[audiobook] Genesi (Italian Edition) by Filippo Passeri at Arts-Photography

Review

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Tough read; glad I stuck with itBy D. K. MaloneIm embarrassed to admit that I had a hard time with this book. TSOL was one of my favorite bands when I got into the scene in 1982; and for the past 10 years or so one of my favorite things has been reading punk rock oral histories and biographies; auto or otherwise. When I found out Jack Grisham had written a book I figured it would be a no-brainer. Its not unusual for one to take me several weeks to finish; because I tend to pick at them here and there rather than read it all in one go. This one was a unique case; though. American Demon took me almost two years to finish.Between the author/narrators in-your-face arrogance; the literally horrifying subject matter; and the fact that I couldnt tell if I was expected to take everything he said to be true or if at least some of it was supposed to be obviously fictional; I found much of the book to be off-putting. I dont know how many times I went back and looked at the front cover to confirm once again that; yep; it says "A memoir" right there; plain as day. But then Id re-read the page 1 disclaimer saying "If you want facts; go read my police records" or something to that effect. I would go months without touching it. Id put it down intending to come back soon; but instead Id end up gradually piling other books and stuff on top of it and only stumble across it ages later. "Oh yeah... I need to finish this." Jack Grisham has always had a reputation for f***ing with people; but some of the stuff in this book made me clutch my pearls. To be clear; ~NOTHING~ makes me clutch my pearls. Its not far from being a non-fiction version of A Clockwork Orange. In fact it may even be worse; since we have no way of knowing the fate of some of the victims in the story; since Jack himself doesnt know. I witnessed and took part in plenty of hell raising in my days in the scene; but... damn. I couldnt reconcile it with the Jack I knew (as an old fan whos read and seen a lot of interviews going way back to early issues of Flipside; I mean... I dont know the man personally.) It wasnt until I happened across a video on Youtube from 2011 where Jack discusses the book that I came to understand; with great relief; where he was actually coming from and what he was going for. (And he clarified that as far as hes concerned all of the events are true; though he did move some around chronologically; and he changed some names.) After that; I was able to appreciate it a lot more and I plowed through the rest of it with no trouble. Ironically; if I had just stuck with it until I reached the final few chapters; that would have solved the issue too. Talk about a character arc. Its a great book and a hell of a ride; I just had no idea what I was getting into.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Stunning Like an Electric ShockBy JenniferAn American Demon was stunning like an electric shock. It was not the narrative memoir I expected. Although it did give me a look inside the southern California 80s Punk scene; it was more of a twisted maze that led me into the center of my own dark heart. At times I could barely read the next sentence; yet the whole time I was reading it I felt irritated by anything that got between me and the next page. Sometimes I slammed the book and felt sick; sometimes I bit my fingernails and felt like a naughty voyeur. And yet....Jack Grisham skillfully led me along; because when he turned suddenly and shone the mirror on me; he pierced me to the core. If by page 294; you have not seen your own demon face; sleep.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. AwesomeBy Danny GA book you will not be able to put down. I wont go into too much detail because its a memoir like no other. I couldnt recommend it highly enough