The Denim Diaries - by Laurie Boyle Crompton (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Laurie Boyle Crompton's coming of age in rural Pennsylvania and the New York City area in the 1970s and 1980s was anything but idyllic. In moving verse accompanied by diary-esque sketches, Crompton takes you along as she navigates relationships, plays the happy family at church despite discord at home, manages her mother's ambitions and her father's alcoholism, struggles with her self-image, and desperately tries to fit in at school by squeezing into too-tight designer denim.

Both heartwarming and heartbreaking, The Denim Diaries follows Crompton's journey through disordered eating and sexual assault to acceptance and recovery. Her vivid poems recall the highs and lows of a life filled with hardship and joy alike. At times both harrowing and humorous, this memoir brings new perspective to the importance of self-love and finding hope in the darkest of times.

Review Quotes

"The composition and storytelling are lyrical and heartbreakingly beautiful, allowing readers to discover and relate to deep truths of the struggles of being an adolescent girl."--School Library Journal

"Crompton's free verse gives readers a powerful view of her inner self-loathing until she learns to accept herself as she is. At times, this is a tough read, but Crompton's candidly honest story will resonate with anyone struggling with self-image issues and difficult family relationships." -- starred, Booklist

"This memoir, enhanced by the author's sketches, is both original and moving--but not for the faint of heart. In often graphic detail, beautiful turns of phrase quickly become hard-cornered truths, providing a poetic roadmap from self-doubt to self-hate and, finally, self-acceptance. Relatable, visceral, and memorable." --starred, Kirkus Reviews