Broken Horses

Starred review from April 12, 2021
Carlile, a multiple Grammy Award–winning musician, recalls the pivotal events that shaped her music and identity in this captivating memoir. Growing up in a small town outside Seattle in the ’80s, she sought the limelight early, entering singing competitions and teaching herself piano and guitar. Though her family struggled to keep food on the table, her mother’s support gave her a quiet, stable confidence. “She’d helped me try to win... and she helped me truly express myself in front of my peers.” After moving several times before high school, Carlile dropped out to focus on music. She’s candid about her sexuality and how she reconciled her faith after being turned away by her hometown church when she came out. “There was grace in the outrage my public rejection incited in my family and in that tiny town,” Carlile writes. She also offers a behind-the-scenes look at the music business, acknowledging how fortunate she was to garner respect from Joni Mitchell, Bonnie Raitt, and others she performed with. She doesn’t sugarcoat the disappointments that came her way—such as being booted off a rock tour because she was a “female-fronted opener”—instead recalling them with a self-awareness that allows balance for her marriage, motherhood, and national tours. While the author’s rise to fame was impressive, it is her raw emotion that resonates after the book’s end. Agent: David Vigliano, AGI Vigliano Literary.