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pturnbull's review
3.0
This book is slow going--it's one pearl of wisdom after another. Most interesting are Griffin's insights about the life of Marie Duplessis (the model for the Marguerite Gautier, "Camille") and those of Alexandre Dumas pere and fils, in particular, her description of poverty, household funds gained and lost, and slavery. But I lost my patience when she began examining her childhood in excruciating detail, looking for the causes of her chronic fatigue syndrome. Her gaze is intense, and she does not look back with humor or compassion, but with the attention of a scientist seeking evidence. She describes the process of being shaped into an acceptably middle class grammatically-correct girl from rough and unkempt beginnings. This was where I lost interest in her quest for self-knowledge. Her attention is too closely personal. I needed more perspective, a broader focus, in order to care.
nilchance's review
3.0
A rambling stream-of-consciousness book that's more philosophy than memoir. I really enjoyed it when it actually talked about Griffin's experiences with chronic fatigue syndrome, but it meandered too much and I was pretty happy to be done.
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