Candid, sagacious writing on illness and adaptation.
This no-nonsense debut memoir recalls Corrigan’s two-time battle with cancer and takes a pragmatic approach toward guiding other patients.
In 1981, at 14, Corrigan was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease. At 48, and now a wife and mother to three children, the author was told that the cancer had returned in the form of invasive ductal carcinoma in her right breast. In her memoir, Corrigan intertwines both of her survival stories, comparing 20th- and 21st-century treatments. The book describes in unflinching detail the realities of cancer treatment, such as the side effects of drugs associated with chemotherapy: “The bone pain was worse than the blistering rash I had on my hands, arms, and feet.” She recounts the periods approaching her mastectomy and following implant surgery. Corrigan also addresses how she handled post-cancer life, including coming to terms with her prosthetic breasts and with the psychological trauma of illness that persists in recovery. Corrigan’s approach is straightforward and forthright. About having a mastectomy, she writes: “I didn’t think too much about it. My boobs were trying to kill me, and they needed to go.” Despite this directness, her writing is never flippant. Corrigan carefully elucidates her emotions and shares her joys and insecurities. Following her breast reconstruction, she confides: “I felt more like a woman again and less like a doll. I was so thrilled, I posted, The girls are back in town! on my Facebook wall.” Corrigan’s writing is highly approachable, addressing a well-considered range of topics, from exercise to feelings of isolation. Again, Corrigan’s crisp frankness offers a valuable source of sensitive, nonmedical advice on subjects such as the importance of self-trust: “If something feels off, don’t stew on it or ignore it. Talk to your health care team.” Although this memoir may be of most benefit to those diagnosed with breast cancer, Corrigan’s candor and positive approach could well prove a guiding light for those facing any type of serious illness.
Candid, sagacious writing on illness and adaptation.Pub Date: Oct. 24, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-64663-196-4
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Koehler Books
Review Posted Online: Dec. 8, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A blissfully vicarious, heartfelt glimpse into the life of a Manhattan burlesque dancer.
A former New York City dancer reflects on her zesty heyday in the 1970s.
Discovered on a Manhattan street in 2020 and introduced on Stanton’s Humans of New York Instagram page, Johnson, then 76, shares her dynamic history as a “fiercely independent” Black burlesque dancer who used the stage name Tanqueray and became a celebrated fixture in midtown adult theaters. “I was the only black girl making white girl money,” she boasts, telling a vibrant story about sex and struggle in a bygone era. Frank and unapologetic, Johnson vividly captures aspects of her former life as a stage seductress shimmying to blues tracks during 18-minute sets or sewing lingerie for plus-sized dancers. Though her work was far from the Broadway shows she dreamed about, it eventually became all about the nightly hustle to simply survive. Her anecdotes are humorous, heartfelt, and supremely captivating, recounted with the passion of a true survivor and the acerbic wit of a weathered, street-wise New Yorker. She shares stories of growing up in an abusive household in Albany in the 1940s, a teenage pregnancy, and prison time for robbery as nonchalantly as she recalls selling rhinestone G-strings to prostitutes to make them sparkle in the headlights of passing cars. Complemented by an array of revealing personal photographs, the narrative alternates between heartfelt nostalgia about the seedier side of Manhattan’s go-go scene and funny quips about her unconventional stage performances. Encounters with a variety of hardworking dancers, drag queens, and pimps, plus an account of the complexities of a first love with a drug-addled hustler, fill out the memoir with personality and candor. With a narrative assist from Stanton, the result is a consistently titillating and often moving story of human struggle as well as an insider glimpse into the days when Times Square was considered the Big Apple’s gloriously unpolished underbelly. The book also includes Yee’s lush watercolor illustrations.
A blissfully vicarious, heartfelt glimpse into the life of a Manhattan burlesque dancer.Pub Date: July 12, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-250-27827-2
Page Count: 192
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2022
A juicy story with some truly crazy moments, yet Anderson's good heart shines through.
The iconic model tells the story of her eventful life.
According to the acknowledgments, this memoir started as "a fifty-page poem and then grew into hundreds of pages of…more poetry." Readers will be glad that Anderson eventually turned to writing prose, since the well-told anecdotes and memorable character sketches are what make it a page-turner. The poetry (more accurately described as italicized notes-to-self with line breaks) remains strewn liberally through the pages, often summarizing the takeaway or the emotional impact of the events described: "I was / and still am / an exceptionally / easy target. / And, / I'm proud of that." This way of expressing herself is part of who she is, formed partly by her passion for Anaïs Nin and other writers; she is a serious maven of literature and the arts. The narrative gets off to a good start with Anderson’s nostalgic memories of her childhood in coastal Vancouver, raised by very young, very wild, and not very competent parents. Here and throughout the book, the author displays a remarkable lack of anger. She has faced abuse and mistreatment of many kinds over the decades, but she touches on the most appalling passages lightly—though not so lightly you don't feel the torment of the media attention on the events leading up to her divorce from Tommy Lee. Her trip to the pages of Playboy, which involved an escape from a violent fiance and sneaking across the border, is one of many jaw-dropping stories. In one interesting passage, Julian Assange's mother counsels Anderson to desexualize her image in order to be taken more seriously as an activist. She decided that “it was too late to turn back now”—that sexy is an inalienable part of who she is. Throughout her account of this kooky, messed-up, enviable, and often thrilling life, her humility (her sons "are true miracles, considering the gene pool") never fails her.
A juicy story with some truly crazy moments, yet Anderson's good heart shines through.Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2023
ISBN: 9780063226562
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Dec. 5, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2023
SEEN & HEARD
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