Skip to content

Dead Star Twilight. A Review (of sorts.)

This may take a second, so bear with me and read through the explanation ;-)

When I tweeted a link about Chez Pazienza and his Spring Pledge drive, I did it because I enjoy his blog posts and because I’m the type of gal who believes in supporting authors and artists whenever possible. I didn’t realize he had written a book until I read the post and I certainly didn’t expect to write about it.

Still, here I am, writing about it.

“Dead Star Twilight” is a memoir. It sounds funny when you figure out how young he is, but when this much shit happens to you, you earn the right to write one.

I’m only about a third of the way through and I’m already going to give you my assessment.

Damn.

Seriously.

I tweeted this earlier, “Ever read a book that feels so true it hurts but causes a smile because you’ve been entrusted with a secret. Odd to say about a book, hm?”.

That’s what it feels like as I read. It feels like a man I’ve never met has pulled open half of his chest to show me the beating heart within and then, with all that viscera shining in the flickering bar lights, told me I’m the only one he’s ever shown it to and asked if I’d like another drink.

And, even if you know it’s not true. Even if you know he might use that line with any women who might warm the stool next to him, you just don’t care because it’s real just the same.

I’m not even sure I’m describing it correctly and, I’m not going to lie, I feel like a fangirl even writing this. But the reading caused reaction and the reaction caused writing and I’m not about to feel badly about that.

Side note to the guys reading, flip the genders in the analogy above or make yourself the guy with the half opened chest cavity. It’s just as apropos.

If you read Steven King, you’ll sense a familiarity with the tone and cadence of his writing. If you like sardonic, you’re gonna love this.

And if you’ve ever fucked up in your life and you’ve had to claw your way back to something that looks like redemption, well…let’s say I’ve been there on a lesser scale and there’s a truth to this story that I don’t often see.

I’ll get back to reading after I post this and I’ll likely post an update once I finish, but I’m pausing to post the link and suggest you avail yourself of the eBook as soon as possible.

Sex, Drugs, Rock n Roll, TV News, Terrorism


Dead Star Twilight
A Memoir


by Chez Pazienza



Updated April 25th, 2011.

I said I’d likely post an update and I wanted to do it here instead of writing a new post. Maybe because I like the synergy of wrapping up my thoughts from earlier and maybe because I’ve been a posting fiend today.

Either way, I stopped reading not long after I wrote the post above and didn’t pick back up until last night. Once I did start, I read through 200 pages until I’d completed it.

I’m sure Chez would find something noteworthy in the way I read this. Fast and furious or not at all.

But I digress.

Dead Star Twilight isn’t easy. It’s not pretty. And it’s not light reading. It’s stark, funny, painful, thoughtful, utterly cynical and blisteringly real at times.

And, in all honesty, I can’t say any of it is true. Memoirs are funny things and a memoir out of a man who’s still in the early part of his life — well, most people don’t have enough life under their belt to write one.

But it feels true. And it doesn’t pull punches.

I like my stories like that. Well, some of them. I like fantasy and sci fi as well. But I like people who don’t pull punches and who are willing to look ugly when they cry. I know people can be utter assholes in love and life and that there’s not always a happy ending. It sucks, but it’s life, y’know?

If you’re the same, then I’d recommend Dear Star Twilight.

If not, then pass it by.

Either way, thanks for reading.

Tweet

2 Comments

  1. Thank you again. Really, very, very kind of you. : )

Leave a Reply to JtP Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.

*

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.