Unlike James Frey’s A Million Little Pieces, the author clearly marks this as a work of fiction. Still, I found myself studying her photograph, wondering just how much of the story she might have actually experienced herself. That’s how real it felt.
In this gritty and sometimes sordid tale about the homeless and the addicted, we follow Joon-Mee through her teen years during the 1980’s in New York City in Miles from Nowhere. Joon, an immigrant from Korea, leaves her troubled home and ends up on the street, falling into prostitution and heroin abuse. All is not dreary, though, as the book has a hopeful ending. In the words of Peter Ho Davies, author of The Welsh Girl, this is a “starkly beautiful book, shot through with grace and lit by an offhand street poetry. Nami Mun takes a cast of junkies and runaways and brings them fiercely and frankly to life. It’s a measure of the artistry of the work that even in their grimmest, darkest moments, rather than being repelled by these characters, we want to stay beside them, as if to care for them, or at least bear witness to their lives. “
In honor of Cams Coffee House’s grand opening at the Fairmount Street Library, here are some novels to enjoy while you partake of their wares:
With the worlds’ eyes on our nation’s capitol, let’s get the point of view of cops, bureaucrats, lawyers, killers, diplomats and street people that populate the city year-round.
Today is a federal holiday, set aside to honor the Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. Born in Atlanta, King was a Baptist minister that became active in the civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s. His eloquent speaking ability inspired millions of people and he won the Nobel Prize in 1964 for leading nonviolent civil rights demonstrations. King was assassinated in April, 1968.