Book Review: Musical Chairs by Jen Knox

I admire the frank way Jennifer Knox wrote this autobiography and her willingness to share the detailed story of her life - her parent's divorce, her running away from home, her subsequent jobs as a strip dancer among others, her treatments for panic disorder and alcoholism, and her decision to attend college and to write. I was impressed by her struggles, including finding out more about the health history of her great-grandmother Gloria, overcoming her own problems, and eventually coming into her own as a writer.

The book is written in a straight-forward chronological narrative, the story mainly speaking for itself but with Jen's voice briefly commenting on her experiences throughout. I would have liked to read more about her internal journey through these experiences and her reactions now as a writer, looking back on her life. Nevertheless, this is an eye-opening book about one young woman's coping with adverse family health and circumstances.


Jennifer Knox is a fiction editor at Our Stories Literary Journal, a freelance writer, editor, and writing tutor.   (Thanks to the author for providing a review copy of this book).