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jonscott9's reviews
204 reviews
The Magic Border by Arlo Parks
3.0
Some lovely passages, and a lot of pop-cultural references and existential and relational themes. Vibe-y photos complement a number of these pieces, and I took on a new appreciation for the writer’s songs by way of reading them as lyric sheets or poems. Arlo Parks continues to be an intriguing, thoughtful voice in British, Black and queer art.
Me: Elton John Official Autobiography by Elton John
3.5
Taron Egerton's performance in Rocketman was deliriously good, and after Sir Elton delivers the introduction to this book, Egerton takes it from there, capably and gamely. There are a lot of great scenes and rejoinders (between and toward George Michael, Freddie Mercury, Michael Jackson, Madonna, Leon Russell, Rod Stewart and others), with the gossip you'd expect from such a queen as Lady Elton. I lapped up those passages, then was jolted by him having an affair in Atlanta with a John Scott (far too close to home, that) and enjoyed his behind-the-curtain stories about working with U.S. and world leaders on not-for-profit and societal goals.
My favorite sections were often the ones about his music-making with Russell and others, and his ridiculous experiences with Mercury and/or Jackson and/or Stewart. Some of the toughest to listen to were those involving his mother and family. Poor little Reggie thankfully rose above all that.
Sometimes Elton can be self-involved to the point of -aggrandizing. This comes as no shock, though it can be grating at times, tho blunted deftly as well by Egerton's vocal performance. I did this one entirely by audio, the way to go given the topics and the navel-gazing quotient.
Elton's survive-to-thrive experience with his substance use disorder(s), losing and finding loves, familial traumas, and navigating being gay/queer in entertainment (not the same in the 2020s as it was when he started) is truly captivating and to be heralded. He deserves his flowers, and yes, deserves to look – and loiter – in the mirror as he so likes.
My favorite sections were often the ones about his music-making with Russell and others, and his ridiculous experiences with Mercury and/or Jackson and/or Stewart. Some of the toughest to listen to were those involving his mother and family. Poor little Reggie thankfully rose above all that.
Sometimes Elton can be self-involved to the point of -aggrandizing. This comes as no shock, though it can be grating at times, tho blunted deftly as well by Egerton's vocal performance. I did this one entirely by audio, the way to go given the topics and the navel-gazing quotient.
Elton's survive-to-thrive experience with his substance use disorder(s), losing and finding loves, familial traumas, and navigating being gay/queer in entertainment (not the same in the 2020s as it was when he started) is truly captivating and to be heralded. He deserves his flowers, and yes, deserves to look – and loiter – in the mirror as he so likes.
A Fortune for Your Disaster by Hanif Abdurraqib
4.5
So many things to say here. I will want to revisit this text every few years 'til I'm released from this mortal coil. After Clint Smith's Above Ground, this was my 2nd straight poetry-via-audio experience. Hanif Abdurraqib imbues his reading with immediacy, gravity and grace. I was left nearly dumbfounded by internal and closing lines in a few of these poems. I went back and replayed entire poems or portions of them. Sometimes I read along in my book while listening to him deliver the phrasings.
Reading this book felt like a spiritual experience, even as it was one in which I learned the life of another person, another background, another set of human foibles and triumphs.
Reading this book felt like a spiritual experience, even as it was one in which I learned the life of another person, another background, another set of human foibles and triumphs.
Above Ground by Clint Smith
4.0
Low-key brilliant poems about everyday topics, depicting the miracles and minutiae of relationships, love, music, parenting, friendship and more. Wise words, some glorious turns of phrase, relevant and timely musings: Those are all here. This was the first time I did poetry-via-audiobook, and Libro.fm's reading by Clint Smith himself was enjoyable. I'm definitely going to do more audio poetry by the author themself, as it seemed to enhance the experience for me. Now, to read more Clint.
Broken Horses by Brandi Carlile
4.0
I love her voice in every way – singing, speaking, writing, activist-ing. Long live Brandi.
Based on upbringings and experiencres, social and spiritual and familial and so on, I just feel like we are versions of very similar persons, and that our conversations would be fantastic. Obviously I know this way-famous person inside and out so as to say these things. ;-)
Based on upbringings and experiencres, social and spiritual and familial and so on, I just feel like we are versions of very similar persons, and that our conversations would be fantastic. Obviously I know this way-famous person inside and out so as to say these things. ;-)
Lighter: Let Go of the Past, Connect with the Present, and Expand the Future by Yung Pueblo
3.0
A lot of "common sense isn't always common" truisms and fine-sounding truths here. Having now read three volumes from the author, I hope that soon enough he will move to expand his repertoire of formats and/or genres and/or topics.
Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
4.5
So many superlatives I could use for the experience of reading this book, Kaveh Akbar's first novel. I began with him a few years ago, immersing in his Pilgrim Bell poetry.
The protagonist here, Cyrus Shams, can be wonderful and unkind to his closest persons, and understandably so. It's unfortunately immediately believable to learn (as no one did in American grade-school) that the USS Vincennes shot an Iran Air plane out of the sky in the late 1980s that included Cyrus' mother on the commercial flight. One internalizes a desensitized "yep" to that information without even Googling it, such is the cruel era (over decades) in which we breathe.
Iranian-born Akbar's time teaching at Purdue University (alongside the likes of Roxane Gay) lends him a special source of observation for Cyrus' campus-life foibles with his pal Zee, of Polish-Egyptian background, and others. His dating partners and choices alike can be cringe inducing, and it's all plausible.
The use of first person in some chapters (from the viewpoints of other characters) and third person in others (namely for Cyrus) is an interesting construct, and one that I had the great pleasure of hearing Akbar expound on live.
