Maureen Milliken

Courageous, well written

Revisado: 09-26-22

Casey Hammer tells her story well, and with courage.
While the writing is good, the editing needs some work. This book is a great example of how book editing is more than just spelling and punctuation. The structure overall hurts the storytelling - readers are pummeled for the first half with the abuse abs dysfunction Casey had to endure, with little biographical narrative until the second half. This leaves the reader confused about many aspects of her life, and even though they get cleared up, it hampers understanding early on. There are also - maybe because of this structural choice - repeats of blocks of exposition (the move to Washington as a child, for instance). There are also references readers seem expected to understand - like Armand Hammer’s books, as well as Edward Epstein’s book. She mentions she doesn’t care what the book says, she was just happy to be mentioned. As a reader, I want to hear what the title was, what the author’s full name was, and one sentence at least about what the book was about. There are also several references to people who aren’t identified abs it’s not clear who they are or why they matter.
Tightening up of the many passages in which the author muses on her feelings, affirmations and epiphanies would have given those more oomph. Many went on and on, it were repetitive. This isn’t to trivialize those passages, but trimming them and being more selective would hold readers’ attention better.
One jarring note is when she’s describing the negatives about her “step monster,” she includes “black.” I had to replay it four times to make sure I heard that right. If I didn’t, I apologize. While it’s not inappropriate to mention her race, context is important. Including it in a litany that begins with “that’s why I describe her as…” and had things like “gold digger,” “stripper,” and “met in an adult bookstore,” sends a message that the author probably didn’t intend. A little earlier in that chapter she writes that the stepmother’s family is “Southern Baptist” and so Julian’s funeral was probably the big event of their life. I was confused (as someone from a northern secular state) as to what that meant - I assumed it had something to do with the religion, but it didn’t really tell me anything. After the reference to Jean’s race, it felt like a negative coded reference to race. Casey seems like a nice person and a tolerant one, but sone close editing would’ve made sure that readers don’t infer that kind of meaning.
As far as the audio goes, it’s listenable, but in the first half there are about a dozen instances of a line being repeated - an audio editing issue someone should’ve caught,
I recommend this book for the important story it tells, and the person who shines through, who readers get to know and care for.
I am a writer and former book editor and other readers sometimes tell me I’m too picky. My response is that even if readers aren’t aware of structural and other issues, it affects their absorption of the book. Even the best writers need good, strong editing to make their story as powerful as possible.
I would’ve loved to see a closer and tighter edit that would give this very good and important story its full power.

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