Two Nonfictions Reads: A Heavy Load

 I have always considered myself a reader of fiction, but I recall years when I was fascinated by biographies and autobiographies. Among my recent reading selections, a couple of nonfiction selections have had a heavy impact. 

Matthew Perry's memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing is the very definition of dramatic irony from the first page when he opens with "Hi, my name is Matthew, although you may know me by another name. My friends call me Matty. And I should be dead."

This look into the tortured life of abuse of the actor known for his role as Chandler Bing on the long-running series Friends. Throughout his revelations about his experiences with addiction, "the big terrible thing" of the title, I was so overwhelmed by his sense of hope. 

He describes his may experiences in rehab, as well as his pride for helping others going through the same experiences. He had insight into his overwhelming sense of disconnection and abandonment (sent to fly alone when he was far too young to be on his own) and his sense that he was never enough. He describes breaking up with Julia Roberts before she left him. 

He also paints such a supportive picture of his co-stars on Friends, particularly noting David Schwimmer's generous insistence that they negotiate their salaries as a team, no individually. Most tragic is the sense that his fame and success led others to give him what he wanted, not what he needed, providing drugs until they caught up with them. The news will continue to play out the aftermath as his suppliers face serious charges in his death.

Another recent memoir also let me needing something light to read--as a palate cleanser. Michelle Horton shares her sister Nicole Addimando's story. Charged with murdering her partner and father of her children, after years of physical, psychological, and sexual abuse, Nikki was a test case of new laws to protect victims of abuse. The system failed her. 

Michelle, a single mother raising her son, took in Nikki's children and rallied support for her sister's legal case and then told her story. Her own guilt at overlooking signs of her sister's abuse, she joined forces with other supporters, wearing purple as a sign of solidarity and showing up time after time. 

If the story had been fiction, it would have been tough enough to read. As a true story, it was heartbreaking. I still think it was a story that needed to be told.

Two Nonfictions Reads: A Heavy Load