I'm so glad I waited to listen to Lucinda Williams's new memoir. It listens like a long-form interview. I felt like I was in the room with her, and she was talking just to me. She answered my questions before I even asked them. Told chronologically beginning in her childhood, it was fascinating to learn so much about her life and music. She bares it all here, and I loved it. I particularly enjoyed the parts around my favorite Lucinda records (ahem, Essence--I'll never forget seeing her perform at Jazz Fest in New Orleans in 2001.) As much as I loved the background on the songs I know and love, her childhood is so fascinating and filled with enough stories and celebrities to fill many memoirs. Of course her fans will love it, but anyone interested in 20th century feminism or music will find a lot here.

I loved this book so much. It was a smart, conversational, wry, bittersweet, and wildly detailed account of a fascinating life that is still very much in progress. I had loved Lucinda's Car Wheels on a Gravel Road cd many years ago, but this inspired me to delve into the rest of her catalog. It's also a neat trick to make a history of music-making interesting, and Williams blends her facts with story in such a way that the civilian reader never loses the flow, or the plot. This goes in my top ten memoirs ever, and certainly tops in music.

The essay that I wrote from this request will appear in the September issue of The Bitter Southerner.

An interesting memoir from Lucinda Williams. Straightforward and honest about her untraditional upbringing. This is one I will recommend for fans of Lucinda or those who don't know much about her but enjoy a good memoir.

I am a fan of Lucinda Williams and saw her in concert last summer. She had a stroke a few years ago and it has affected her ability to play guitar for now -- but she is working to get the mobility back. This is a remarkable memoir - it is a candid and unflinching look at her childhood, her pursuit of a music career as well as her various lovers along the way -- "poets on motorcycles" are her type. She has no qualms about naming names and yet does it in a respectful manner. I really appreciated her candor about growing up with intergenerational trauma and a mother with mental illness. What I particularly enjoyed about this book are the back-stories on her songs - I will now listen to them with a new perspective. This book did not address her stroke so as she recovers from it, perhaps there will be a part 2 to this memoir -- she is certainly one resilient woman! I recommend this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Crown Publishing for an ARC and I left this honest review voluntarily.

Happy to highlight this new release in “Lived Experience,” a round-up of new and notable memoir and autobiography in the Books section of Zoomer magazine for April. (see column and mini-review at link)

Already a big fan of her music, now Lucinda Williams has helped me understand the woman behind the songs. Wonderfully detailed, and evenly split between what was going on in her life, her creative process, and her struggle to finally be heard. Highly recommended

Thank you to NetGalley and Crown publishing for an advanced reader copy.

This was a fantastic memoir. I loved learning more about Williams' background, and her nomad-like childhood. she grew up with some tough odds, with her mother's mental illness, being in and out of poverty, and moving around the South. I loved her story of being a musician, of her struggle and life on the road. She wrote in a positive way, and showcased her determination and grit. Her war stories from being in the music scene were fantastic, and gave an insight of being a woman in a man's world. She is the example of hard work and tenacity. I also liked when she explained the meanings behind some of her songs. Her authenticity and staying true to who she was a musician is inspiring.

I love a memoir- even better when the memoir is actually well written and full of lots of interesting details and heart. ❤️

Who is Lucinda Williams and how did she climb from nothing to the ranks of great singers?

In her book, Don't Tell Anybody the Secrets I Told You, Lucinda takes the reader on the ride through her life on constant moves with her poet father, and the downs of a mother with psychiatric problems. While not shying away from the insanity she lived through, she paints a picture of growing up in the South, complete with odd day jobs and nights spent singing wherever people would listen. From Macon to Mexico and all points in between Lucinda Williams built a career singing with some of the greatest of their time, developing her unique voice and brand of music.

First off, Lucinda is a wonderful engaging writer. No surprise there, right? She lived a very hectic childhood, moving all over the world to follow her Dad’s various teaching jobs. Her Dad is a very big figure in the book. A charming poet he regularly hosted literary parties full of booze and interesting characters. Lucinda obviously was greatly influenced by these soirees.

As interesting as her childhood is, the book really took off for me once her recording career did. I loved reading her insights into what inspired various songs and how they were written.

I know this isn’t going to be the most shocking review you’ve ever read, but if you are a fan of Lucinda’s, I really think you will enjoy this book.

Netgalley provided me with a free e-galley of this book in return for my honest review.

What a story Lucinda Williams tells. Thank you to Netgalley and Crown Publishing. This story is riveting and makes you understand her music and what is behind it, Thank you for sharing this story with the world.