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Flashes and Sparks
Longlisted for the 2019 Santa Fe Writer's Project Literary Award, Judge Carmen Maria Machado
At just eleven months old, Kate became the subject of a paranormal study, setting the tone for a tumultuous childhood. She endured a chaotic family: a cruel grandmother; a mother hung up on her own emotional baggage; a father lost to the rat race of Los Angeles; and two (sometimes difficult) brothers who were easily influenced by their grandmother's manipulations. She retreated into a disaffected grunge- era youth.
Leaving home, she began to realize that her stoic strength might be holding her back; chaos could be embraced; and the circumstances and people she loathed most could, in fact, be the most important. Through humor and wit, we see that truth might only be revealed in little fleeting moments of beauty, in flashes and sparks.
With a powerful narrative voice encompassing every bit of its thematic beauty, Flashes and Sparks is a guide for transcending the detachment of youth and weathering the tragedy that lies beyond.
At just eleven months old, Kate became the subject of a paranormal study, setting the tone for a tumultuous childhood. She endured a chaotic family: a cruel grandmother; a mother hung up on her own emotional baggage; a father lost to the rat race of Los Angeles; and two (sometimes difficult) brothers who were easily influenced by their grandmother's manipulations. She retreated into a disaffected grunge- era youth.
Leaving home, she began to realize that her stoic strength might be holding her back; chaos could be embraced; and the circumstances and people she loathed most could, in fact, be the most important. Through humor and wit, we see that truth might only be revealed in little fleeting moments of beauty, in flashes and sparks.
With a powerful narrative voice encompassing every bit of its thematic beauty, Flashes and Sparks is a guide for transcending the detachment of youth and weathering the tragedy that lies beyond.
334 pages, Paperback
Published October 27, 20
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 21, 2022
I love this book, very interesting and very well written! It is amazing that life once again proves to be stranger than fiction!! Thank you, Kate, it is a wonderful story of your life!!
November 12, 2020
A brilliant and original memoir
This is not perfect by any means, but the language, the ideas and the events are both captivating and enlightening in surprising and mostly uplifting ways. Peters captures the South Bay lifestyle in the 1980s and 90s with color, flash and verve. She explores herself and the people in her life, from her friends (especially the clever and sarcastic Quinn) to her rich and controlling and mostly insufferable Grandma, to her adored siblings, to her slightly mysterious parents, to her beloved Spanish nanny, to her sorority sisters at UC, Berkeley and a bit beyond.
This is the relatively nouveau kind of memoir in which the dialogue is reconstructed giving the story an immediacy that would not otherwise be possible. Peters also reconstructs just about anything else that will make the narrative sparkle, including voice tone, hand and body movements, eyeliner color, what classic rock tune was playing in the background, who freaked out and what they looked like doing it. It works. Because her style is so rich and so much happens in an instant it’s like Peters has expanded time. She must have some kind of monster memory because of all the details she recalls or reconstructs.
However, Peters is a bit reluctant to tell us too much. Her private life with the opposite sex is mentioned only in passing and the book is pretty much PG-13 all the way. She’s modest but we know from her writing and from the fact that she got a scholarship to the University of California, Berkeley, that she is brilliant. What I think puts this memoir above most that I have read in recent years is a kind of revelation that takes place between the young Kate just out of college and her Grandma near the end of the book. It’s just a beautiful denouement that delighted this reader.
--Dennis Littrell, author of “Encounters with Modern Women”
This is not perfect by any means, but the language, the ideas and the events are both captivating and enlightening in surprising and mostly uplifting ways. Peters captures the South Bay lifestyle in the 1980s and 90s with color, flash and verve. She explores herself and the people in her life, from her friends (especially the clever and sarcastic Quinn) to her rich and controlling and mostly insufferable Grandma, to her adored siblings, to her slightly mysterious parents, to her beloved Spanish nanny, to her sorority sisters at UC, Berkeley and a bit beyond.
This is the relatively nouveau kind of memoir in which the dialogue is reconstructed giving the story an immediacy that would not otherwise be possible. Peters also reconstructs just about anything else that will make the narrative sparkle, including voice tone, hand and body movements, eyeliner color, what classic rock tune was playing in the background, who freaked out and what they looked like doing it. It works. Because her style is so rich and so much happens in an instant it’s like Peters has expanded time. She must have some kind of monster memory because of all the details she recalls or reconstructs.
However, Peters is a bit reluctant to tell us too much. Her private life with the opposite sex is mentioned only in passing and the book is pretty much PG-13 all the way. She’s modest but we know from her writing and from the fact that she got a scholarship to the University of California, Berkeley, that she is brilliant. What I think puts this memoir above most that I have read in recent years is a kind of revelation that takes place between the young Kate just out of college and her Grandma near the end of the book. It’s just a beautiful denouement that delighted this reader.
--Dennis Littrell, author of “Encounters with Modern Women”
January 4, 2021
Captivating memoir with the use of wonderfully, descriptive language. Character development is fantastic and alluring. One of the best memoirs that I have read in quite awhile. Witty, dry, touching and inspiring bundled up into one read. Loved it!
May 1, 2021
Flashes and sparks is a memoir written about Kate’s life. It begins with Kate’s perspective from a young age and how people are like Disney animations dancing and singing along, happy and oblivious of reality. Her life isn’t easy. Her cruel grandmother is just as bad as Cinderella’s stepmom, and as for her two brothers, maybe not so bad, but it doesn’t make things easier for her either.
After leaving home, her perspective changes. She embraces all the bad and deems them as life lessons. She finds strength from the hardship, and Kate begins to shine. The narrative then changes. It becomes a powerful voice filled with inspiration and motivation.
Something is special about Kate, and you get to know her honestly and truthfully. I appreciated her honesty. The added humor to the text also added a delightful taste to the whole ordeal. The formatting of the work, the cover image, and the delicate attention to detail were also noticed. I particularly like authors who pay attention to the work presented, and Kate made sure this was spot on.
I recommend this book to memoir readers and people who like biographies.
After leaving home, her perspective changes. She embraces all the bad and deems them as life lessons. She finds strength from the hardship, and Kate begins to shine. The narrative then changes. It becomes a powerful voice filled with inspiration and motivation.
Something is special about Kate, and you get to know her honestly and truthfully. I appreciated her honesty. The added humor to the text also added a delightful taste to the whole ordeal. The formatting of the work, the cover image, and the delicate attention to detail were also noticed. I particularly like authors who pay attention to the work presented, and Kate made sure this was spot on.
I recommend this book to memoir readers and people who like biographies.
March 19, 2021
The nostalgia and emotions surrounding my own quest for identity in the 90s made this an amazingly relatable and enjoyable read. Kate's quest to find her place amid her fierce ambition for independence and life altering events elicited a flood of reflection from me long after I finished reading. Embracing the chaos and gaining a better understanding of strong female role models have made this memoir a welcome and relatable read, that left me reflecting long after the last page!
August 17, 2021
Beautiful Memoir
I like literary books-this one is beautiful, with a very interesting, if not slow, storyline. I’m glad I stuck with it. Though the tension that drives the plot is a bit vague, the themes that come about—authenticity versus phoniness, and living an artful life come full circle. I laughed and cried, but mostly, I marveled at the world’s beauty. I’d love to read another book by this author.
I like literary books-this one is beautiful, with a very interesting, if not slow, storyline. I’m glad I stuck with it. Though the tension that drives the plot is a bit vague, the themes that come about—authenticity versus phoniness, and living an artful life come full circle. I laughed and cried, but mostly, I marveled at the world’s beauty. I’d love to read another book by this author.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews