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This Is Our Life
311 pages, Hardcover
Published October 1, 2024
18 people are currently reading
77 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
January 2, 2025
"There is no dress rehearsal. This is our life."
I recently watched their new documentary, which I truly enjoyed. As a Canadian, I can't help but be immensely proud of this band. The demise of Gord Downie fills me with so much sadness. He was a brilliant artist! So kind and gentle. It was fascinating to watch the band's journey over the years. Lots of fascinating tidbits. This book is a compilation of their story. It is very well put together, with lots of great photos. I particularly liked the epilogue, with such touching words that had me tearing up. Really well done!
I recently watched their new documentary, which I truly enjoyed. As a Canadian, I can't help but be immensely proud of this band. The demise of Gord Downie fills me with so much sadness. He was a brilliant artist! So kind and gentle. It was fascinating to watch the band's journey over the years. Lots of fascinating tidbits. This book is a compilation of their story. It is very well put together, with lots of great photos. I particularly liked the epilogue, with such touching words that had me tearing up. Really well done!
April 17, 2025
I thought this band and their career were remarkable before I read the book. After reading it... I now think they are not only remarkable but also amazingly human and relatable.
The book is a series of snippets from the members of the band, some of their crew, and some others that knew them over the years. That doesn't sound impressive until you realize that these snippets are actually verbatim quotes from the band that came from hours and hours of very raw interviews, pieced together and woven into chronological order to tell a story. The end result is that you as the reader can follow their entire history with them, from the time they were children, up until Gord Downie's passing, and the few years after. As every event happens, you hear of their own perspectives on it paragraph by paragraph. I was fascinated to hear their different views on the same events.
In between the paragraphs are hundreds of photos, other stories, photographs (both personal and professional), scans of notes and letters, posters and tickets, and all kinds of other band history and memorabilia.
Not all of it was easy to read because it didn't sugar coat things, and was brutally honest about the good and the bad.
However, I savoured this book, reading maybe 10-20 pages on average a day because it is quite dense and has a lot of content. But it wasn't difficult to make myself read those pages every day, and as I read, I relived may of my fond memories as a fan of the band for decades.
It's worth the money, and the production quality is also excellent on the book.
The book is a series of snippets from the members of the band, some of their crew, and some others that knew them over the years. That doesn't sound impressive until you realize that these snippets are actually verbatim quotes from the band that came from hours and hours of very raw interviews, pieced together and woven into chronological order to tell a story. The end result is that you as the reader can follow their entire history with them, from the time they were children, up until Gord Downie's passing, and the few years after. As every event happens, you hear of their own perspectives on it paragraph by paragraph. I was fascinated to hear their different views on the same events.
In between the paragraphs are hundreds of photos, other stories, photographs (both personal and professional), scans of notes and letters, posters and tickets, and all kinds of other band history and memorabilia.
Not all of it was easy to read because it didn't sugar coat things, and was brutally honest about the good and the bad.
However, I savoured this book, reading maybe 10-20 pages on average a day because it is quite dense and has a lot of content. But it wasn't difficult to make myself read those pages every day, and as I read, I relived may of my fond memories as a fan of the band for decades.
It's worth the money, and the production quality is also excellent on the book.
January 11, 2025
Absolutely fantastic book and a must have for any fan of the band. Maybe the best book I’ve ever read about any band, and I’ve read a few. No matter how much you think you know about TTH, this book is packed with new information…as well as hundreds of never before seen pictures, set lists, notes and letters and assorted ephemera. Like everything else the band did, it’s filled with passion and care and is singularly The Hip.
March 23, 2025
I spent a long time on this book. It was dense with text and pictures, and I really enjoyed soaking it all in.
As a gal who lived in Kingston, the lore and legend of the Hip was all around. It was so interesting knowing and picturing the places they described, and hearing about their experiences in their own words.
As a gal who lived in Kingston, the lore and legend of the Hip was all around. It was so interesting knowing and picturing the places they described, and hearing about their experiences in their own words.
May 30, 2025
Wow. Absolutely devoured this book.
March 1, 2025
I love The Hip and I love this book! Lots of inside information and some tough candor. A look inside the band throughout all the many ups--and the downs.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews