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rleibrock's review against another edition
5.0
Kristin Hersh's "Rat Girl" deconstructs the notion of memoir. The book takes place during only one tumultuous year during the singer's life but it manages to cover so much: Bi-polar disorder, her band Throwing Muse's record deal and recording of their first album and the pregnancy and birth of her first child.
If someone wasn't familiar with Hersh or Throwing Muses and picked up this book he or she would probably be confused. Hersh is vague about a lot of the details on things that exist around her so I could see someone feeling slighted--as if she were only telling the smallest slice of the story.
And yet her voice on paper (just as on record) is so vibrant--alternately dark and grim, caustic, sad, happy and very very funny--that I think it's enough to carry any reader along.
I've been a Throwing Muses/Hersh fan since I was 19 and I loved this book for its insight, honesty and, most of all, ability to make me laugh out loud.
If someone wasn't familiar with Hersh or Throwing Muses and picked up this book he or she would probably be confused. Hersh is vague about a lot of the details on things that exist around her so I could see someone feeling slighted--as if she were only telling the smallest slice of the story.
And yet her voice on paper (just as on record) is so vibrant--alternately dark and grim, caustic, sad, happy and very very funny--that I think it's enough to carry any reader along.
I've been a Throwing Muses/Hersh fan since I was 19 and I loved this book for its insight, honesty and, most of all, ability to make me laugh out loud.
sidewriter's review
3.0
This book is fascinating. It’s also disjointed and occasionally boring, but it’s worth it because it feels like an authentic glimpse into an artist’s mind and a true representation of the simultaneity of mental illness and mental brilliance. The rules don’t apply here; Hersh plays with narrative form, genre, memoir, fiction, and everything your writing teacher ever told you to do or not to do. The prose is interspersed with song lyrics and has a raw, stream-of-consciousness feel to it that might be off-putting, but is probably the only way to represent the untidiness of art and mental health. Added feminist bonus: you also get to see an untidy pregnancy story that demonstrates why we can and must trust pregnant women to make their own decisions.
sjones08's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.0
audaciaray's review
4.0
A really lovely, haunting glimpse into one year in the life of a rising musician (I typoed that as "magician" on the first try - it fits), soon-to-be-mom, and newly diagnosed bipolar woman. Jumping down the rabbit hole with Kristin Hersh is a wonderful way to go. Her writing about her experiences is lucid and dreamy at the same time, and her descriptions of her mental health struggles, plus the physical and emotive sensations of performing on stage as well as being pregnant are truly exceptional.
emily_stimmel's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
4.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Suicide attempt