REVIEW by Gemma West
Patti Smith could never be a ghostwriter. Her voice is too distinctive. Her mystifying, nonconformist style of writing is unlike any other. Her songs are laced with punk and whimsy. Her poems; cathartic. Oh, and did I mention, she’s also a kick-ass sensation of a novelist?
In Smith’s memoir, Just Kids, she chronicles her life upon meeting Robert Mapplethorpe, a talented but unconventional photographer, until his tragic death at the hand of AIDS. The book journeys through the streets of New York City in the mid-60s and early 70s as she explores the vibrant, ever-evolving cultural scene.
As the starstruck, struggling artists try to make ends meet, Smith marvels about befriending Janis Joplin, bumping into Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix and hanging out at all of Andy Warhol’s favourite spots. Living in the Chelsea Hotel certainly helped.
Patti Smith vowed to preserve the tumultuous love which she and Robert shared, and she does so with grace and valour. But it’s difficult to review a memoir. How can we judge someone’s life? How can we critique that? I can’t, but I can tell you that if anyone else wrote this story, they could never capture the tragically beautiful truths of her reality.
There were many moments whilst reading this, when I, as the reader, had to put the book down and re-evaluate my own life. Being able to immerse yourself in a book to the extent that your own emotions are warped or challenged, is not an easy thing for a writer to induce. But Smith does it. She does it brilliantly.
Just Kids was published in 2010 (the year I probably learnt how to read) and this is one of two books that made me read the last page, close it, and sob profusely.
Being vulnerable and dedicated to Robert enough to publish every intimate detail of her struggles was exactly what was needed to win the National Book Award for Nonfiction. But it’s more than that.
It’s more than just a diary of Smith’s life in the 60s and 70s. It was Mapplethorpe’s last wish. At whatever age you may read it, there is an essence of hope that no matter what life path you may end up on, you can always be more.
As she takes you back in time, her story reflects that. Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe believed in art that could change the world. Even though Mapplethorpe never lived to see the extent of what their art achieved, Smith immortalised their story, and while still in mourning, honoured him in a way that only she knew how to.
By writing poetry.
