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A review by juperez
My Autobiography of Carson McCullers: A Memoir by Jenn Shapland
5.0
'My Autobiography of Carson McCullers' gives us unfettered access into the lives of two writers: Jenn Shapland, grad student and archivist, wading through the murky waters of her queerness; Carson McCullers, the oft-misunderstood phenom behind the beloved 'The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter.' And it is by sheer accident (maybe fate) that their stories meet.
Employing a dazzling blend of memoir and biography, Shapland describes a chance encounter with McCullers' letters, re-introduces us to one of the twentieth century's most prolific artists, and recovers a hidden history of repressed queerness, drawing parallels to her own story along the way. In McCullers, Shapland finds a muse and through Shapland, McCullers' story receives the treatment its long been denied.
The pair share an intimate kinship that bridges decades and their joint narrative is at once powerful and utterly necessary. This is a story that should be read over and over and over.
Employing a dazzling blend of memoir and biography, Shapland describes a chance encounter with McCullers' letters, re-introduces us to one of the twentieth century's most prolific artists, and recovers a hidden history of repressed queerness, drawing parallels to her own story along the way. In McCullers, Shapland finds a muse and through Shapland, McCullers' story receives the treatment its long been denied.
The pair share an intimate kinship that bridges decades and their joint narrative is at once powerful and utterly necessary. This is a story that should be read over and over and over.