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Soundtrack: A Lyric Memoir
Is a song enough to hold all the truths we cannot bear without it? From award-winning writer Michael V. Smith comes a poetic memoir about growing up gay in the shadow of AIDS. Embodying an elusive part of queer history, these song and album-inspired pieces capture the last three decades of the millenium and reveal how music has an uncanny ability to remind us not just where we were at a given moment in time but who we were. With his signature humour and tenderness, and guided by the music of the era, Smith catalogues social prejudices, court rulings, and medical breakthroughs, alongside personal devastations, triumphs, and the search for community. From a first crush toting a Michael Jackson Thriller cassette, to falling in love to the music of Jane Siberry, to dancing at a gay bar to "Groove is in the Heart," Soundtrack is a moving personal record of a man who survived the lost generation and a vital document of queer joy.
212 pages, Paperback
Published September 30, 2025
2 people are currently reading
29 people want to read
About the author
Michael V. Smith
10 books26 followersMichael V. Smith is a writer, comedian, filmmaker, performance artist and occasional clown.
He also is professor creative writing at the University of British Columbia.
He also is professor creative writing at the University of British Columbia.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 14, 2025
Life Is a Soundtrack
How did the book make me feel/think?
Bear with me for a moment.
When Gail dumped me, I made a video of myself reciting a love poem to Extreme’s “More Than Words.”
Too much information?
Probably.
Life is a soundtrack. The milestones—the darts from life that stick—are often pierced by music.
Life. Death. Romance. Family. Heartache.
Michael may be a queer writer—I’m sure he’d like me to remove the “may” from that sentence—but his writing crosses boundaries. It’s visceral. Important. It speaks volumes about what it’s like to live in a world full of labels, and how hard life is to navigate when so many people are trapped inside a forced narrative of what is bleeping normal.
Michael may be a poet; his words transcend genre. They sing off the pages, connecting us and shedding light on what it means to be human in a world where most people judge—often without understanding the plight of others—those of us who want the same thing: love, happiness, and a song to dance to.
Michael V. Smith is one of my favourite authors, offering vision through lyrical prose.
WRITTEN: 14 December 2025
How did the book make me feel/think?
Bear with me for a moment.
When Gail dumped me, I made a video of myself reciting a love poem to Extreme’s “More Than Words.”
Too much information?
Probably.
Life is a soundtrack. The milestones—the darts from life that stick—are often pierced by music.
Life. Death. Romance. Family. Heartache.
Michael may be a queer writer—I’m sure he’d like me to remove the “may” from that sentence—but his writing crosses boundaries. It’s visceral. Important. It speaks volumes about what it’s like to live in a world full of labels, and how hard life is to navigate when so many people are trapped inside a forced narrative of what is bleeping normal.
Michael may be a poet; his words transcend genre. They sing off the pages, connecting us and shedding light on what it means to be human in a world where most people judge—often without understanding the plight of others—those of us who want the same thing: love, happiness, and a song to dance to.
Michael V. Smith is one of my favourite authors, offering vision through lyrical prose.
WRITTEN: 14 December 2025
November 4, 2025
see my note on Substack: amandaearl.substack.com. this is an excellent and important read
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews