I have a complicated relationship with this book. There are parts that are on are spot-on; they make me writhe in the relived awkwardness of past mistakes. The parts that aren't.... are off-putting, somehow. In general, I was engrossed and sped through it- but like many past events, I wouldn't want to go through it again. I think that's a sign of a powerful, well-written memoir, but one that's impossible for me to describe.

beautiful writing. emotionally compelling.

Here are some sentences from this book that could have been written about me:
"The truth is I'm weary of all that men stuff"
"I've always had a tendency to be mean to men; now there's a reason for it"
"I'm working on having a better personality"

This is an excellent essay collection. I am typically rigidly stubborn about being able to distinguish between what is fact and what is fiction, but because the writing is so good in these essays, I had no problem with Beard's use of creative non-fiction in memoir. (In one essay, she is not even born.) The essays are not presented in chronological order, so it's interesting to decipher where certain events fit in.

"The Fourth State of Matter" is an absolutely tremendous essay and by far the best among them (it was published in The New Yorker and is worth looking up on its own), while "Coyotes" actually stymied me for an entire week because I kept falling asleep (and is completely different in style than everything else in the book)

Palpable and full of tension, Jo Ann Beard's stories here are centered around a woman's experiences of overcoming a childhood in a dysfunctional family and confronting further dysfunctions in life, most of them brought about by men, as things tend to go. Sad, moving, humorous and very real.

weaving you through the pains, joys and intracacies of navigating life and love. powerful.

Possibly the most beautifully written book on this planet.

I don’t possess an MFA in literature. Nor do I own a doctorate. All I earned are degrees in English and Microsoft Engineering. Yet, I feel the liberal arts education, combined with real-world experience, decades of reading and a proven ability to leverage the analytical left brain, provide qualification to at least describe which authors and books I appreciate and enjoy.

I like Jo Ann Beard. Prior to learning of The Boys of My Youth a few weeks ago, thanks to Flavorwire’s 25 Greatest Essays Of All Time list, I chose to read her collection.

Essentially a memoir, Beard’s anthology possesses wit, demonstrates mastery of language and proves healthily reflective without being sappily nostalgic. She earns bonus points, too, for some well-worded Pink Floyd references and for selection of a short story by David Foster Wallace in The Best American Essays 2007, both elements unknown to me until I completed reading her work.

Brilliant.