Things The Grandchildren Should Know

(Hardback)

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Description

The extraordinary true life story of songwriter Mark Oliver Everett, lead singer of the band Eels

Mark Oliver Everett's upbringing was 'ridiculous, sometimes tragic and always unsteady'. His father - a genuis quantum mechanic who worked for the Pentagon - rarely spoke, and following his own miserable childhood had eccentric ideas of how children should be brought up. Mark - known as 'E' - and his older sister Liz were raised in a house with no rules, with parents who had 'a kind of 70s swinging marriage'.

Lacking any real sense of authority, E had to raise himself, not always with the greatest success. His love of music helped pull him through, and by his early 20s he was on the brink of stardom with his first album - Beautiful Freak. But then tragedy struck - having already lost his father to a heart attack, his sister and mother both died in short succession - Liz from an overdose, and his mother from cancer. It was the kind of brutal loss that could destroy someone, but somehow E survived, and channelled his experiences into his music. In THINGS THE GRANDCHILDREN SHOULD KNOW he tells his story - one that is surprisingly full of hope, humour and wry wisdom.

Reviews

"One of the best books ever written by a contemporary artist."--Pete Townshend "A great big grin of a book, winced out through gritted teeth."--"Kirkus Reviews""How do you think it felt finding out that one of my favorite rock stars in history is also a better, funnier, and more touching writer than I am after 10 years at "Time" magazine"--Joel Stein "Readers will just be plain enraptured by the story of a gifted man barely surviving tragedy with only his talent to guide him."--Robert Leleux, author of "The Memoirs of a Beautiful Boy""You trust every word coming off the tips of Everett's fingers. His book is a subtle, touching thing."--"Sunday Times (UK)""I kept telling myself, "This guy is the next Kurt Vonnegut!" "Things the Grandchildren Should Know" shares less with a rock memoir than it does with the likes of" The Corrections", " Middlesex", and" The Ice Storm". It's unexpectedly uplifting."--"The Word""Crackling with a staccato rage, he comes clean about bad times, good times and finally getting to be a grown-up on his own terms."--"The Times (UK)""His unique sensibility is as apparent in his prose as in his music. Even those unfamiliar with, or indifferent to, Everett's work will still vicariously enjoy meeting him."--"The Independent (UK)"

Author Bio

Mark Oliver Everett, lead singer with Eels, is one of the finest singer songwriters of his generation. This is his first book.

Author Location: US