Title: Lost Lustre: A New York Memoir
Author: Josh Karlen
Publisher: Tatra Press
Publication Date: October 16, 2010
Paperback: 250 pages
ISBN: 978-0981932118
Genre: Non-fiction, Memoir
Muggings on Avenue C, punk bands at CBGB, parties in a nascent SoHo, dropping out from the famous Music & Art High School. In this episodic, coming-of-age memoir, Josh Karlen chronicles growing up in New York’s Greenwich Village and crime-ridden Alphabet City in the 70s and early 80s. Lost Lustre recaptures a New York suffering its gravest financial crisis and soaring crime, yet staging a spectacular resurgence of the arts. Karlen shares a fascinating personal history of the punk rock scene through the prism of The Lustres, a band that played venues that launched the Talking Heads, Patti Smith and the Ramones. In the title chapter, Karlen poignantly pays homage to the band’s charismatic and talented lead singer, whose life in many ways seemed to mirror his times in both its shining creativity and nihilistically destructive force.
My Review:
Lost Lustre: A New York Memoir by Josh Karlen is an extensive memoir into the changing arts scene throughout the decades. While I enjoy history and memoirs I get a bit lost when it comes to music. Karlen managed to capture my interest and I found the historical aspects of Lost Lustre to be rather insightful and it offers an intriguing look into the changing times of the New York cultural scene. Karlen is a gifted writer and easily takes the reader back in time to various movements in the 60s, his tone is one of a friend having a conversation over coffee, lending to a familiarity about the book without being overly casual. Karlen vividly describes what it was like growing up on the lower east side of Manhattan, when it was not an overly glamorous place to be. Karlen takes the reader through the 60s and 70s and takes a look back over those turbulent times as he grew up in those eras. While Lost Lustre was not a memoir that I was enthralled with, I think it may intrigue those readers who are fascinated with the history of New York and those intrigued my the changing music scenes through the decades.
Josh Karlen, a former journalist, grew up on the Lower East Side and in the Village. He lives with his wife and two children in Manhattan. He currently works in media relations.
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I received a complimentary copy of Lost Lustre by Josh Karlen from TLC Book Tours to be a part of this tour and offer my honest review of the book. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of aforementioned book.
I don’t know that much about the music or art scenes, so a lot of this would probably be lost on me. I do think the New York aspect would be fascinating though.
The New York history was fascinating. I know precious little about music, especially the punk rock scene so a lot of the memoir was lost on me.
I like memoirs that skillfully walk that line between familiarity and being overly casual. Thanks so much for the review and for being on the tour!
I really enjoyed the tone of the novel, I wish I understood the music scene more, I blame it on 18 years of ballet and classical music.