To Anyone Who Ever Asks: The Life, Music, and Mystery of Connie Converse

by Howard Fishman

The mysterious true story of Connie Converse--a mid-century New York City songwriter, singer, and composer whose haunting music never found broad recognition--and the tale of one man's quest to understand her life

This is the mesmerizing story of an enigmatic life. When musician and New Yorker contributor Howard Fishman first heard Connie Converse's voice on a bootleg recording, he was convinced she could not be real. Her recordings were too good not to know, and too out of place for the 1950s to make sense--a singer who seemed to bridge the gap between traditional Americana (country, blues, folk, jazz, and gospel), the Great American Songbook, and the singer-songwriter movement spurred on by Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell that exploded a decade later.

And then there was the bizarre legend about Connie Converse that had become the prevailing narrative among those who had also discovered her music: that in 1974, at the age of fifty, she simply drove off one day and was never heard from again. Could this have been true? Who was Connie Converse, really?

Supported by a dozen years of research, travel to everywhere she lived, and hundreds of extensive interviews, Fishman approaches Converse's story as both a fan and a journalist, and expertly weaves a narrative of her life and music, and of how it has come to speak to him as both an artist and a person. Ultimately he places her in the canon as a significant outsider artist, a missing link between a now old-fashioned kind of American music and the reflective, complex, arresting music that transformed the 1960s and music forever.

But this is also a story of deeply secretive New England traditions, of a woman who fiercely strove for independence and success when the odds were against her, a story that includes suicide, mental illness, statistics, siblings, oil paintings, acoustic guitars, cross-country road trips, 1950s Greenwich Village, an America marching into the Cold War, questions about sexuality, and visionary, forward thinking about race, class, and conflict. It's a story and subject that is by turn hopeful, inspiring, melancholy, and chilling.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Biography, Audiobook, History, Biography Memoir, Memoir

Audiobook

Published May 2, 2023

Reviews

[Nix · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m clearly in the minority here, but this is a DNF for me. I’m so disappointed in this book, as a longtime Connie fan, and I wish it had been written by a woman or a queer person or anyone but this author.

Strike one was when he interpreted the very funny feminist banger “Roving Woman” as some kind of dejected ode to loneliness, because what could a woman singing about sex and freedom ever be TRULY feeling besides shame and a deep desire for a man to love her? Strike two was an endless chapter about the author’s opinion on genres that could have been summed up in a couple of sentences. Strike three was when he included what essentially amounted to a written admission from Converse that she had been sexually abused and gave it absolutely no weight or room to breathe before assuming there was likely a benign reason she’d write what she did-and then blandly adding that her brother was assaulting animals and possibly other young women and maybe that happened to her too. Maybe. Oh and no one in the family ever mentions him at all. But surely there’s some banal reason for that too (maybe he explores this more deeply later, but unfortunately I won’t be finishing this book). Strike four was him dismissing out of hand literal written evidence that Converse was at least bisexual-which is not a new theory whatsoever, and is a solid one outside of this book-in favour of several pages of speculation that she was in love with her friend’s boyfriend because he was hot and every woman loved him, and she was smiling in a picture taken of the two of them at a ball game (yes, there was more detail than that, but it all still came down to speculation, which was his very explanation for not giving evidence of her attraction to women any credence). The final strike-and you can see I’ve given this quite a few chances-was not when he described in minute detail the scene of her close friend’s death or assumed a brilliant woman would end her own life simply because she was reading about suicide in the paper a lot, but added a gratuitous and gut wrenching imagined description of her final moments that just came across as masturbatory.

I know lots of people are big fans of this book and I don’t discount the work that the author has done. I’m glad other people are amazed and touched by Connie’s music and want to know more about her life. I’m glad she’s getting some of the recognition she deserved when she was alive. But unfortunately, I feel like the author’s socialization is too glaringly evident in his analyses of a woman’s life, and it’s taken away my desire to finish this book, which I was SO excited to find. Whether or not he feels he has, he’s objectified the subject and placed himself at the center of this story. I haven’t been this sad about not getting to finish a book in a long time, because CC is endlessly fascinating and special to me.

