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21st out of 527 books
—
349 voters
Pills, Thrills, Chills, and Heartache: Adventures in the First Person
Thirty-seven writers. One rule. Each story must be told in the first person.
Clint Catalyst ("Cottonmouth Kisses") and Michelle Tea ("The Chelsea Whistle") bring together what can only be described as a dream cast of literature's new avant-garde, sandwiched with a few writers appearing in print for the first time. Catalyst calls the end product "a wonderful sampling of odd...more
Clint Catalyst ("Cottonmouth Kisses") and Michelle Tea ("The Chelsea Whistle") bring together what can only be described as a dream cast of literature's new avant-garde, sandwiched with a few writers appearing in print for the first time. Catalyst calls the end product "a wonderful sampling of odd...more
Paperback, 366 pages
Published
February 1st 2004
by Alyson Books
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Yes, I have a story in this book. That said, it is a mixed bag. The story by Laura, a/k/a "JT Leroy" is painful to read. I'm sure folks feel the same way about my story too, so there ya go. But I'm confused. Why are people surprised that it's mostly about fucking and getting high, or that it's mostly "memoir"? Look at the title and the list of authors.
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I love this book, and find it amusing that anyone would complain about the subject matter, considering the title as well as the list of authors. Kind of like reading The Joy of Gay Sex and complaining about there being "too much homosexuality."
Favorites that immediately come to mind are Cara Bruce's "Love Boat and Lingerie," Charlie Anders' "I Am So Smart," Jayson Elliot's "New," Eileen Myles' "Liquid Sky," Alvin Orloff's "Hell House," Dennis Cooper's "One Night...," Dodie Bellamy's "Phonezone,...more
Favorites that immediately come to mind are Cara Bruce's "Love Boat and Lingerie," Charlie Anders' "I Am So Smart," Jayson Elliot's "New," Eileen Myles' "Liquid Sky," Alvin Orloff's "Hell House," Dennis Cooper's "One Night...," Dodie Bellamy's "Phonezone,...more
I was surprised to find this in a bookshop and bought it out of curiosity. I thought, since it had made it onto the shelves of a mainstream bookshop, it must have some merit. I am also interested in exploring the extremes of sexual experiences. I want to read about what people think of as edgy, dangerous and cool. I want to encounter people with imagination who can go beyond convention and routine.
My expectations of this book were not high but it was still a huge disappointment. It was a struggl...more
My expectations of this book were not high but it was still a huge disappointment. It was a struggl...more
I really wish Michelle Tea could spearhead a project that isn't soaked with skin-crawl-inducing drug and sex themes. Shudder.
I must have read my copy of this book at least 5 times straight thru when I finally got it in the mail. Not every story will be for you, but if you don't love the majority of this book, check your pulse.
Some of this was interesting--like, maybe a few moments here and there. But when I realized that every story was about fucking and getting high or maybe getting high and then fucking, I lost interest. Maybe in my early 20s, when I was likewise obsessed with these two activities, I would have enjoyed this book more. But, I don't know, I guess I like things a little more complex and complicated in my ooooold age aka late 20s.
A few gems, but mostly full of poor writing that would have been better left in the teenage journals from which they were likely culled.
Michelle Tea and Clint Catalyst live up to their reputations with the roles of editors of this work of fiction with the only rule being the writers had to write their stories in the first person. Dyke Drama, Scat Scenes, Meth Addicts, Anarchist Squatters, Goth Queens, and more by some of the hottest names in the queer lit scene abound
Like any anthology, this is a mixed bag, some stuff I really liked, some I didn't even bother to read more than the first page. The pieces by queer boys were the ones that interested me the most, I find it hard to find "underground" writting by fags. If anyone has suggestions I'd be happy to hear them.
I don't remember this book that well, but I do remember a section of "The IHOP Papers" that I read in it. After I read it, I waited for what felt like forever for Ali Liebowitz' novel to come out. Some very funny stories in here too. Definitely worth looking at.
i'm generally a fan of anything michelle tea touches, and this book has some great stuff in it, and pointed me to a lot of people i want to read more of.
i got a tip to read this from one of the authors. I never knew poorly written teenage goth poetry and diaries can actually get published. So capital L-A-M-E
Full disclosure: I have a story in here. But honestly, just about all the stories in this anthology are swell. And there's an amazing variety.
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Michelle Tea is the author of 4 1⁄2 memoirs, 1 1⁄2 novels, and a collection of poetry. Her memoir Valencia is an underground classic and is currently being made into a feature film by 21 different filmmakers. She is the founder and executive director of RADAR Productions, a literary non-profit which hosts the monthly RADAR Reading Series (voted Best Literary Series by SF Bay Guardian readers), the...more
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“Sorrow is humbling. I want my pain to be fabulous. I don't need my pain to be worse than anyone else's; I just want it to be strangely, uniquely mine. Art to someone else's breakdown.
— Thea Hillman, "Dear Kath After"
from the anthology Pills, Thrills, Chills, and Heartache”
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— Thea Hillman, "Dear Kath After"
from the anthology Pills, Thrills, Chills, and Heartache”
