WAKING THE BONES, by Elizabeth Kirschner, a memoir
ISBN: 978-1-939739-60-5
Publisher: The Piscataqua Press, Portsmouth, NY
Rated: Five Stars
“Hooray for Waking the Bones”
Reviewed by Alessandra Domina, originally for Amazon
"Waking the Bones" is one of those memoirs one dreams about reading -- a
gutsy, shameless, prose poem of the highest lyrical order that leaves one in awe
of the process and the talent put out by the author. Kirschner unavoidably
raises herself above the masses by layering a kaleidoscope of childhood memories
underneath and on top of her present adult self, digging down so deep in some
chapters that one is relieved that the subsequent chapter brings her back up
into the light. Thank goodness Kirschner is, first, a poet. Then thank goodness
she decided to share her survival story. The two have brought us a brilliant
expose filled with terror and love on the same page.
"Waking the Bones" is intense with familiar images of everything that ever
happened to everybody, or almost did. It is a biography of man and woman, mother
and father, daughter and siblings. It is universal in scope even though it is a
singular voice. It is ever a chameleon, changing mode, tone and color despite
it's diminutive size. It should be required reading for all psychiatrists,
counselors, and those afflicted with even the slightest mental illness.
"Waking the Bones" puts salve on wounds just by existing as a literary
accomplishment. A very important book for Kirschner, but equally important for
readers everywhere. It's a reality show of the highest order. Read it and be
changed.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Elizabeth Kirschner’s memoir, WAKING THE BONES, is the winner of the North
Street Book Prize for best work of nonfiction by an Independent author. (Learn more about that prize at http://winningwriters.com). Kirschner has published six
previous volumes of poetry, including, Surrender to Light, 2009, Cherry
Grove Editions and Do My Life as a Doll, 2008, Autumn House Press. My
Life as a Doll was nominated for the Lenore Marshall Prize and named
Kirschner as the Literary Arts Fellow in state of Maine in 2010. She has also
published over two dozen essays with The Coal Hill Review and is widely
published in other literary magazines, both nationally and
internationally.
Kirschner has been writing and teaching across four decades. Most recently,
she taught in Fairfield University’s low-residency Program in Creative Writing.
Extensive teaching experience includes Boston College, Boston University and
Carnegie-Mellon University. Residency stays include The MacDowell Colony, Yaddo
and Gullkistan, Iceland.
Kirschner has collaborated with many classical composers, including Carson
Cooman
and Thomas Oboe Lee, resulting in various CDs. She set her own poetry to
Robert Schumann’s love song cycle, retitled it The Dichterliebe in Four Seasons.
She lives in a cottage named Sea Cabin on the water in Kittery Point, ME, with
her old dog, Larka. Kirschner is available for readings, signings, is a dynamic
public speaker and loves to lead Memoir Writing Workshops for all
populations.
Mentoring & Tutoring to Support the Writer in All
of Us
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