[Emma Davey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely tore through this one, and I never thought I would say that about a 500-page biography. I think anyone who has encountered the music of Connie Converse can attest to the sheer "Oh my god, who is this person, and where have they been all my life?" that her work evokes. And then you go to her (what used to be fairly scant, now I assume a lot more info is on there) Wikipedia page and feel a sense of loss that there's just not a lot of details known about her.

Not anymore! Fishman painstakingly pieces together a full life (at least, what is known to be her life, as her mysterious disappearance makes it impossible to know what happened after 1974) depicting a woman before her time. Not just musically, but in so many different ways. The book really renders a complete person out of someone who previously little was publicly known, and I was fascinated at the journey that the author took to tie up as many loose ends as he could.

I just hope that whatever happened to Connie, she found peace in her own way.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Before reading about this biography, I'd never heard of Connie Converse, but the book's cover design grabbed my attention & I chose it to read only a few days after first learning about it. Converse by all accounts seems to have been an interesting woman & someone who, unfortunately for my sake I guess, I was able to relate to in many ways.

It's Fishman who I didn't much care for. Throughout the book's 400+ pages, he constantly inserts himself into the narrative -- asides about his own life & work, personal opinions on Converse, or speculations about her life. He frequently homes in on details & anecdotes that have little relevance, while dismissing other topics that seem pretty dang important to Converse's trajectory with an "oh well, all of these people are gone now so I guess we'll never know..." (despite not letting that stop him from speculating about plenty of other things in Converse's life, with even less evidence for his claims in many cases). Fishman's eagerness to interpret Converse's songs & lead readers to his personal understanding of her lyrics was...odd? I found myself skipping over nearly all of his analysis of her songs. His obsession with her appearance & physical body was very strange -- calling her hefty, discussing her odor, praising her appearance after a "makeover," over & over discussing how "dowdy" & "homely" (she wore her hair in a bun, apparently -- the horror!) she was. Converse was an independent person & by Fishman's own account, a trailblazer; why it's so challenging for him to accept the idea of a woman who didn't embody the femininity of her time is beyond me. His obsession with her love life & constant speculation about whether she slept with various men in her life was...also odd. I don't know who Howard Fishman is, but I wish he hadn't been the person to write the book on Connie Converse.

Despite how off-put I was by the things Fishman chose to emphasize in his book, I still devoured it & felt utterly sucked into the world of Connie Converse. I wish there'd been a little more editing at the beginning of the book -- it felt like the first 2/3 or so were set during a very short time -- & I wish there'd been more about her later life, instead (maybe there just weren't enough details about that time). As a biography about someone who had very little public life, you can't get much more thorough than To Anyone Who Ever Asks -- I'm astounded that so much information remained about Converse into the mid 2010s. I loved reading about Converse, her songs, & the life she lived, but I removed a few stars because despite enjoying the subject matter, I just really didn't care for all of Fishman's commentary, speculation, & odd opinions. He seems to have done a great job researching Converse's life, but I feel like he didn't quite write Converse the biography she deserved, if that makes sense?

[Thomas Ganzevoort · Rating 5 out of 5]

To Anyone Who Ever Asks is a haunting, heartbreaking, spellbinding book. It pulled me in immediately, and I could not put it down. It is part mystery, part biography, and part memoir, but assigning such labels doesn't do justice to this captivating book. Howard Fishman tells two stories here and interweaves the narratives together seamlessly. Ostensibly a biography of the previously unknown American musician/composer Connie Converse, it is also the story of how Fishman first encountered her utterly captivating music, only to discover that very little was known about Converse herself. Living in Greenwich Village in the 1950s, Converse composed and performed her music for a small circle of devoted friends, and even performed on a CBS morning show, interviewed by no less than Walter Cronkite. However, Converse's music never took off, and she left New York City in 1960, never to return. Fishman recounts his tenacious search for information about Connie Converse, bringing the reader along as he delves deeper into Converse's life story. Fishman draws on the letters, tape recordings, sheet music, and diary entries meticulously kept by Converse herself in a file cabinet preserved by her brother Philip. Fishman uses these primary documents to track down & interview friends, family members, and colleagues in order to reassemble the narrative of Converse's life. A professional composer and performer himself, Fishman also analyzes Converse's music in conjunction with her life story. Rather than focus on the mystery of her disappearance in 1974, Fishman celebrates her achievements as an artist whose art has finally, miraculously found its audience, thanks largely to a handful of people, Fishman being one of them. I'm really happy that I acquired the CD compilation of Converse's home recordings, "How Sad, How Lovely", since Fishman discusses her music in detail throughout the book. If you're interested in music, social history, biography, or just a captivating story, I strongly recommend To Anyone Who Ever Asks.

