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Backstraw
A fictional memoir. Except when it isn't.
From a cell in Bridgeton Prison, Timothy DiAngelo looks back upon a curious life.
From a '50s Texas boyhood to a '60s Santa Monica youth; from years of overland world travel to mysterious disappearances and deaths; from friendship and family to sideshow freaks, the story weaves across 35 years of changing locales and unforgettable characters - humorous, ethereal and profane - and with equal threads of both slapstick and poignancy.
From a cell in Bridgeton Prison, Timothy DiAngelo looks back upon a curious life.
From a '50s Texas boyhood to a '60s Santa Monica youth; from years of overland world travel to mysterious disappearances and deaths; from friendship and family to sideshow freaks, the story weaves across 35 years of changing locales and unforgettable characters - humorous, ethereal and profane - and with equal threads of both slapstick and poignancy.
290 pages, Paperback
Published April 10, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
June 3, 2023
From the first page to the last, I was captivated and pulled in to worlds I remember and many I have never seen. Not only were the characters relatable but their humanness was deeply felt and moving.
There were moments that were so well explained that only someone who had lived them and had that wonderful ability to be a story teller could paint. Tom has all those qualities and so much more that I do believe this book will stand the test of time. In others words, a Classic. What a gift.
There were moments that were so well explained that only someone who had lived them and had that wonderful ability to be a story teller could paint. Tom has all those qualities and so much more that I do believe this book will stand the test of time. In others words, a Classic. What a gift.
December 13, 2021
Now one of my favorite books! Exciting, very relatable (since the author is my age & from Santa Monica), interesting characters, humor and an amazing insight as to what people live like in other parts of the world. The author’s description of this book is “a fictional memoir…except when it isn’t”, and I spent the entire time wondering which parts were his actual life and which weren’t. Still wondering…
February 23, 2023
This is a wonderful yarn--a heart-tugging story of a man's life, an exotic travelogue, a mystery wrapped up in an enigma, and ultimately a hopeful story of love and friendship. Nice details and turns of phrase. I know the author primarily as a musician, but he's clearly multi-talented and a skilled and compelling writer as well.
October 7, 2021
I couldn't put this book down!! I binge read it savoringly. It made me feel in ways like The Human Comedy did (William Saroyan?)...I keep thinking about it...and the characters...
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews