Tarnished: True Tales of Innocence Lost

by Cara Bruce, Shawna Kenney, Marcy Sheiner (Contributor)

Our experiences shape us. Certain moments leave us drastically changed. Tarnished is a collection of true stories about coming-of-age and coming to terms with harsh realities; it is about fairy tales dashed and word-views rocked. We are all born innocents, yet none of us passes through life unscathed.

236 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2011

About the author

Jennifer D. Munro's essays and stories have been widely published in literary journals and women's anthologies. Whether fiction or nonfiction, J.D. offers a candid yet often humorous exploration of sex and the sexes, with a quirky yet earthy take on women's issues such as body image, infertility, gender roles, and marriage. J.D.'s published fiction is collected in The Erotica Writer's Husband & Other Stories. She is from Hawaii but now lives in Seattle."

Reviews

[Jennifer D. Munro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I have an essay in this collection, so of course I like it! Tarnished is not necessarily about sexuality, but I'm finding the wide variety of the women authors' sexual "awakening" experiences to be fascinating. (This isn't a "women's" anthology, but almost all of the authors happen to be female...do we just think of ourselves as "tarnished" in a way that men don't? Or were women just better writers than the male authors who submitted work?) My favorite so far is the first in the book, Amanda Kingsbury's detailed invoice to her first lover for the cost of her virginity.