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spectacular, utterly engrossing biography of pre-Bob Dylan singer-songwriter Connie Converse should be mandatory reading for anyone who appreciates music and/or wants to think more deeply about what it means to create art. The basic beats of Converse’s life have always been summarized as: she 1) came to New York City in the late 1940’s, 2) wrote and made amateur recordings of a handful of incredible, original “folk” songs, 3) didn’t succeed, and so 4) disappeared. But Fishman illuminates so much beyond that: Converse the intellectual, the writer, the serious student of art music, the rebel member of a secret-prone New England family, the progressive advocate for anti-racism and police scrutiny, the brilliant data interpreter, the person always trying to connect but so often unable to. Any book with this much tragedy can weigh you down, but the feeling I was left with was hope: keep putting art into the world, author Fishman implores, not because it’s instagrammable, but simply because the world could use more beauty. And, as there’s now millions of new listeners playing Converse’s “Talking Like You” on repeat… you never know.

“Anyone who’s lived in New York City and has been possessed by the fever of creative ambition knows what this is like. Few experiences can match the feeling of simply walking the streets of Manhattan, especially in a neighborhood like Greenwich Village, knowing that one’s heroes, living and dead, have walked them too. There’s something about feeling called to do something great, and also being surrounded by the spirits of those who already have or are, that spikes our confidence and makes us giddy.” (from “Interlude: Dizzy from the Spell”)

“The color of your eyes never fades
And you’re only as tall as you are tall
But your heart has a thousand shapes and shades
And I know I shall never learn them all”
(Ch. 23, quote from Converse’s unrecorded “A Thousand Shapes and Shades”)

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating bio of elusive, enigmatic musical original, Elizabeth “Connie” Converse, who disappeared in 1974. Author/musician Howard Fishman heard a recording of one of Connie’s songs at a party, became intrigued, then spent years researching and piecing together what he could discover about the 1924-1974 life of the complex musician/writer/editor/artist/social activist Converse. I thoroughly enjoyed this unusual book.

[Alex Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Converse’s curious disappearance gives this biography the air of a mystery. While Connie Converse got little recognition in her lifetime she is (and we are) lucky that her work was (re?)discovered. Most unknown artists never get that reward, even if she may not be around to appreciate it.

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never met Connie Converse, but this book - as well as her music - struck me in a very personal way. I look forward to rereading this wonderful book again.

[Cassi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This bio is so good, both because Connie Converse is fascinating to read about and because the author isn’t afraid to include his own voice and impressions of CC in the book.

[Hannah]

this book is certainly unrateable and possibly unethical. really juggling my feelings on this, because it made me question the whole nature of biographies and fandom altogether. it is the purest labor of love I have ever seen, and I think I don't mean that as a compliment.

it is, let's get this out of the way, not a good biography, because it is more or less wall-to-wall speculation. Connie Converse may have been in love with this person; she may have read a newspaper article about that person; she may have wanted to align herself with this musician; she may have wanted to reject that categorization. the facts require speculation, because the facts are few. Connie Converse didn't have a career in music. she was not, by any stretch of the imagination, a public figure during her lifetime. the research Fishman has to do is the research one does on a long-lost great-aunt: talking to family, driving to this town and that one to look at houses now owned by other people, digging through local newspaper articles. he accepts the opinions of her from her contemporaries that he wants to accept and rejects the opinions that he wants to reject based on the sort of person he wants and needs her to have been.

he is desperate for intimacy with her. he loves her. he is, and this is where I start boggling over the nature of nonfiction etc etc., very clearly what we would call parasocial about her. but surely being a historian means being parasocial with the dead? I mean, Alice Walker walks around Eatonville telling people she's Zora Neale Hurston's niece to get information for her article, is this disrespectful of the dead, is it ethical, etc... but Walker does of course get real information about Zora Neale Hurston, sorts out the true from the imagined from the lied-about, and Fishman doesn't.

