OVER 1,000 BEATINGS, SPIRITUAL SANITY AND THE REJECTION OF EVIL

Name: OVER 1,000 BEATINGS, SPIRITUAL SANITY AND THE REJECTION OF EVIL
Author: Bill Neely
ISBN: 978-1-977217-13-4

by Bill Neely ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 6, 2019

A difficult but often captivating look at the legacy of abuse.

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Neely’s debut memoir explores his traumatic childhood and its impact on his spiritual life as an adult.

The author writes that he was the victim of daily, systematic violence between the ages of 4 and 18. At the hands of his 6-foot, 220-pound father, he says, he would suffer innumerable blows, insults, and other psychological abuse. By middle school, he’d come to recognize that “Dinnertime was the most dangerous time of the day” and that it could explode at any minute into violence. Neely alternates between memories of brutal childhood incidents in Pittsburgh in the late 1950s and early ’60s and moments from his aimless, troubled adulthood. After escaping the torment of his home life, he drifted around the country, joined the U.S. Marines in 1974, and later worked odd jobs, struggled with alcohol, and sometimes found himself homeless or in psychiatric institutes; he notes that he may have undiagnosed mental illnesses in addition to a confirmed dissociative disorder. With the help of Alcoholics Anonymous, Neely came to see himself as a detective trying to solve the mystery of his spiritual life, specifically examining “a sacred unknown” that he says has guided him through his turbulent upbringing and the dark depths of addiction. Throughout, he maintains that his father was a pure incarnation of evil, and as he calmly leads readers through his horrifying memories, he convincingly portrays that parent as a monster. Interjections from the author’s current perspective, however, are often bogged down by overly vague spirituality; for example, there are many repetitive, opaque references to “inner truth” and “deeper realms of thought.” When Neely narrates specific moments from his adulthood, though, he taps into some truly compelling and complex reflections, as when he tells of his identification with gay AA-meeting attendees’ stories of abuse, which he calls “inspirational in as profound a way as I thought possible.” His short stories about other abuse survivors he’s known close out his unusual and powerful work.

A difficult but often captivating look at the legacy of abuse.

Pub Date: Sept. 6, 2019

ISBN: 978-1-977217-13-4

Page Count: 220

Publisher: Outskirts Press

Review Posted Online: Jan. 8, 2020

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

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THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.