Chomp Press Pull - by Elaina Battista-Parsons (Paperback)

About the Book

A vivid dive into the 1980s, CHOMP PRESS PULL is Elaina Battista-Parsons' heartfelt and nostalgic essay collection exploring life's textures, scents, and sounds and challenge of growing up with sensory sensitivities.

Book Synopsis

"Parsons' writing hits right to the core, conjuring smells of grandma's kitchen and summoning the feeling of scratchy shag carpet on a hot summer's day." Jocelyn Mackenzie, Recording Artist, Righteous Babe Records

Growing up in a time when sensory dysregulation wasn't in our vocabulary felt like a daily obstacle course-the victory being not throwing up in the backseat of a hot Buick station wagon, or the pure freedom to dance one's heart out in the wood paneled family room of 1985 while The Cars told you to "Shake it Up."

A romp through popular culture of the 1980s, Chomp Press Pull untangles the irritation, bliss, and reality of feeling many things-on your skin and in your nostrils. Think of it like a sticker album: scratch-and-sniff memories, glittering moments of euphoria, and real-life baubles you can almost hold.

Do you crave cool air, a tension-free neck, hairless arms, and the quiet hum of home? If so, this collection of peppermint and dirt-flavored essays might just feel like a release.

Review Quotes

"Personal, charming, and endearing. As a fellow Jersey girl with sensory issues, Parsons' writing hits right to the core, conjuring smells of grandma's kitchen and summoning the feeling of scratchy shag carpet on a hot summer's day. Her storytelling language is sensual and visceral, holding space for the not often articulated for people with extrasensory perception. Her work offers us permission to take up as much space as we need and encourages us through her example to allow ourselves as many accommodations as we need to feel human." Jocelyn Mackenzie, Recording Artist, Righteous Babe Records

"Reading Elaina Battista-Parsons's memoir, Chomp, Press, Pull, is a fully immersive experience. A rapture of memory pieces filtered through the lens of an artist neurologically more alive to her experience of the senses than most. This beautifully rendered collection of essays refract her life from a perspective that grabs you by the heart and pulls you in chin deep. A tour de force from the author of "Italian Bones in the Snow," this book is a joy delivery system." Carolyn Russell, author of Death and Other Survival Strategies