The Skin Above My Knee by Marcia Butler

The Skin Above My Knee

by Marcia Butler

Music was everything for Marcia Butler. Growing up in an emotionally desolate home with an abusive father and a distant mother, she devoted herself to the discipline and rigor of the oboe, and quickly became a young prodigy on the rise in New York City's competitive music scene.

But haunted by troubling childhood memories while balancing the challenges of a busy life as a working musician, Marcia succumbed to dangerous men, drugs and self-destruction. In her darkest moments, she asked the hardest question of all: Could music truly save her life?

A memoir of startling honesty and subtle, profound beauty, The Skin Above My Knee is the story of a woman finding strength in her creative gifts and artistic destiny. Filled with vivid portraits of 1970's New York City, and fascinating insights into the intensity and precision necessary for a career in professional music, this is more than a narrative of a brilliant musician struggling to make it big in the big city. It is the story of a survivor.

Reviewed by lovelybookshelf on

5 of 5 stars

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Forget Mozart in the Jungle (which got a 1-star review from me). Read Marcia Butler's memoir instead. Butler floats between tales of her life as a musician and her difficult personal life (trigger warning for abuse/child abuse). Her grace and fortitude will inspire and touch you (I admit, I reached for tissues throughout the final chapters) and you'll get a wonderfully accurate look at what it's like to be a professional classical musician. No musical knowledge needed on the part of the reader.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 21 February, 2017: Finished reading
  • 21 February, 2017: Reviewed