By Shannon Yarbrough on August 7, 2010
I came across David Stone’s book, The Garden of What Was and Was Not, on a random Amazon.com search one day. I was immediately captured by the title and after reading the product description I decided to contact the author to see if he was willing to send a copy for me to review. Mr. Stone gladly agreed and I had a copy of the book in the mail in just a few weeks. I think what caught my curiosity the most was the subtitle: The Autobiography of X. I immediately considered Malcolm X, but the cover of the book doesn’t indicate that this book might be about him, and indeed it’s far from it. The Garden of What Was and Was Not is actually a fictional autobiography of a man named Peter McCarthy, as if he is telling his life story to the author. It begins in the 60s, but don’t think this is a nostalgic walk down memory lane for a baby boomer reminiscing about the Beatles, Vietnam, Elvis, drugs, peace, and all the hippie culture that today’s generation is left only to read about in the back of their history books.
Posted in Experimental/Narrative, Mainstream/Nostalgia, Shannon Yarbrough | Tagged baby boomer book, coming of age novel, david stone, my generation, the garden of what was and was not |
By Shannon Yarbrough on November 14, 2009
I have to admit I haven’t always been a fan of history. And even today I find myself more intrigued by the events our history books left out, or the people of our pasts who are just as important but less celebrated. The fabulous fifties were my parent’s era, not mine. But what attracted me to Jim Chambers’ book was actually two things: the cover and the fact that it’s a personal memoir (although Jim says it’s not!) and not just a historical account.
Posted in Biography/Memoir, History, Non-Fiction, Shannon Yarbrough | Tagged 50s and 60s, 50s recollections, baby boomer book, fabulous fifties, jim chambers, recollections a baby boomer's memories of the fabulous fifties |
