All the Pretty People: Tales of Carob, Shame, and Barbie-Envy

by Ariel Gore

Told through an authentic voice, the flash-memoir stories in this book bring out all of the dirt on the 1970s suburban hippies that author Ariel Gore used to know in California—the pretty people she wanted to be but never quite felt she was. At times heartrending and heartwarming, it’s a queer love story with no shortage of shame, violence, and Barbie envy.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction

144 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2011

About the author

ARIEL GORE is the author of We Were Witches (The Feminist Press, 2017), The End of Eve (Hawthorne Books, 2014), and numerous other books on parenting, the novel The Traveling Death and Resurrection Show, the memoir Atlas of the Human Heart, and the writer’s guide How to Become a Famous Writer Before You’re Dead. Farrar, Straus and Giroux will publish Bluebird: Women and the New Psychology of Happiness in January 2010.

Reviews

[Susan DeFreitas · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a lovely little book this is, composed of adept vignettes that truly add up to something bigger. For anyone born in the late 70s, I think--especially for the alterna-kids of the left--there's such a sense here of feeling heard and seen, in all the ways we tried and failed to fit in, and in all the ways we forged our own identities in the absence of traditional parenting. There's so much beauty in these pages, and so much truth.

[MariNaomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ariel Gore's memoir, Atlas of the Human Heart, is one of my favorite books ever, and this book complements it perfectly. Lots of brief glimpses into the life of young Ariel--funny, sad, sweet. Love it.

[Carolee Wheeler · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this at Quimby's in Chicago. I'd buy anything Ariel Gore writes (as long as it isn't baby-centric).

[Coco Peezy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Alina Supino · Rating 5 out of 5]

ariel's books create a safe space :) i always know i'll enjoy them :) they share a unique cozy feeling, of authenticity and feeling accepted as one is

[Star · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a collection of short essays about childhood into young womanhood, or as Ariel says "This is a book about all the pretty people I used to know in California." In it, she captures what it's like to have an eccentrically exotic mother who marries a priest and a father who's mental state is quickly unraveling, in spite of his stable, respectable, cocktails at 5 'o clock family. While she bounces back and forth between these two worlds trying to make some sense of it all, she nails the voice of the innocent child with just enough sass and keen observational skills to let you know she's going to make it. This is a super quick read with illustrations, post cards and letters interspersed along the way. I was sad to have it come to an end but happy to be along for the ride.

[anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved it so completely. brilliant glimpses of gore's california childhood.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Ariel Gore's work. She's funny and can reveal the awkward discomfort of being human so well. This one is a collection of brief vignettes from childhood with illustrations.