it is frustrating to struggle to know a person who resists being known—not just in death, but in life, the available evidence that does exist points to Converse being a private, self-contained person whose feelings and behavior were often mysterious even to those close to her. the private investigator hired after her disappearance told her family that it was her right to disappear. the fact is that I do know what RPF is, and I know the difference between research done for historical purposes and research done for RPF purposes—even if the RPF is never written, when one person locates another person primarily in their imagination and their own creative drive rather than in any other part of their psyche, when one person thinks about another "they need me to take care of them" without actually being asked for it, it isn't hidden. when one person uses another as a mirror it isn't hidden.

it is such a labor of love! it is such an incredible work of research—the quantity of people that Fishman has tracked down, the quantity of recollections that he has worked out of them. he has been so relentless in his quest to give this woman's music the recognition it clearly deserves, and his love for her is clearly the love of one musician to another. the questionable intimacy of it all isn't what made me write the book off—honestly, I was half-prepared to believe that Fishman really was being haunted by Converse's ghost, and if you believe in that sort of thing you might too.

there were two incidents: firstly, when Fishman is analyzing the opening of "Roving Woman", People say a roving woman / is likely not to be better than she ought to be, and writes: "What does this first line even mean? If what Converse means is "people say a roving woman is no good", she could have come up with a simpler way to say that." the phrase "no better than she ought to be" did fall out of fashion a long while ago—I wouldn't expect all of my friends, who are well-read people, to know it—but all of my friends are not writing biographies of a woman working in the '40s and '50s. did no one at Penguin Random House catch this? it was used on Downton Abbey, for God's sake.

the second incident is when Fishman quotes from Converse's diary: If I ever cease to recall that my destiny is bound with a living cord to the destiny of... the anti-fascists... I shall indeed be half-dead. and remarks, "This is Converse, talking about antifa. In 1950." genuinely floored me. that you could write down that talking about anti-fascists makes you ahead of your time. in 1950. are you fucking joking? what's the explanation here? why did he write this? I'm boggled.

anyway, I DNFed there, which was the 25% mark. other reviewers here talk about how determined Fishman also seems to overlook the evidence of Converse's possible lesbianism and sexual abuse in favor of speculating that she slept with this man and that one and that one, but I didn't get far enough in to draw my own conclusions on that, so I will just say that I also am not inclined to trust Fishman on the subject of her sexuality. what a bewildering and discomfiting book. I can think of people I need to send it to

[Jon Burr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some books I enjoy and some books I love. And then once in a great long while there is a book like this that feels as though it grows tendrils up my arms. This one is dog-eared, post-it’d, penciled, wrinkled and worn after only one reading. It’s one for the shelf and one I will return to again and again.

Fishman approaches his subject as an avowed fan of Converse’s, and he constantly reassures the reader that although this biography is robustly sourced (I’ve never been as engaged with the information contained in the end notes of a biography) it’s also about his story, and the story of what it is to grasp a personality whose presence on earth was both stunningly profound and yet in many ways hidden. He draws on a well of significant and organized personal archives, yet acknowledges the gaps in the record, acknowledging speculation. Similarly, he interviews even the most marginal people in her life - drawing out details that on their own seem mundane but collectively quite revealing - but also acknowledges contradictions in the accounts of Converse’s life. He is clear when the temptation to fill the gaps of knowledge regarding her motivations and activities crosses into speculation, but it never feels indulgent. Instead, the story told is one of the subject, but also the phenomenon of his subject and how her quixotic nature leads all of us to project ourselves onto her struggles and loves and ambitions.

What’s brought to mind most for me is how Errol Morris approaches a documentary subject. He himself is a character as a storyteller, and the mystery itself (in the case of this biography, Converse’s disappearance in August of 1974) is just a McGuffin. As Morris uses a shocking incident or feature of his subject as his ostensible topic, his storytelling quietly points at relatable societal quirks along the way.

