I picked up Heather King's memoir Parched after reading her scathing and right-on essay about James Frey, and it was well-worth the read. I was also intrigued by her New Hampshire roots - she grew up in the seacoast, so there are lots of seacoast references that any UNH student or seacoast resident would find amusing. I never thought I would read a book that actually mentions Marelli's Fruit and Real Estate! And imagine my surprise when I get to page 202 and read this passage about her brother:

Joe, having gotten fired from his job at the nuke and temporarily moved back home, was running up huge phone bills, had taken to wearing a black T-shirt around the house that read 'Fuck you, I already have enough friends,' and was engaged in a very suspicious wake-sleep cycle that consisted of lying in bed all day, then staying up till five in the morning reading.

Hmmmm. Could it be? It is!

He'd also started a punk-rock band called (what else?) the Queers and, as a consequence, was attracting a series of alarmingly young girls.

Ha!I had no idea I was reading a memoir by Joe Queer's sister! That's pretty much all it says about him, so if you're looking for Queer's dirt look elsewhere. This is overall a great little read, so between this book and her PW essay, I'm keeping my eye out for any new Heather King releases.