Books by Mary Karr
“Karr arrived with a unique literary voice that combined rich Texan and burst of lyricism. And she had an almost miraculous ability to portray her broken family with wit and love, without ever flinching from pain. 2000’s Cherry picked up the story by showing Karr as an adolescent, already dabbling with drugs and profoundly lacking any sense of belonging. 2005’s Lit is the volume that deals with Karr’s alcoholism and desperate search for recovery. It can be read alone, but why would you want to miss out on reading all three in order? Although the first two volumes aren’t overtly about Karr’s addiction, they show its makings in her traumatic home life and a lost adolescence.” Read more...
Matt Rowland Hill, Memoirist
“There’s a lot of rage, alcohol and guns in this book. I cannot say enough about the power of Mary Carr’s voice. It’s the kind of book you almost want to read out loud. And it’s just so Texas, so specific East Texas.” Read more...
Attica Locke, Novelist
Another hit memoir about unorthodox upbringings, this time set in east Texas, where the author’s father worked at an oil refinery. The 1995 publication of The Liars’ Club made Mary Karr an overnight celebrity. Her writing is highly regarded—her poetry has won her a Guggenheim fellowship, a Whiting Award and several Pushcart Prizes—but Karr is far from a starchy member of the literary establishment. Salty, funny, and deeply poignant, this is a rare jewel of a book, one that redefined the whole genre of autobiography.
From our article Books like Educated
Interviews where books by Mary Karr were recommended
The best books on Texas, recommended by Attica Locke
The author of the acclaimed noir novels Black Water Rising and The Cutting Season, Attica Locke, tells us about stories of freed slaves, oil barons and gangsters on the run – books that capture the outlaw spirit of her home state.
Favourite Memoirs, recommended by Calvin Trillin
A successful sense of place is the most satisfying part of any book, argues American journalist and humorist Calvin Trillin. He picks out five of his favourite memoirs — and says that part of what he likes about them is that they’re short.
The Best Addiction Memoirs, recommended by Matt Rowland Hill
The author and recovering addict Matt Rowland Hill dissects the ‘addiction memoir’—its literary potential, its formal conventions and its offer of hope and catharsis—as he recommends five books that exemplify the form, from Thomas De Quincey’s Confessions of an English Opium Eater to Mary Karr’s bestselling Lit.