Similarly, Fishman draws the reader into a story of a woman whose adult life was bookended by a period of tremendous creative musical output and her eventual unexplained exit from society, but whose genius was cured in the period in between and her genius revealed itself in a whole new, academic, context. Connie Converse’s life was not the sum of her songs and her disappearance - it was a relatable journey of depression and joy, profound loves and crippling loneliness, creative bursts and professional torpor. In her story, and in Fishman’s weaving of his own fascination into its telling, To Anyone Who Ever Asks is a moving document about both the exceptional geniuses in our midst, and those of us who gaze in wonder.

[J Barr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deep gratitude to Howard Fishman for the decade plus of research and writing that resulted in this imperfect, question-filled portrait of a singular, clever polymath who refused the pressures of conformity. I have been listening to the How Sad, How Lovely album for over a decade myself and I heard about this book through members of my choral singing group. I read this (basically) straight through over nearly two days - I found it wildly engrossing and particularly enjoyed the first chunk of the book analysing a few of her guitar songs. I used my smartphone as steve jobs intended to aid listening breaks, play her recordings, look up references on wikipedia, and locate songs I was not familiar with. I then returned to engage with the author’s analysis of connie’s compositions and came to understand why exactly they were so prescient.

I had so much relation to her story: as a loner, a creative, compelled to cure my ails by overworking or people pleasing, alcoholism running in my family, someone who does not have a record of much romance and who often dresses frumpy on purpose. I am a fan of the biography/memoir hybrid tradition - My Autobiography of Carson McCullers is one of my favourite books, similar, albeit much shorter, in tone to this work. I really appreciated the author’s refusal to draw conclusions where there was not enough supporting evidence while also being comprehensive and forthcoming about the information he has dutifully collated.

This research also reminds me that history repeats itself - Elizabeth’s writing on race and politics is a fresh guide for abolition and peace work still, and i was humbled to hear that perhaps it is an American tradition to feel as though the world is ending, that some of her peers shared this sentiment even before the unique threats of climate crisis. Terribly inspired by her output, her creative practice, what remains, what she prepared in the filing cabinet to be discovered and shared. THANK YOU.

[Eliza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really excellent. I appreciated that Fishman told this story from such a personal perspective because I think it would be impossible to tell converses story from a purely objective perspective, considering both the facts that so many details are unconfirmed and that her story prompts self analysis differently in each of its recipients. Some parts of this book promoted me to think about how I would have focused more on other parts of her story than Fishman did (most notably her possible queerness and atypical ways of relating to her community) but I am in awe of the breadth of research Fishman has provided nonetheless, and I do hope, as he also does, that research on converses life and legacy will be expanded upon.
What a woman. I identify with her oddness and her story has me thinking about how I want to relate to the parts of myself that are like her throughout my lifetime and this current era.

[Heidi Tiedemann Darroch · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I was reading Fishman's impassioned biography of Elizabeth "Connie" Converse, a groundbreaking singer-songwriter whose early promise was thwarted by a variety of forces, I kept thinking of Alison Lurie's The Truth About Lorin Jones. In Lurie's novel, Polly takes a year off from her job at the Metropolitan Museum in New York to research a biography of a late painter. Polly's ambitious feminist effort will not only, she hopes, restore Lorin Jones to the critical acclaim she is owed, it will also improve Polly's own life. But as she meets everyone Lorin (Laura, it turns) knew, she acquires a wildly disparate and contradictory set of impressions. Soon, her absorption in her subject turns to frustration--even loathing.

Howard Fishman, conversely, never loses the intense connection to his subject that he feels from the moment he first hears Connie Converse's music at a party. If you haven't heard Converse's music, go listen to the songs on "How Sad, How Lovely"--especially the title song and "Talkin' Like You." There's a good reason that Converse's contemporary fans are so obsessive about her.

Fishman dutifully devotes himself to a quest for information about Converse, who disappeared when she was 50--she drove away after leaving elegiac notes for family and friends, and was never seen again. Fishman fantasizes that she might still be alive, even that his own efforts might offer her some consolation. This is a situation where a biographer is so entranced with his subject that he loses not only objectivity but a sense of proportion. Fishman devotes lengthy chapters to Converse's family history, for example, detailing stories about her ancestors that it's unlikely she herself was familiar with, and parsing her interactions in New York with the handful of people who championed her music.

