Fiction Ruined My Family

Fiction Ruined My Family (2011) by Jeanne Darst. Brilliant, dazzling, literate, hilarious ... these are just a few of the adjectives that come to mind when describing Darst's memoir. With chapter titles like "Give Us This Day Our Daily Bourguignon," "Les Missourables," and "A Room with a Poo," this book amuses from beginning to end, while at the same time telling the very sad story of Darst's parents -- her mother a hopeless alcoholic, her father a failed writer -- and how they affected her life. Darst flirted with becoming an alcoholic (like her mother) and a failed writer (like her father), but she got sober and has, apparently, turned her life around. This book is certainly evidence that she can write, and I enjoyed it immensely. Grade: A