Oh boy, I took in a huge book haul. Just when I'm fed up on horror and mystery and ready for nothing but non-fantastical fiction for a while. But oh, well, these will keep until I'm ready for chills and thrills again. 

Every character in this book is utterly self-absorbed.

Really mixed feelings so far. I'm enjoying the descriptive language and character development, but there's an awful lot of navel gazing. Unfortunately, that seems to be a common affliction of "literary" novels. Really bogs the story down, and I keep having to rewind because my attention wandered off in the middle of some long-winded introspection by one character or another.

Rascally William reminds me of Penrod. Very cute. This is my first Librivox audio, and I'm pleasantly surprised at the quality and professionalism of the reading.

Sissy Spacek is one of my favorite actors, and it was a treat to listen to her read her own memoir. The tone of the book fits well with her public persona; the tone is warmly reminiscent, with fond recollections of people, places, and events. She is unrelentingly positive, even putting a positive or humorous spin on adversities.

The most interesting parts of the book were unfortunately brief, where she discusses her professional craft and memories. As a method actor, she would try to stay in character, working up the feelings and emotions and persona of that character, resulting (for example) in her skulking about the set of Carrie and avoiding all the other fun, cheerful, young actors she was cast with. The majority of this memoir is focused on her personal life, and it’s unfortunately true that the lives of normally well-adjusted people with loving families and relationships don’t make for terribly interesting stories.

Audiobook version, beautifully read by the author.