Love and Trouble: Memoirs of a Former Wild Girl

Love and Trouble: Memoirs of a Former Wild Girl | Claire Dederer

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I love Claire Dederer. She‘s cool but open, and therefore vulnerable: eminently likable and unlikable at the same time, needing to be seen and validated. Even when she‘s not like you (see: her entire edgy adolescence), that need and that combination of liking her and not liking her at the same time is so familiar; it‘s very much how you feel about yourself — or how *I* feel about *myself,* anyway — which makes her likable all over again. 👇🏻

monalyisha 1/2: I always forget, until I‘m partway through one of her books and am reminded, that she‘s the sister of Dave Dederer, guitarist and founding member of The Presidents of the USA, which, again, is cool, cool, cool. Despite that, she comes to the conclusion that, “Everything good in life might actually be nerdly.” You feel for her, and you judge her, and it‘s all so shamefully recognizable yet foreign, which is perfect. 1mo

monalyisha 2/2: Should I be concerned that I‘m a month away from turning 40 and that I seem to be gravitating toward these “midlife reckoning” books (the updated subtitle of this memoir)? Maybe. It remains to be seen.

Note: the one “nerdly” thing that Dederer does in this book, more than once (!), that is objectively not good — is to use the word “lovah” (and, I am sad to report, “laydeez”). No, thank you. 1mo

Chelsea.Poole If this book is half as entertaining as your review I should read it. 1mo

monalyisha @Chelsea.Poole I‘d try Monsters first and see if she strikes the right chord with you. I can imagine her vibe might be a little grating — or even infuriating! — if she‘s not for you. But I think she‘s rad.

Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma

1mo

monalyisha @Chelsea.Poole Just checked in on more recent reviews of Monsters and was reminded that you read & appreciated it! I shouldn‘t have doubted. 😉 1mo

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