But Converse remains elusive. She left a filing cabinet full of materials in her brother's care, but despite this wealth of archival material, there are huge gaps and unanswerable questions about the choices Converse made. Fishman has done an admirable job of tracking people down, many of whom have surprisingly sharp recall of Converse from fleeting acquaintanceship decades earlier. But far too much of this book is taken up documenting his efforts to locate people and pump them for information. His interpretation of her songs is speculative more than it is analytical. And his conjecture about Converse is incorporated at significant length, which makes the biography seem more fanciful than rigorous.

[ForenSeek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb biography of the enigmatic Connie Converse. Rather than just dumping a bucket of dates and anecdotes on the reader, Fishman approaches his subject through the most soulful path an investigator can take: through the subject's art. Converse's lyrics and artistic choices illuminate her unpredictable path through life, and anyone interested in biographies and mysteries is treated to a delicious intellectual meal. This isn't just a book about Converse: it's a story about how creative efforts always leave a little trace in the world and make it a little better, even if the artist isn't selling out the Madison Square Garden. As for the infamous disappearance of this unique songbird: as a lifelong mystery buff, I can tell you it's treated in the best way possible. Highly recommended.

[Pamela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book. I could not put it down.

[Donna P · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am about a 3rd of the way through this book and have just come from an author event at local bookstore, Gibsons, in city in which Connie Converse went to high school etc. What an incredible story of a truly fascinating woman. Mr Fishman demonstrates a tremendous amount of respect for Connie Converse, her artistry, her music, her life and her story. He also shows a great deal of respect for his readers and I felt that from beginning of the book and from hearing him discuss her story with the audience this evening. I greatly appreciate authors ability to put into perspective her talents relative to the times in which she was creating her music. She was a remarkable woman and I greatly admire the author and am glad that such a thoughtful and intelligent Mr Fishman is sharing her story and her music to a much wider audience.

[Leo · Rating 5 out of 5]

this has to be the most impressive biography i have ever read. it's incredibly well researched.

before i started to read this book, i was worried it might be sensationalized and focussed on her disappearance. once i got interested in Connie Converse's life, i became very frustrated with researching it because you'll find a thousand posts and articles writing about her "mysterious disappearance", making it their riddle to solve.
to say it with Fishman's words: "Don't ask how Connie Converse disappeared. Ask how she lived"
I am incredibly thankful that this biography did exactly that.

the gaps, questions and contradictions in different accounts about her life are not filled in with speculation turned to facts, but rather by asking questions the author and us readers might share.

I will be recommending this to anyone who ever asks!

[Bella Porter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just want to express my profound gratitude for this remarkable book. Ive been in such a daze since picking it up 2 week ago.

Fishmans unique position as the author shines through, as his questions around the life and mysteries of Connie Converse reveal that it takes one to truly understand another. As a struggling, deeply passionate, and curious artist and songwriter myself, I found his every perspective and analysis deeply relatable. Especially his exploration of the emotional and psychological toll of being a creative person in this world.

Im grateful to Fishman for doing the necessary work of shedding light on the enigmatic life and work of Connie Converse. This book has left an indelible mark on my creative spirit, and I’m grateful for the inspiration it has ignited within me.

[Cloe Dickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

An engrossing and well researched foray into the life and legacy of Concord, New Hampshire’s own prodigal daughter, Connie Converse. In his decade-plus pursuit to uncover and make known Converse’s many musical, literary, and political talents following her 1974 disappearance and early aughts revival, Fisher spins a haunting web that straddles biography and literary analysis while offering up some much-needed considerations for a more representative account of modern American music history. Ultimately, this a story about Converse as much as it is about the many artists like her whose talents are not only recognized but at last celebrated too long after the fact. Long live Connie, and here’s to the rest of us roving women in her wake. 🥺

[Shawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible. Hope this is the first of many Converse biographies.

[Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Don’t ask how Connie Converse disappeared. Ask how she lived.”

this is the best biography i’ve ever read.

(review forthcoming on reading insta.)

[Lelia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A remarkable biography. Fishman invites us along with him as he follows the breadcrumb trail that leads from his first encounter with a Connie Converse song to a full-fledged biography, meeting people, following in Connie’s footsteps, discovering her music and her intellectual pursuits, her friendships and foibles until the trail suddenly stops. Fishman doesn’t explain the mystery. Instead, he explores it with us, describing anomalies and raising questions that ultimately can’t be answered. What we’re left with instead, is Converse’s incredible body of work and an understanding that people can touch each other - often through music or other art forms - across the void of time and space. I got chills several times as I read the book (and I read biographies while sweating and walking on the treadmill), because of the uncanny connection people feel with Connie and her music. As Fishman writes, "Music can infect and permeate consciousness in ways that seem to defy logic.”