In January 2025, I saw him speak at a reading/conversation event, and just by chance (walking into the event 30min early) was able to meet him. (His post-event signing had been canceled for logical reasons.) He was refreshing and delightful, even while dealing with a debilitating health matter. He shared that he is writing all the time – probably 98% of it doesn't see daylight – and I could not be more eager for what he publishes next. I'll read everything from him that I can, and strongly recommend checking out his interview in The Believer magazine from 2024.
The protagonist here, Cyrus Shams, can be wonderful and unkind to his closest persons, and understandably so. It's unfortunately immediately believable to learn (as no one did in American grade-school) that the USS Vincennes shot an Iran Air plane out of the sky in the late 1980s that included Cyrus' mother on the commercial flight. One internalizes a desensitized "yep" to that information without even Googling it, such is the cruel era (over decades) in which we breathe.
Iranian-born Akbar's time teaching at Purdue University (alongside the likes of Roxane Gay) lends him a special source of observation for Cyrus' campus-life foibles with his pal Zee, of Polish-Egyptian background, and others. His dating partners and choices alike can be cringe inducing, and it's all plausible.
The use of first person in some chapters (from the viewpoints of other characters) and third person in others (namely for Cyrus) is an interesting construct, and one that I had the great pleasure of hearing Akbar expound on live.
In January 2025, I saw him speak at a reading/conversation event, and just by chance (walking into the event 30min early) was able to meet him. (His post-event signing had been canceled for logical reasons.) He was refreshing and delightful, even while dealing with a debilitating health matter. He shared that he is writing all the time – probably 98% of it doesn't see daylight – and I could not be more eager for what he publishes next. I'll read everything from him that I can, and strongly recommend checking out his interview in The Believer magazine from 2024.
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
3.5
It did no service to this book, a forerunner to Circe, that I had already read that myth take. Miller's writing is better in Circe, with a style of dialogue and language that I found myself mimicking in my everyday life for a week after finishing it.
Song of Achilles has an achy-breaky gay-love awakening that's well handled and honest, and it cycles among Olympian and mortal characters with un-confusing aplomb – no small feat. It just did not move me or envelope me in its story in nearly the same way. Looking forward to what she pens next.
Song of Achilles has an achy-breaky gay-love awakening that's well handled and honest, and it cycles among Olympian and mortal characters with un-confusing aplomb – no small feat. It just did not move me or envelope me in its story in nearly the same way. Looking forward to what she pens next.
The Wizard's Tide: A Story by Frederick Buechner
3.0
Buechner's books are always tender and honest. No character's really ever tapped to play the token villain. All are just people, ordinary and yet extraordinary. This book is no different, and tells the account of young siblings Teddy and Bean and their family in Depression-era America. The book is slim at about 100 pages, but the whole story is compelling. I found the last three pages affecting; it nearly made me cry tears of both happiness and sadness, and I think Buechner wouldn't have it any other way.
Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
3.0
What did I learn from this book? That embellishing your life can be okay when you're a great storyteller, no harm's done to anyone, and everyone who reads it knows it's ridiculous and loves you for the constant chuckles.
David Sedaris knows all about timing and spacing. Many of his essays and quips are built around the perfectly turned phrase, the expertly used grammar, and the flat-out zaniness of the subjects. (He's probably not hurting for ammo with a sibling like Amy Sedaris of Strangers With Candy either--oh my!) How two supremely funny people emerged from one stable is beyond me, but let's enjoy Sedaris for all that he's worth.
And that is a lot. One key to humor writing can be self-deprecation, and Sedaris uses it to elicit guffaws at times from his audience. Tales from the school-age crypt ranging from a speech therapist who laughed at his lisp to taking music lessons from a midget are chuckle-inducing throughout, if periodically sad. But isn't that the mark of a grand comedian? I think it's Robin Williams who said that "Behind every comedian there lies a very sad man"--and he was right.
Sedaris is at his best when making light of (and shedding light on) France and its people, its culture, and its language. Anyone who's ever taken a couple semesters of French will chortle at the nuggets that Sedaris offers from his days in class in France itself.
Some built-up quips and narratives seem to stray, and others such as the pieces about Sedaris as a moving-van worker in New York City are mildly funny, but the book on the whole is worth the time of one who's wondered what all the fuss is about with this writer. Augusten Burroughs should consider himself fathered by this funnyman.
David Sedaris knows all about timing and spacing. Many of his essays and quips are built around the perfectly turned phrase, the expertly used grammar, and the flat-out zaniness of the subjects. (He's probably not hurting for ammo with a sibling like Amy Sedaris of Strangers With Candy either--oh my!) How two supremely funny people emerged from one stable is beyond me, but let's enjoy Sedaris for all that he's worth.
And that is a lot. One key to humor writing can be self-deprecation, and Sedaris uses it to elicit guffaws at times from his audience. Tales from the school-age crypt ranging from a speech therapist who laughed at his lisp to taking music lessons from a midget are chuckle-inducing throughout, if periodically sad. But isn't that the mark of a grand comedian? I think it's Robin Williams who said that "Behind every comedian there lies a very sad man"--and he was right.
Sedaris is at his best when making light of (and shedding light on) France and its people, its culture, and its language. Anyone who's ever taken a couple semesters of French will chortle at the nuggets that Sedaris offers from his days in class in France itself.
Some built-up quips and narratives seem to stray, and others such as the pieces about Sedaris as a moving-van worker in New York City are mildly funny, but the book on the whole is worth the time of one who's wondered what all the fuss is about with this writer. Augusten Burroughs should consider himself fathered by this funnyman.