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On Memoir And Experiment The Chronology Of Water (2011)

by Lidia Yuknavitch(Favorite Author)

4.14 of 5 Votes: 4

languge

English

genre

Memoir & Autobiography

publisher

Hawthorn Books

review 1: My reason I'm rating this memoir 3.5 stars is because:#1) The title of this book fits the writing style. ('Parts' powerful and beautiful). Lovely water-human-connection-symbolism #2) I especially resonated with metaphors associate with WATER. "There are many ways to drown" "Knee deep in the water of our lives" "In water, like in books, you can leave your life"As for the 'entire' of this memoir --I might have enjoyed it more if I was 19 or 20 years old. Lidia claims to be a 'weird', an edgy, writer. I agree! I admire fearless souls & full self-expression, yet there is a theme throughout this book which points toward lacking respect. At the beginning of this story Lidia shares a tragic heartfelt story about the loss of her child. (h... moreer stillborn child)....Yet, she is later almost analytical in reporting about having had *3* Abortions under the age of 21. A very nonchalant attitude. Clearly Dysfunctional is the song of this novel.......Lidia was kicked out of college...She was an athletic swimmer -who became an alcoholic, gained weight, took drugs, and becomes a sex addict. ...As a grad student, Lidia sleeps with 3 Professors...Later as a Professor herself ...Lidia sleeps with a grad student (marries him)...When Lidia is fired from a teaching job for having an affair with a grad student --(she shows not an ounce of remorse), rather, self-righteous indignation. ...Lidia indulges in narcissistic self-awareness -- often using artsy-gimmick-shock-UP-IN-YOUR-FACE-'forced' excessive noncomformity-sexual descriptions....(almost to the point of 'fear' to follow-the-rule conform to any mainstream dignity). ...This author also does a lot of NAME DROPPING: Ken Kesey, Kathy Acker, James Taylor, Burroughs, the book "Tweak"....etc. The name dropping -with (I'M DIFFERENT, UNIQUE, *MOST* weird), comes off as a writer who is a little pretentious. Weather Lidia is pretentious or not, (she seems almost allergic to accordance and conformity. Nothing in this book was 'shocking' --or 'new'. (I had higher hopes for NEW & SHOCKING)... 'oh well'.I can't say I fully trust this is a truthful memoir either, yet I happen to be passionate about WATER --- I enjoyed the tide & current, Lidia created. It was hard NOT to have negative judgments for the choices Lidia made in her life. 3 Abortions is NOT a mistake ....This is a fast read --short chapters --less a 'book' --more a long blog!Do I recommend this book? Not Particularly. Two other books I recommend more are:1)"Dry" by Augusten Burroughs and 2)"This Is How"...Help for the Self ...Proven Aid in Overcoming: (shyness,molestation, fatness,spinsterhood, grief, disease, lushery, decrepitude)...and More for Young and Old Alike.The above two books are VERY INSPIRING!!! My final words about "The Chronology of Water" (a tip of advice)KNOW WHEN TO CHOOSE: Don't rock the boat and don't make waves,vs.Do rock the boat and do make waves
review 2: An unpleasant trek through author's childhood in a dysfunctional family with an alcoholic mother and an abusive father. The writing style is distracting and tedious as she attempts to depict her frame of mind during early life experiences and self-discovery. I nearly abandon this book but stuck with it because I was curious to know where she was going with this personal account of trauma, crises, anger, and self-destructive behavior. She does pull it out in the end, both in her life and in the writing style of her memoir. less

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