One! Hundred! Demons! by Lynda Barry

I picked this up after spotting it in last year’s Best of list (link).

This is apparently a semi-autobiographical book about Lynda Barry, her childhood and her teenage years.

Turns out it’s also a book about me, my childhood and my teenage years. How can that be? After all, Lynda Barry and I, we are nothing alike - we grew up in different places, in different time periods, we have different nationalities, ethnicities and genders; we look and dress differently and our families are different.

And yet, this book is one of the most personal that I have read in a long time. Reading the funny and poignant stories within surfaced deeply personal recollections from my own childhood and teenage years. I remembered friends, places, events and objects that I had not thought of for decades - and yet which form a part of me in a way that things from a week ago never will.

And while I wasn’t there when my partner was growing up, I intuitively know that this book is about her too. About things that she either did or experienced. Likewise, I am sure that this is a book about YOU, dear reader, too.

There are many works that can transport you to another world. An imaginary world. This is a rare work that can transport you to the semi-imaginary world of your own past. Just let Lynda Barry, with her wisdom and kindness, show you the way there.

My rating: 10/10 Highly recommended