandmother is brilliantly charming and a complete manipulator and a whiner and has a laugh that makes the birds shut up so they can learn something."
theincrediblemaja's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
corneliabull's review against another edition
Det er vanskelig å si om det er boken som er bra, eller om jeg er biased fordi jeg syns den dama er så jævlig kul:) Likte veldig godt og koste meg hele veien i hvertfall! Bare én bok av henne jeg ikke har lest ennå, hva skal jeg gjøre etter den😭
paradaisboi's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
isseyreads's review against another edition
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75