Priestdaddy

Holy Smutty Metaphors!

Lockwood is a new author to me. If I was hip, I'd have heard of Lockwood prior to buying this starred darling. I'd have known that the NY Times has crowned Lockwood the "smutty-metaphor queen." She has a big Twitter following and is the author of a book of poetry, "Motherland Fatherland Homelandsexuals." Lockwood is also a boundary pushing comic with an acerbic wit and a long windup into a delivery that packs a punch to your thinking process.

Lockwood as an author is a fantastic writer with a keen sense of observation. Her stories in this memoir are skillfully told with heart; her narrative smoothly slips from quirky hilarity into depths of sincere revelation. Daddy was a former Lutheran minister, married with children when he is compelled to convert to Catholicism. Granted a "dispensation" from Rome, he is "allowed to keep his wife....even allowed to keep his children, no matter how bad they might be." It is later revealed that his case was reviewed by Joseph Ratzinger, who we now know becomes Pope Benedict XVI. Living with a Catholic Priest, the family also shares the life of a priest and his flock from an intimate vantage point. Lockwood not only sees different lives and circumstances, she has a compassion that sees the perspectives.

The style reminded me of Mic Night at the local bookstore, where poets and storytellers get up and share their latest writings. The words weighted and paused for timing, the occasional interjection of a word or event meant to produce some level of shock in the listener, as you sip coffee or wine. You've no desire to attend the performance but you're dragged by a friend. It's good to get out, see friends, and somehow you end up enjoying the performances. That was this book for me. If I was more familiar with the work of Lockwood, I would have passed; NOT for any reason other than it is not a format or a genre I enjoy. Everything was top rate: the writing the content, the narration -- especially the narration by the author herself which adds another dimension -- it was not for me. I hope that my personal opinion doesn't dissuade anyone interested in this book.

26 of 30 people found this review helpful

Jesus would dig.

You will too. If you're : an artist / remain perplexed by the mysteries of the Catholic Church / have become indifferent to the mysteries of the Catholic Church / have ever found yourself drawn to contemplative life while simultaneously being repelled religious doctrine / or simply have dark humors coursing though your bod that need to be let- this book is for you. P.L. shares scenes from her life behind the doors of the rectory-- yet remains generous and funny.

And the narration? C'mon! Only SHE could convey her gentleness, anger, and distinctively weird comic timing so perfectly. I think her voice is pure chrism.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Terrible narration--read, don't listen

This is a great example of why authors should think long and hard before they narrate their own books. Few have the skill to do so. This narration emphasized the weak points of the writing and overwhelmed the good. The only word I can think of to describe the prose is "florid"...why use one metaphor when five in row might be better? (Because it makes you sound like the winner of the bad poetry/prose contest) Often the descriptions are hilariously overwrought. "The procession passed like a snake's lingerie". What? Still, there's a great story here, interesting characters, and thought provoking insights. It is truly unfortunate these are buried neck deep in downright annoying voices. All of the characters sound like they are coming out of the mouth of a middle school actress overplaying every line, trying to reach the back of the theatre. The mother's voice is a cross between the Wicked Witch and one of the Kardashian sisters. Priestdaddy's voice belongs in Wayne's World, a lunatic stoner. That guy is saying Mass? The main character's tone is so relentlessly snarky--insufferable,sneering adolescent--that you can't stand the girl. When the narrator occasionally dialed down her "performance" and spoke in a believable, authentic way, it was a beautiful calm in the middle of a storm of bad acting. This was a challenging book to narrate. The author wasn't up to the task and did her own writing a great disservice.

17 of 21 people found this review helpful

An Original Voice. An Original Thinker.

I want to be careful about the way in which I write about this book. Not because the subject matter is scandalous (it's not), but because, like all beautifully complex things, it'd be easy to mislabel or to put Lockwood's memoir in a box; to diminish its magnificence and, ultimately, the spell it cast over me. It deserves more than that. So, I'll say this: great writers are often lauded for having an original voice. Well, Lockwood has that and then some (including an amazing and amazingly absurd sense of humor). More importantly, she's an original thinker whose devotion to language and words and poetry - her primary trade - can be felt in every line, every turn of phrase, and every bit of confounding imagery that seems to reveal some hidden, intangible truth that normally exists just outside of fingertips' reach.

6 of 7 people found this review helpful

Such a fresh voice and vivid details. Loved it.

I didn't want it to end. wanted more. Such a fresh voice and vivid details. Loved it.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Unadulterated word porn

This is poetry for those who don't like poetry. It tickled my little grammar pleasure center. It also told me a story about myself in ways that I never could have put to words. I think if I listened to it three times I might encounter the Holy Trinity... but if I listened to it six times I might also stumble across 33 and 1/3 percent of the devil.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Singular

What a singular experience -- strangely hilarious, poignant, insightful, profane, and extremely poetic (unsurprising, given that Lockwood is a poet). This does not read like a standard memoir, it is not entirely linear and it not only concentrates on the author's father as a central force, but also explores her mother, siblings, and husband. She manages to turn an honest eye to some of the grave problems that plague the Catholic church, but does so with sensitivity and wit, an insider's view to how some things go unsaid and stay hidden. Lockwood also weaves in her own gradual separation from being a practicing Catholic while still being immersed in the Church due to her upbringing and family, that sometimes fraught balance between what she believes and what some of the members of the Church believe. Her prose is vibrant and immediate, her characterizations sometimes feel nearly fictional or satirical, the dialog bizarre and interesting and sometimes R-rated. This was unlike anything I've ever read, but I can see why it has shown up on so many best of lists. And Lockwood is an excellent narrator of her own work. Highly recommended.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

A surprise read.

I feel enlightened about the Catholic religion’s inner workings as seen through the eyes of one of it’s children. Being a former member of the catholic religion I found I was sensitive to it’s revelations. I didn’t find it funny. Perhaps one day I’ll give it another listen and see the humor. Even so, I think it is a good book to listen to as it puts another perspective on the idea of religion. Perhaps I’m the only person who feels this way. Give it a read and let me know.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

It would be better to read the book, not to listen

What made the experience of listening to Priestdaddy the most enjoyable?

nothing--the listening experience was poor

What didn’t you like about Patricia Lockwood’s performance?

It's often not good to have authors read their own work. In this case a very good memoir was destroyed by not being able to be understood. The author's voice is dull, gravelly, monotonous, depressing, whispery, and drifts off at the end of the sentences. There were whole chapters I could not understand. I was thinking of returning it and getting the hard copy instead. It's impossible to focus on what she's saying.

Any additional comments?

Read the book, forget about the audible one.

3 of 4 people found this review helpful

Not great; likely just not my cup of tea.

I struggled to CH 3. Simply could not go on. The characters are boring and not likeable. I tried to give it the benefit of the doubt, so stumbled thru the 3rd chapter but that was all I could take.

7 of 10 people found this review helpful