Fishman is a musician and he takes time exploring Connie’s approach to music and explaining the music scene during the 50s and 60s. I’m not musically inclined, so I don’t know what Fishman means when he says “arpeggio,” but I found his explorations enlightening anyway and that may be because his language is fresh. Nothing reads like a textbook or stodgy analysis. His images have impact because they are unique and sincere rather than merely clever. Here is Fishman describing the first time he sees the filing cabinet where Converse’s “stuff” has been kept: “Had the moment of discovery been illustrated in a comic book, R. Crumb style, the cabinet would have been emanating undulating squiggly bands of energy like the Holy Grail or the Ark of the Covenant.” He’s excited, we’re excited and we get to share with him the thrill of discovery as we follow the trail Converse has left us.

[Brian Shott · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was absolutely wonderful. I picked it up from the library on a complete whim, with no idea whatsoever who Connie Converse was. Reading summaries of this book, and her story, made me realize immediately that it would hit the mark for me - part music, part history, part Unsolved Mysteries. It’s all there.

Within minutes of starting this book, I opened Spotify on my phone and began playing How Sad, How Lovely. I found myself playing the songs that Fishman analyzes as I was reading about them. I can’t believe I hadn’t heard about her music sooner. While I love her music, and this book, I couldn’t help but feel some sadness that the notoriety she’d found in disappearance had so eluded her in her known life. This is, of course, a fairly central theme of the book.

It’s exhaustively researched, which I also appreciated. I plan to buy it and return to it as I continue to dive into Converse’s music. I wish I’d read the endnotes as I read through the book, but I suppose that merely gives me another reason to read it again in the future.

If I have any criticism, it’s the speculative nature of much of it. However, that is more a product of the subject matter than any fault of the author.

I would absolutely recommend this to anyone.

[Paul Dinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read about Connie Converse in the novel Autobiography of Lady X, I had then heard some of her music on Youtube. Some did remind me of The Carter Family. HOwever, I enjoyed the music and it stayed with me, it does to this day. Reading this book is a sad testament to someone who, for whatever reason, didn't became as successful as she should have been. She is a fervent reminder that often what we hear on the radio is just someone's opinion of what is good, that those who are successful are often so for reasons other than talent and hard work. I found her tale to be sad, but still there, waiting to be discovered. I have known people like here, I have been people like her.

[Kristi Rolf · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five stars for being so thorough and it would be impossible to write a boring book about such an interesting woman. Connie Converse was a multi-talented genius and I loved learning about her life, especially her many impressive non-musical projects. I found myself a little bored by the author’s analysis of her song lyrics in the beginning of the book. His takes were sometimes repetitive and it’s hard to appreciate the lyrics when you are reading them for the first time instead of sung by Connie. Overall super interesting and educational not just about Converse, but about the times and places she lives in.

[Danny Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was unexpected. I was fascinated, I was intrigued and I was choked up on more than one occasion. I'm glad I got to learn about Connie Converse, her life and her music.
Note: I did this on audio, and I would highly recommend that as a format for this book. The author/narrator is really personable, but more importantly there are LOADS of audio clips of her music played through and that really added to the experience.

[Anita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like Howard Fishman, I was obsessed with Connie Converse from the moment I first listened to her music. Hearing her raw, unusual songs made me wonder about the woman behind them and her mysterious life. Fishman here does a very good job at trying to figure out who she was and what made her so unique.

[Caroline Drew · Rating 5 out of 5]

is the story of connie converse a cautionary tale? maybe a mediation on the limits of refusing to conform or a promise of creativity’s multiplicity? did the world fail to see converse, or did converse fail to grasp meaning from everyday creativity?
idk but well-told and well-researched, this was a great, thought-provoking read.

[Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

im on my hands and knees begging, please if you like music or biographies or women or books please read this. and try the audiobook if you can! it includes segments of her music and its read by the author