Helpful Score: 3
A dark, well-written slice of Southern life. A slim book--only 94 pages--this was a National Book Award finalist.
From Publishers Weekly
Allison\'s much-praised novel Bastard Out of Carolina was inspired by her childhood in Greenville, South Carolina, but in this memoir, adapted from a performance piece, she cuts even closer to the bone. \"We don\'t have a family Bible?\" the author\'s fourth-grade self asks her aunt. \"Child, some days we don\'t even have a family,\" comes the response. If Allison suffered horrors--notably rape by her stepfather when she was five-- she has transmuted pain into stories, gaining control with maturity. Indeed, her title prefaces several hard-won aphorisms she uses to counterpoint her memories: \"No one is as hard as my uncles had to pretend to be.\" Her mother was a beauty, as was her sister, but Dorothy, smart and plain, felt a legacy of ugliness, one she shook off slowly as her feminism and her heart led her to lesbian relationships, often painful, finally rewarding. She is now, in her 40s, a new mother, and her stories--and life--are a triumph of love over cruelty. Read it aloud and savor the rhythms.
From Publishers Weekly
Allison\'s much-praised novel Bastard Out of Carolina was inspired by her childhood in Greenville, South Carolina, but in this memoir, adapted from a performance piece, she cuts even closer to the bone. \"We don\'t have a family Bible?\" the author\'s fourth-grade self asks her aunt. \"Child, some days we don\'t even have a family,\" comes the response. If Allison suffered horrors--notably rape by her stepfather when she was five-- she has transmuted pain into stories, gaining control with maturity. Indeed, her title prefaces several hard-won aphorisms she uses to counterpoint her memories: \"No one is as hard as my uncles had to pretend to be.\" Her mother was a beauty, as was her sister, but Dorothy, smart and plain, felt a legacy of ugliness, one she shook off slowly as her feminism and her heart led her to lesbian relationships, often painful, finally rewarding. She is now, in her 40s, a new mother, and her stories--and life--are a triumph of love over cruelty. Read it aloud and savor the rhythms.
Helpful Score: 2
By far one of the best books I have read in a long time!
I cannot remember ever having read something so poignant, and lyrical. It was developed through live readings and this book has the presence of a performance. Not only because of the use of the refrain "two or three things I know for sure...." but also because it's interspersed with images. It was very moving and touching. I read Bastard out of Carolina and realized after reading Two or Three Things that she wrote about many personal experiences in that book, which is what made it so good.
I cannot remember ever having read something so poignant, and lyrical. It was developed through live readings and this book has the presence of a performance. Not only because of the use of the refrain "two or three things I know for sure...." but also because it's interspersed with images. It was very moving and touching. I read Bastard out of Carolina and realized after reading Two or Three Things that she wrote about many personal experiences in that book, which is what made it so good.
Touching Memoir that brings back memories of reading Bastard Out of Carolina
one of the best books i've read
This short book by the author of "Bastard Out of Carolina" is remarkably well written. Allison originally wrote "Two or Three Things I know for Sure" for performance, and you certainly hear her voice as you read. She offers glimpses of her family history, growing up poor and abused in the rural South and her struggle to build a life story from that pain. Highly recommend.
I did not like this book. It was loose and disjointed. Not much of a story. It was very short. Maybe since her book "Bastard Out of Carolina" was so good she cranked out another right away. Very disappointed.
Quick read by quite a good memoir
Hardcover book in perfect condition and dust jacket is excellent. I have not read the book, so I have not rated it.
Summary:
Allison's much-praised novel Bastard Out of Carolina was inspired by her childhood in Greenville, S.C., but in this memoir, adapted from a performance piece, she cuts even closer to the bone. "We don't have a family Bible?" the author's fourth-grade self asks her aunt. "Child, some days we don't even have a family," comes the response. If Allison suffered horrors, notably rape by her stepfather when she was five, she has transmuted pain into stories, gaining control with maturity. Indeed, her title prefaces several hard-won aphorisms she uses to counterpoint her memories: "No one is as hard as my uncles had to pretend to be." Her mother was a beauty, as was her sister, but Dorothy, smart and plain, felt a legacy of ugliness, one she shook off slowly as her feminism and her heart led her to lesbian relationships, often painful, finally rewarding. She is now, in her 40s, a new mother, and her stories?and life?are a triumph of love over cruelty. Read it aloud and savor the rhythms.
Summary:
Allison's much-praised novel Bastard Out of Carolina was inspired by her childhood in Greenville, S.C., but in this memoir, adapted from a performance piece, she cuts even closer to the bone. "We don't have a family Bible?" the author's fourth-grade self asks her aunt. "Child, some days we don't even have a family," comes the response. If Allison suffered horrors, notably rape by her stepfather when she was five, she has transmuted pain into stories, gaining control with maturity. Indeed, her title prefaces several hard-won aphorisms she uses to counterpoint her memories: "No one is as hard as my uncles had to pretend to be." Her mother was a beauty, as was her sister, but Dorothy, smart and plain, felt a legacy of ugliness, one she shook off slowly as her feminism and her heart led her to lesbian relationships, often painful, finally rewarding. She is now, in her 40s, a new mother, and her stories?and life?are a triumph of love over cruelty. Read it aloud and savor the rhythms.
